The Movement of Pure Hearts
Chastity:
The Way
to Love
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every morning. It was my one solace in that dark hiding place. I looked
forward to the morning when the girl
would again come to consume another
ing eyes and timid steps delighted me.
How many more times would I see her?
Then one morning, while she was praying after consuming the Eucharist, the
church doors crashed suddenly open.
I heard a savage cry and then a gunshot. The girl, leaning on her hands,
ing her last reserves of strength, she
took another of the profaned hosts in
her tongue. The soldier stood over her
and watched her keenly. One more time
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hands in prayer, but then collapsed. The
echoed throughout the church. After
taking a look at the dead body and
the scattered hosts, the soldier left the
church with heavy steps.
While I was still contemplating the
body of the young martyr, the closet
door suddenly opened. The soldier who
to go. Surprised, I thanked him and
went right over to the sanctuary. I had
scarcely knelt down by the dead body
when the soldier, standing over me,
said: “If every place had such a girl,
ing for the communist side.”
As soon as I had buried the little
martyr’s body, a man came up, took
me to a car, and drove me to the border,
where he promptly deposited me.
Translated by
Andrzej Trojanowski SChr
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Man’s supreme goal is to love and
to be loved. Man is the only creature to be
endowed with an aptitude for love. Created in the “image and likeness of God,”
man has an immortal soul and the ability
to reason and choose between good and
evil. Pope John Paul II stressed that “man
became the ‘image and likeness’ of God
not only through his own humanity, but
also through the communion of persons,
which man and woman form from the
very beginning…[Man is] an image of
an inscrutable divine communion of persons” (Catechesis, November 14, 1979).
The joyous truth of human
sexuality
The union of a man and a woman
in the marital act is so close and intimate that the two persons become “one
body” (Gen 2: 24). Upon this bond the
Creator bestows the blessing of fruitful-
ness. Divine Revelation tells us that this
loving union of the spouses in which
the latter, in the purity of their hearts,
other is a sign and image of a “divine
communion of persons.” In the holy
act of sexual union the spouses become
“one body” and gift each other with all
the spiritual and bodily riches of their
humanity; above all, they confer upon
each other that fruitful love which they
receive from Christ. Thus experienced,
the sexual union of the spouses becomes
the seal of the sacrament of marriage.
It is a sacred experience of the love of
Christ, who unites the husband and wife
in a community so close and intimate that
they become “one body”—an image of
“a divine communion of persons.”
God willed the domain of human
sexuality to be a special locus of experiencing His creative presence, which
In the holy act of sexual
union the spouses
become “one body”
and gift each other
with all the spiritual
and bodily riches of
their humanity; above
all, they confer on each
other that fruitful love
which they receive
from Christ
calls new human beings into existence.
Sexuality is a sacred domain that we
need to entrust to Jesus and thus enable
Him to free it from every evil, healing and cleansing it of every tendency
John Paul II stated that, “uniting with
rediscover, so to speak, every time and in
a special way, the mystery of creation.
They return in this way to that union in
-
established by the Creator. Through it
they discover their own humanity, both
in its original unity, and in the duality of
a mysterious mutual attraction. However,
sex is something more than the mysterious power of human corporality, which
acts almost by virtue of instinct” (Catechesis, November 21, 1979).
Why does sex outside of marriage destroy love?
God tells us that the sexual bond
is to be a “language of love” which
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to call each other by name. This means
reliving, in a sense, the original virginal
value of man, which emerges from the
mystery of his solitude before God and
in the midst of the world. The fact that
fruitful, and enduring self-gift to each
other. This “language of love” in the
sexual act should also transmit the love
of God Himself, and it is fully achieved
only in a sacramental marriage.
and deeper than the feelings and passions
associated with the sexual urge. Love is
a freely made decision to devote oneself
to the highest good of the beloved person. It means a readiness to make a gift
of oneself to another—a gift that is total,
exclusive, and fruitful. Only in the sacrament of marriage can the sexual act
transmit the love of God and be a sign
of Christ’s sacramental presence—
a moment of becoming “one body” in
mutual spousal love. The sexual bond
is a special kind of language that must
speak the truth. A man and woman who
engage in sexual intimacy outside of
death upon each other, for they break
God’s commandment not to commit
adultery. By engaging in the sexual act
they are saying that they belong to each
other totally and exclusively, and yet the
language of their body is a mutual lie,
since they have not pledged themselves
to each other in marriage, which alone
guarantees the totality and permanence
of this gift. The sacrament of marriage
is necessary for sexual intimacy to be
able to express the truth about love and
When a couple express their marriage
vows, they become transformed by
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The Movement of Pure Hearts
the power of the Holy Spirit. From that
moment they become man and wife. By
the power of the same God, they are
consequences of original sin. Alone, by
our own efforts, we are unable to overcome the covetousness of the eye and
death of one of the spouses can break it.
