Looking at womens' breasts

[Bookcat]

So, in and of itself, it’s not sin.

Can it be sinful? Yes (disordered in various ways depending on various factors. Can be contrary to modesty, or even chastity, dignity of the person etc (note I have not read all the posts here…I am referring in a general way to the q in the title)

(note too one must distinguish as to what is being done…there is a difference certainly between looking lustfully…and happening to notice an attractive person in a modest and chaste etc way etc…and of course there can be a sort of “automatic” draw at times of the eyes of men that happens…but we need to practice too a custody of the eyes)

And yes even in the case of a putting oneself into a “near occasion” of sin…such too can be sinful …(larger topic…but I note this).​

Catechism:

2521 Purity requires modesty, an integral part of temperance. Modesty protects the intimate center of the person. It means refusing to unveil what should remain hidden. It is ordered to chastity to whose sensitivity it bears witness. It guides how one looks at others and behaves toward them in conformity with the dignity of persons and their solidarity.

2522 Modesty protects the mystery of persons and their love. It encourages patience and moderation in loving relationships; it requires that the conditions for the definitive giving and commitment of man and woman to one another be fulfilled. Modesty is decency. It inspires one’s choice of clothing. It keeps silence or reserve where there is evident risk of unhealthy curiosity. It is discreet.

2523 There is a modesty of the feelings as well as of the body. It protests, for example, against the voyeuristic explorations of the human body in certain advertisements, or against the solicitations of certain media that go too far in the exhibition of intimate things. Modesty inspires a way of life which makes it possible to resist the allurements of fashion and the pressures of prevailing ideologies.

2524 The forms taken by modesty vary from one culture to another. Everywhere, however, modesty exists as an intuition of the spiritual dignity proper to man. It is born with the awakening consciousness of being a subject. Teaching modesty to children and adolescents means awakening in them respect for the human person.

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As to looking at paintings …well one must know oneself and make a judgment (for some it can be problematic others not…again it also depends on the painting).

And there is a difference between looking a live person and a painting.

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What is needed?

Prudence, modesty, temperance in general, of course chastity…

and a reasonable:

Custodia Occulorum (custody of the eyes)

 

[centurionguard]

So, in and of itself, it’s not sin.

There’s “no” sin looking at a woman and appreciating a woman’s beauty even if she does make herself sexually appealing.

The sin derives when the man looking at her entertains thoughts of lust as if desiring to copulate with any woman married or single. That’s were the sin lies.

Is it possible for a woman to be trapped by such lusts when looking at a man?
Yes; but it happens far more in the weaknesses of the male gender.

Jesus knew this, that’s why He made comment about it in scripture.

 

[TheRealJuliane]

So, in and of itself, it’s not sin.

Go ahead and do it, Robert. No matter what anyone says to you, you only hear what you want to hear. I am thinking that the longer you are staring at “girls,” as you call women, the greater the chance that one of these “girls” will have a boyfriend, husband, father, or brother who will notice you looking and will stop you from doing it. It might be painful. Just sayin.

 

[Robert_Sock]

Go ahead and do it, Robert. No matter what anyone says to you, you only hear what you want to hear. I am thinking that the longer you are staring at “girls,” as you call women, the greater the chance that one of these “girls” will have a boyfriend, husband, father, or brother who will notice you looking and will stop you from doing it. It might be painful. Just sayin.

I can assure you that my behavior is very common in men. Even if they refuse to admit it, I would guess that 95% of the male population has a “habit” of looking at breasts.

 

[Marie5890]

Robert, have you talked to your priest about this?

 

[StarFireKK]

I can assure you that my behavior is very common in men. Even if they refuse to admit it, I would guess that 95% of the male population has a “habit” of looking at breasts.

Yep, Robert! You are EXACTLY right. So long as it is a HABIT and so long as MOST people do it…it can’t possibility be sinful.

 

[L_piperatus]

Yep, Robert! You are EXACTLY right. So long as it is a HABIT and so long as MOST people do it…it can’t possibility be sinful.

And I LOVE picking my nose… I dream of doing it in front of Her Majesty the Queen of Britain! It’s a HABIT and MOST people do it (at least when they are babies), it can’t possibly be GROSS

/jk

 

[domandcarols]

I can assure you that my behavior is very common in men. Even if they refuse to admit it, I would guess that 95% of the male population has a “habit” of looking at breasts.

That’s a really interesting excuse for bad behavior, ha.

 

[Catholic90]

Yep, Robert! You are EXACTLY right. So long as it is a HABIT and so long as MOST people do it…it can’t possibility be sinful.

MOST men masturbate at some point in their lives…it’s a habit…it can’t possibly be sinful. (following the OP’s logic…)

 

[DexUK]

I can assure you that my behavior is very common in men. Even if they refuse to admit it, I would guess that 95% of the male population has a “habit” of looking at breasts.

They probably refuse to admit it because they know it’s wrong.

 

[DexUK]

And honestly, if you post a question asking whether an act is sinful and the unanimous opinion over approximately 150 replies is that it is, why on earth are you still trying to defend the action?

