Road block

[discernmentinpr]

I know I have been posting on here a lot about sinfulness in regards to vocations, but I have another question. I read on the website of a religious order that said if one cannot go without committing a mortal sin, then they do NOT have a vocation. Can someone feel that God is calling them to be a priest, yet they still mastuebate? Can’t through prayer and their calling, their desires to mastuebate be ended?

 

[Cloisters]

Mind over matter.

Pray first, asking the grace to overcome this problem. Thoughts may start to come to you: this offends God, and therefore I shouldn’t do it. Confession will give you the graces to overcome and heal.

Why do you need the cortisone shot that comes from the act? Is there something psychological needing to be resolved?

Even in marriage, conjugal relations take place during the woman’s ‘safe’ time which is only a week or so. The throwback for someone with sexual problems is marriage, but the problem will be magnified a hundredfold within the marital context. This is why you want to be the best person you can be before marrying, not thinking of yourself, but of others.

Blessings,
Cloisters

 

[discernmentinpr]

So, while one may have a vocation, they can still have an issue that they are working on overcoming. It is just a matter of fixing the problem now, so it does not effect your ministry/vocation?

 

[Cloisters]

So, while one may have a vocation, they can still have an issue that they are working on overcoming. It is just a matter of fixing the problem now, so it does not effect your ministry/vocation?

Yes, one needs to work on one’s faults so they are not sent home because of them.

If you read ‘The Golden Arrow,’ it will show how the nun’s SD made her wait to enter Carmel until she had resolved her faults. He said if she didn’t, she would be sent back out.

Correction is utilized in convents, monasteries, and seminaries, but issues concerning celibacy have to be resolved a Couple of years before entry. Ask about such issues with whichever seminary you’re looking at.

Blessings,
Cloisters

Pardon the capital ‘c’. Not sure what the mobile was doing.

 

[Vincent187]

I suffered from the same problem about 3 1/2 years ago, however, due to my darned scrupulosity, I haven’t psychologically recovered from it. This has led to severe depression, despair and near-attempted suicide on more than one occasion.

In regard to the question, it certainly is not true. However, a candidate for priesthood must have demonstrated a good level of sexual integration for a period of two or more years (may vary, depending on circumstances and judgment by vocations directors, bishop and spiritual director(s)).

These habits can be hard to break, but it can help to reduce temptation through prayer and fasting. Some religious give up eating meat to aid in the battle for purity, by subduing the desires of the flesh. Being a previous student of nutrition, I was interested in this, and found a biological reason behind it. Many animal-proteins release androgens (testosterone, which primarily drives libido) when digested, and can imbalance the body’s hormones (increased testosterone). This can exacerbate sexual temptation, and what may follow is already understood.

I adopted a plant-based diet in April of last year, and it has helped me immensely. You could look at it as a kind of mortification, but it’s really a blessing.
However, we must fervently pray for purity! Ask Our Lady to intercede for you, as she is the Virgin Mother of God - the Spotless Handmaid of The Lord.

If you’re interested in trying such a diet, feel free to send me a PM.

God bless!

 

[steymard]

I know I have been posting on here a lot about sinfulness in regards to vocations, but I have another question. I read on the website of a religious order that said if one cannot go without committing a mortal sin, then they do NOT have a vocation. Can someone feel that God is calling them to be a priest, yet they still mastuebate? Can’t through prayer and their calling, their desires to mastuebate be ended?

Saying that one does not presently have a vocation does not mean that one will never have a vocation to the religious to priestly life.

The reason they say this that neither a priest nor a religious can possibly fulfill their vocation properly if they are still caught up in habitual mortal sin. Let me explain: one of the absolutely central duties of a priest is the worthy celebration of the Mass. If he is constantly in mortal sin, he cannot properly fulfill that duty. And a religious makes a solemn vow to chastity. Masturbation breaks that solemn vow.

A religious order can be sure to educate you properly while you are a novice. But they cannot be sure that you will break your habit whilst you are with them. If you do break your vow of chastity, it is a grave danger to yourself. So it is with your benefit in mind that they say this.

I repeat that this does not mean that you will never be called to religious life. It means that if you want to join the order that says such things, you might need to take some time to decisively root out that sin and leap into prayer with a mighty effort and with God’s help. Many saints had to wait in order to join the religious order they loved. Waiting is not a bad thing. I pray you will find peace, chastity, and a fruitful pursuit of whatever you are called to!