Teenage lust issues

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scapularkid8

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I’m trying to settle an internal debate I’m having:

Lately I’ve been, frankly, bored and I think that’s why I’ve been doing this, but I’ve been looking at pictures of good-looking models on the internet.

I brought this up with my Confessor about a year ago when I was having similar issues and he said that God always loves me and that I am young (18) and going through many changes and He understands that better than I do. He said it was bad to do that, but he didn’t say if it was mortal sin or not. Another priest also told me a similar thing at Confession a couple of weeks ago after I told him I couldn’t tell if I was lusting or not.

I still feel incredibly guilty though. Have I lusted? I didn’t do any “imagining”, but I “appreciated”, I guess, the models so I’m really confused as to whether or not this is a mortal sin. Neither priest gave me a straight answer. I am praying for help and forgiveness so does that count for anything? Does God know I am trying and struggling?
 
God certainly know that you’re trying and struggling. However, that doesn’t make it ok to continue looking at pictures of scantily-clad models.

While I can’t say for certain whether you lusted or committed mortal sin, I would say that if you had no sexual thoughts, you probably did not lust. Still, looking at these pictures puts you in the near occasion of sin and should be avoided. It’s important to think about why you are looking at these pictures. Is it to strengthen your relationship with God or with your friends and family? Is it for educational/informational purposes? No. It’s probably something more along the lines of you find these models physically attractive and get some sort of thrill or enjoyment out of seeing their pictures. And what real benefit does this provide? There is none that I can see, yet looking at these pictures makes it much easier for you to fall into the sin of lust than if you were browsing less morally dubious websites.

So I guess my ultimate advice is this: Continue praying. God knows how difficult this is and He can help you. However, you also must help yourself. While it’s possible that you might not be lusting and committing mortal sin, the fact remains that looking at these pictures is a great temptation to lust and puts you at the occasion of sin. So try your best to avoid these pictures. They’re not worth damaging your relationship with God.

I know how hard this kind of stuff can be. I’ve struggled with similar temptations in the past, but I’ve (for the most part) gotten past them. And I’m about your age (19), so I know that, with God, overcoming these temptations can be done despite those raging hormones. I hope this helps and I’ll be praying for you.
 
What’s up, man?

The big question is: Do you feel guilty? (Obviously you do to a degree or wouldn’t be asking these questions. lol) Now you have to ask yourself why you feel guilty. Are they in skimpy stuff? What part of them are you focusing on? I mean, really? Right now it might just be the whole package, so to speak, but the more your mind begins to focus in on a certain area, the worse the thoughts will become. And trust me, it’s not so hard to find skimpiER pics (or videos) on the Internet–even when not looking.

Like the poster before me said, you’re putting yourself in a bad place, and it might not be long till you’re in way over your head, even if you’re just wading right now.

In any case, I don’t know you’re heart. I consider myself an artist, and I definitely can appreciate the human body for what it is. (Ha, ha! I’m a guy, and I actually told one of my friends the other day that he had a very nice rump, for example, though I wouldn’t advise it. 😃 ) But when does the appreciating you’re speaking of cross the line into lusting? Don’t feed the little monster inside of you.

Good luck!

(Ask for St. Joseph’s help, or St. Aloysius’s, for that matter.)
 
The general rule of thumb that I use is this:
Do I feel guilty?

If I do it’s probably because I’ve done something wrong. It may have just been a sin of the heart or mind, rather than one that I enacted, but generally if I’m feeling guilty that tells me that there is something I must confess. It’s easy to become bored when you’ve got a lot of time on your hands. Especially in the case of people our age… when we’ve just spent all of our time studying for finals at college and then finally have a break!

I’ve only been out of school about a week, but already the temptation to sin has increased a lot, and part of that I believe comes from the fact that I’ve fallen out of my routine. My prayer life isn’t on the schedule it used to be, and I’m once again finding myself in a new situation with new experiences to deal with.

I’m of course assuming that you just came home from college and that you have nothing to do… and like any other college student the thing to do is to get online and browse around (I mean, facebook only entertains you for a while anyways…)! Well I’ve been doing my fair share of wasting time, and I just have to keep telling myself to go to the CAF or Vatican’s website or some other wholesome website whenever I get the temptation to sin.

The internet offers us many opportunities. We can either take the opportunities we have to edify ourselves (and thus the world), or we can allow Satan to slowly break away at our conscience until we are uncertain what sinning is anymore. Like the poster said before me, looking at models (or basically any pictures on the internet) is dangerous territory, so it’s best to find something more edifying to do with your time.

“Let all things be done for edification.” I Corinthians 14:26

As for me, I plan on reading up on some of the Pope’s encyclicals… and if you’ve never done that before, that’s a great thing you can do online… PM me if you want some more suggestions for cool websites and articles and such!

And Merry Christmas!
 
scapularkid8 said:
I’m trying to settle an internal debate I’m having:

Lately I’ve been, frankly, bored and I think that’s why I’ve been doing this, but I’ve been looking at pictures of good-looking models on the internet.

I brought this up with my Confessor about a year ago when I was having similar issues and he said that God always loves me and that I am young (18) and going through many changes and He understands that better than I do. He said it was bad to do that, but he didn’t say if it was mortal sin or not. Another priest also told me a similar thing at Confession a couple of weeks ago after I told him I couldn’t tell if I was lusting or not.