If I were told by dozens of different people that something was wrong when I’d asked them their opinions, the only reason I’d be deliberately trying to avoid taking their advice would be because I wanted to annoy them…

 

[Robert_Sock]

And honestly, if you post a question asking whether an act is sinful and the unanimous opinion over approximately 150 replies is that it is, why on earth are you still trying to defend the action?

If I were told by dozens of different people that something was wrong when I’d asked them their opinions, the only reason I’d be deliberately trying to avoid taking their advice would be because I wanted to annoy them…

You twist things; if you bother to go back and re-read the posts you will find that posters often suggest that it is not a sin (or that it’s in the gray area).

 

[Marie5890]

You twist things; if you bother to go back and re-read the posts you will find that posters often suggest that it is not a sin (or that it’s in the gray area).

Have you talked to your priest? Are you going to talk to your priest?

No one here has said that it’s “ok”. No one. No one has given you the “dont worry, it’s not a problem”. No one.

You seem to be looking to others to justify what you are doing. No one is giving you justification. No one.

The CCC has been quoted several times. Several. You seem to be ignoring what you want and cherry picking.

No one here Robert is going to tell you that it’s ok.

 

[Monica4316]

Robert, please read this whole article, it goes into exactly this topic. In short, yes this is wrong and not pure, even if no lust.

catholicnewsagency.com/document.php?n=999

 

[DexUK]

You twist things; if you bother to go back and re-read the posts you will find that posters often suggest that it is not a sin (or that it’s in the gray area).

It is a sin.

You may not like it. You may not want to hear it. You may not believe it. But it is a sin.

If you don’t believe us, then believe the Catechism of the Catholic Church which you purport to be a member of. Believe your priest, if you ever get round to asking him the question - I can guarantee he’ll tell you it’s sinful.

If you won’t do either of those things then I simply give up, since you’ll be beyond any temporal arguments and you’ll just have to get a nasty surprise when you eventually shuffle off your mortal coil… As I wish for nothing but the best for all souls, that would be a personal disappointment for me, but if there’s nothing I or others can do to get you to mend your ways, then so be it.

 

[Wesley7]

the truth is that women’s breasts of all sorts/shapes/sizes are visual targets for men.

 

[CopticChristian]

You sound judgmental…picking on me by believing that anyone who looks at breasts is perverted. Back to my OP, I’m still wondering if looking at a woman’s breasts is sinful? Am I doing something wrong?

Robert,

The only meaning any body part has is the meaning your mind gives it. That is it.

 

[sepgs2004]

I would say it is a sin.
It will certainly stay as images in your inner mind and will torture you soon. It is an organ of sexual significance. It is flesh. Try to stop that behavior and see how much challenge you get into.

We are tempted to look at the flesh to feed our fleshy desires.
It is evil spirit’s smartness to turn us to make it into a second nature habit. I mean, doing a sinful act in a numb manner.

In old days, women would not show their body to any extent in public. Things are changing gradually, as evil things are growing more. It is sinful nature for them to take pleasure on this vainglory and to justify the need for attention to their physical flesh. Not all and spiritual women would do or want this.

Be careful dear brothers.

We are called to stay away from temptations, not to invite or play with them.
You may not call it a sin and just after doing it, you may go and pray devoutly. Another, younger person noticing all this, might follow you and will fall into sin or use it to justify his sinful nature. We do not want to be bad models.
You see, some sins are like this. One will not feel anything when doing it, but it will pave the way to other brothers to fall into sin.

Let common “unchristian” women do whatever they want. We, being Christians, have to be pure and chaste in our soul.

 

[dshix]

Robert,

The only meaning any body part has is the meaning your mind gives it. That is it.

I would say it is a sin.
It will certainly stay as images in your inner mind and will torture you soon. It is an organ of sexual significance. It is flesh. Try to stop that behavior and see how much challenge you get into.

We are tempted to look at the flesh to feed our fleshy desires.
It is evil spirit’s smartness to turn us to make it into a second nature habit. I mean, doing a sinful act in a numb manner.

In old days, women would not show their body to any extent in public. Things are changing gradually, as evil things are growing more. It is sinful nature for them to take pleasure on this vainglory and to justify the need for attention to their physical flesh. Not all and spiritual women would do or want this.

Be careful dear brothers.

We are called to stay away from temptations, not to invite or play with them.
You may not call it a sin and just after doing it, you may go and pray devoutly. Another, younger person noticing all this, might follow you and will fall into sin or use it to justify his sinful nature. We do not want to be bad models.
You see, some sins are like this. One will not feel anything when doing it, but it will pave the way to other brothers to fall into sin.

Let common “unchristian” women do whatever they want. We, being Christians, have to be pure and chaste in our soul.

Guys, this thread is a year old.

 

[AlanFromWichita]

Imagine one of those women was Our Lady, the Holy Virgin. Would you stare and “admire” her breasts?

She wears a modest neck line, which helps IMMENSELY. If they are not covered, they will be seen; in the depictions I’ve seen our Blessed Mother does not taunt.

Breasts are for babies. Keep your eyes to yourself.

If the breasts are for babies, then they should be covered up. If they are on display, they are clearly for more than the babies. Whether it’s to attract men, or to compete with other women, or (gasp) to attract women, their owners designate with their clothing that they are for more than just babies.

Also anyone who gives the breasts to the babies in public, is inviting awkwardness at best.

Alan