A boy and girl who are mature and
to the law of love. Thus Jesus invites us
ment of Pure Hearts, so that every day
we may entrust to Him the healing of
our hearts, which are so wounded by sin
The Movement of Pure Hearts
Jesus tells us that we can love only
with a pure heart. A chaste heart is a gift
that Jesus bestows upon those who ask
for it and cooperate with Him. To achieve
a chaste heart, we must, as John Paul II
tells us, walk “the way of restraint and
controlling our appetites, and this from
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Him to heal us and enable us to love
with a pure heart, we must shrug off
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to express their love in sexual intimacy.
This is a sign they are to become a married couple. Until they make that pledge,
formally, in the sacrament of holy matrimony, they abstain from sexual intercourse so as not to destroy this great
treasure, which is their mutual love.
Only Jesus, in the sacrament of marriage, can confer upon them the right
to express their mutual love through the
“language of the body”—in sexual intimacy. If they have sex before their wedding, they betray their ignorance of the
meaning of sex and marriage; and, in so
doing, they wreak great harm on each
other and destroy their love.
MPH Summer retreat, Pasierbiec, Poland, 2008
the very beginning, through purely interior struggle” (Catechesis, December 3,
1980). For this reason we need to cling
selves to His healing care. It is He who
will cure us of our addiction to the sins
of impurity, which, left untreated, lead
premarital sex, masturbation, petting,
oral sex, homosexual acts, consumption of pornography, etc. Love demands
purity of heart. We are all tainted by the
to unburden ourselves of all our sins in
sacramental confession, receive Jesus in
Holy Communion, and then say the following prayer of consecration:
“Lord Jesus, I am thankful
rights the greatest wrongs and
heals the most hurtful wounds.
my soul, my body, my sexuality.
I vow not to engage in sexual
acts until I am united with my
spouse in the Sacrament of Marriage. From this day forth, I will
not read, buy, or watch pornographic materials. [Here, girls
may wish to add: I vow to dress
The Movement of Pure Hearts
Only Jesus, in the
sacrament of marriage,
can confer upon them
the right to express
their mutual love
through the “language
of the body”—in sexual
intimacy
meditation, frequent reception of
Holy Communion, and Adoration
of the Blessed Sacrament. I also
pledge to avail myself regularly
of the Sacrament of Penance,
not to give in to discouragement,
and to pick myself up promptly
every time I fall into sin. Dear
Jesus, teach me the practice of
self-discipline and to control my
sexual desires and feelings. Give
me the courage to resist the easy
way in my daily walk through
life. Help me to avoid everything
that weakens and enslaves the
will: nicotine, alcohol, and drugs.
Teach me to place love at the very
center of my life.
Mary, my Mother, guide me
in my journey of faith. Lead me
to the very source of Love—
to Jesus, that I may trust and
believe in Him alone. After the
example of Servant of God John
Paul II, I desire to entrust myself
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modestly and in no way to arouse
lustful thoughts or desires in others.] I solemnly promise to meet
MPH Summer retreat, Pasierbiec, Poland, 2008
entirely to you: Totus Tuus, Mary!
Blessed Caroline, procure for me
the gift of a pure heart. Amen!”
We invite our readers to pray these
words every morning. Inform us of your
personal information (address, date of
e-mail, and telephone number). We in
turn will enroll you in our Book of Pure
Hearts and send you our formational
materials and special blessing. We
remind all MPH members to undertake
the daily task of walking in the way of
faith by clinging tightly to Jesus. Place
all your trust in Him and express this
trust in daily persevering prayer. In this
yourself. Exercise in the morning. Get
ble, practice some regular sport, as this
is the best form of rest. Do not waste
your time watching TV indiscriminately
and self-discipline. Only then will Jesus
be able to heal your wounded heart and
form your character. True, the way of
faith leading to Jesus is not easy, but
what an adventure it is when undertaken
daily! Only faith will lead you to love,
to perfect happiness in heaven.
Write to us and send your testimonies. Share your experiences of faith with
others. Every day we pray the rosary and
chaplet of Divine Mercy for our readers
and benefactors. My blessings to all!
do not give in to your changing moods
and feelings. Draw up a daily plan that
makes time for prayer, work, study, rest,
and recreation. Try to realize it with iron
resolve and do not succumb to discouragement and apathy. Be demanding of
Love One Another Catholic Magazine No. 18
Imprimatur: Superior General Tomasz Sielicki SChr.
Publisher: Society of Christ
Editor-in-Chief:
Associate Editor: Christopher A. Zakrzewski
Graphics & Layout:
English translations:
E-mail: [email protected]
the editorial team
Magazine website: www.loveoneanothermagazine.org
English-language submissions and editorial
inquiries to be addressed to:
C.A Zakrzewski, Love One Another Magazine,
1045 Wilno South Street, Wilno, Ontario, Canada, K0J 2N0
Telephone: 01 613 756 7940; E-mail: [email protected]
The editors reserve the right to modify submitted articles
in the interests of style, accuracy, and brevity.
Photographs representing individuals are often entirely incidental to the
accompanying text.
Copyright © 2010, ISSN 1545-2034
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