I still feel incredibly guilty though. Have I lusted?
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I believe we can lust on two levels. One, with our eyes, and more deeply, with our heart. If you did not have any lustful thoughts, then you may have only lusted with your eyes. This is still wrong, and if you planned to do it, may have been a mortal sin. But, we really cannot tell you, because we are not your confessor.
I didn’t do any “imagining”, but I “appreciated”, I guess, the models so I’m really confused as to whether or not this is a mortal sin.
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Although we cannot tell you whether or not it is a mortal sin for you, if I had done it, I would have been certain it was a mortal sin for me. Does that help?
Neither priest gave me a straight answer. I am praying for help and forgiveness so does that count for anything? Does God know I am trying and struggling?
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God knows *everything * :eek: 😃 But, now that you have recognised this, you must do everything in your power to not commit the sin again. Find out what conditions lead you to it, and avoid them (home alone on the computer etc…). Pray for strength, and more importantly wisdom and understanding so that you may see why this sin is wrong. Sometimes, comprehension can make it much easier to avoid a particular sin.

In Jesus Christ,
 
Hello Scapularkid,

By looking at models on the internet you are putting yourself in a situation which fosters sin to happen…St. Ignaitus and many others warn us to flee from these situations, because we are weak.

A similar example could be someone with an eating disorder. He/she goes to a bakery, but just to admire the donuts, cookies, and pies. This person however, has put him or herself in a situation where one is HIGHLY likely to sin.

What are your core motivations of going to these websites?

To be honest, your explanation sounds a lot like a rationalization, or a way of talking yourself into believing that your intentions are pure.

Ask God for the graces to discern your motivations for what you are doing here.

👍

God bless.
 
Hi Scapularkid,

I agree with pretty much everything that’s already been said on this thread, but I want to add one point:

Even if you’re not sinning mortally or gravely (as you may very well not be), the problem with what you’re doing isn’t just that you’re putting yourself in the near occasion of sin, which I’d guess you are.

The other problem is that - even without lust - enjoying and browsing pictures of good-looking models kind of trains one’s heart, mind, and desires toward the objectification of women.

Look at CatholicMC’s analogy to what you’re doing (the post right before mine): I think it’s very good and accurate, and it’s no coincidence that in an analogy as accurate as that, the women whose pictures you’re looking at are represented by objects like donuts and cookies - sweet treats whose purpose is for us to buy them as objects and enjoy the delicious gratification they bring. That’s not how we should be training ourselves to perceive women, even if we’re not sinning gravely when we do so (as you don’t seem to be). It trains us to think that way, and thinking that way does lead to mortal sin.

(By the way, I’m also a guy who’s around your age - almost twenty years old).
 
If you are able to look at these pictures and not get arroused or have thoughts of sinful desires and see them as a beautiful creation af God then it is not a sin but if you are looking on them as an object of sinful desires then it is a mortal sin.
Pope John Paul II said Nudity in and of itself is not a sin. It is when the person is made an object that it is a sin.
Go on Yahoo and put in Christopher West & Nudity and the first page is about Michealanglo’s Nudes in the Cistine Chapel.

There is other good reading on there also.

Mayo
 
scapularkid8 said:
I’m trying to settle an internal debate I’m having:

Lately I’ve been, frankly, bored and I think that’s why I’ve been doing this, but I’ve been looking at pictures of good-looking models on the internet.

I brought this up with my Confessor about a year ago when I was having similar issues and he said that God always loves me and that I am young (18) and going through many changes and He understands that better than I do. He said it was bad to do that, but he didn’t say if it was mortal sin or not. Another priest also told me a similar thing at Confession a couple of weeks ago after I told him I couldn’t tell if I was lusting or not.

I still feel incredibly guilty though. Have I lusted? I didn’t do any “imagining”, but I “appreciated”, I guess, the models so I’m really confused as to whether or not this is a mortal sin. Neither priest gave me a straight answer. I am praying for help and forgiveness so does that count for anything? Does God know I am trying and struggling?
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Why put yourself in near occasion of sin? Is it compulsion or addiction? If not then you have a choice - run away from it and put your curiosity and energy into more productive use.
Pretty soon you won’t be a teen anymore.
 
Living a chaste life is difficult enough without putting yourself as close to the line between appreciation and lust as you can get without sinning. I am far past my teen years and twenties, but I remember the constant efforts I made to justify getting as close to the line as I could. Needless to say, sooner or later the line gets crossed and it was difficult to say that walking the line was a good idea. I think it is a natural desire on the part of virile young men to desire to get as close to the line as they can without sinning, but it really does not help in the long run.
 
Voluntarily viewing porn is voluntarily placing ones self in an occasion of sin and is a mortal sin. Again read the CCC
Deacon Ed B
 
I wouldn’t say looking at models is sinful, ofcourse there are many types of models nowadays, but I look at some on T.V when they appear, I don’t lust. I appreciate their beauty, and move on.

Mind you, I’m referring to the models that actually do have at least 70% of their body covered.

Like models you may see in miss world or something

There is nothing wrong really at looking at ‘models’, but it highly depends you see.
 
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