Believe It Or Not, Lust Is Conquerable

Lust is different. Notoriously stubborn and difficult to conquer, it is unlike any other sin. But why? Well, it’s not just a bad habit, like checking your phone too often (which may not help when it comes to lust), but rather is part and parcel of our fallen nature.

The truth is that each of us is an embodied soul. We have thoughts, predilections, and inclinations about what feels good—right now. You can thank original sin for the gift (and curse) of sexual desire. The Council of Trent called it “concupiscence,” the natural proclivity to sin even after baptism. It is a wound that can be healed but never expunged.

Modern life doesn’t help. Temptation and opportunity lurk around every corner. Imagine a gluttonous, compulsive gambler trying to live inside a bakery that sells lottery tickets. The good news is that our struggle against disordered desire isn’t new. The saints intimately understood the problem, and we can learn from their battles against lust.

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St. Augustine struggled with lust and candidly diagnosed it in his Confessions, uttering one of the most honest prayers in Catholic history: “Grant me chastity and continence, but not yet.” Have more authentic words ever been written? St. Augustine wasn’t being facetious. He wanted God on his own terms.

What’s the harm in one more dalliance, one more party, one more disordered escapade? Nevertheless, St. Augustine ultimately defeated his enemy, but only after a life-changing event in the garden in Milan and the unyielding prayers of his mother, St. Monica, for her wayward son. The author of the City of God wrestled with the same issue that keeps many of us stuffing our faces with baked goods and playing scratch-offs. We are in good company.

What about St. Thomas Aquinas? The brilliant Catholic theologian and philosopher. The author of the Summa Theologica not only battled lust, but also his own family who did him no favors when they locked him in a room with a prostitute to get him to reject his vow of chastity.

Let’s just say the only burning log in that room was the one he picked up from the fireplace to chase the woman out. He then traced a cross on the door with the charred wood. St. Thomas Aquinas is quite possibly one of Catholicism’s fiercest warriors against concupiscence. He honored his vow of chastity for the rest of his life.

St. Francis de Sales teaches us how to avoid temptation in his Introduction to the Devout Life. His guidance is particularly useful for evading disordered desire. He advises us to take refuge in a fortress of God’s love, to ignore the lure of vice, and focus on the opposite virtue. He warns us against idle minds and idle eyes. These are open doorways, ready to welcome temptation into our lives. Examine your passions and guard against them, early and often, he cautions.

So how are ordinary Catholics supposed to fight back against the challenges that the saints so fiercely struggled to overcome? The Church provides the necessary tools. Frequent confession cleanses the soul and restores spiritual grace. Consider it akin to regular maintenance on a machine prone to leakage (sorry for the euphemistic imagery).

The Holy Eucharist nourishes the soul, providing the strength to resist sin, much like how protein strengthens muscle. Don’t forget daily prayer. Keep your mind occupied with pursuits other than your phone and its lustful invitations. Take up your rosary and engage your hands in more—holy—pursuits.

The battle against lust is a difficult one. The saints conquered it through honest introspection and steady progress toward grace. You can do it, too. The Church offers the tools you need. Use them. Next time temptation comes knocking on your door, you will be prepared to shut the door in its face.

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