Why are we given this urge if it's wrong to act on it?

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We have this urge given to us by God so that we might continue the human race. This is important, because God commanded it.

God intended these urges only to be acted upon within the context of marriage. That’s why it’s sinful to act on them when you aren’t married. That’s a simple explanation, I guess.
 
Marianne said:
Okay. I’ve been told time and time again by my parents and the Sisters at the Catholic school I attend that it’s a sin to, well, can I use the “M” word here?

Let me explain myself before I go forth and use it.

I have a real internal conflict with everybody who tells me it’s wrong to submit to the basic urge to relieve myself of an urge that God has planted inside of me–and inside everybody else I know, whether they want to admit it or not… Follow me here. It’s clearly not a sin to want to eat when one has the urge to alleviate hunger. It’s definitely not a sin to drink water when one has the urge to alleviate thirst. It’s not a sin to sleep when one has the urge to alleviate being tired and to rejuvenate their body.

All of these urges are part of being a human for a reason.

The satisfying of these urges all play necessary roles in maintaining one’s health and mental being. See how long you can go without satisfying just one of these listed. If you come to think of it, we are all “hardwired” with dozens of basic, human urges that must be sated if we are to exist has happy and healthy humans. So this said, why is it a sin for me to want to alleviate the certain feelings I cannot help or avoid feeling by masturbating?

I get it–through the many times I’ve been told–that masturbation is a sin.

[snip for space]

My struggle is that if masturbation is wrong, why then has God put these desires inside of my body that I cannot satisfy without not sinning? I just don’t see the harm in it, especially after having done it–I can move on, try to lead a moral life as best as I can, without constantly thinking about having to satisfy an urge that is absolutely not going to go away by not simply thinking about it, no matter how hard I try.

Any advice or thoughts on this will certainly be appreciated.
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Scripture says our sexual urges are meant to be directed properly… during marriage. OTOH, Masturbation is not glorifying to God; it does not avoid the appearance of immorality, nor does it pass the test of God having ownership over our bodies.

We need to remember that our bodies have been redeemed and belong to God. "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body "

That said, this is NOT a solitary sin as if no one is there but the individual, as some will argue… On the contrary, God is there and so is our guardian angel.
 
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Ellipses said:
Actually many millions if not billions of us believe that Masturbation is completely natural, healthy and normal. Including the entire medical community.
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On judgement day, I don’t think that will make much of an argument. Just sayin 😉
 
Just show some courage.
Don’t let your thoughts run amuck-
Giving in to urges - does not - build character.
They say serial killers all had that in common - porn / self stimulation.

It’s no wonder - no one grants one another peace at mass -
And everyone takes anti depressants 😶
 
Yeah, don’t give this advice. It’s detrimental to the OP.

OP, this vice is harsh. I struggled with it for many years, and I’m still recovering. It is a cross to bear; something to draw you close to God as you overcome it. The desire is of the flesh, not of God. Don’t mix the two.
 
Marianne said:
it seems that it’s a vicious circle that can’t be broken.
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You’re never going to overcome it with will power alone. Whether one is a man or a woman, the first thing you have to do is to realize that sin offends God. So the key its not do it out of a desire to not offend God, nothing else. Be careful as it can turn into a habit and then into a vice. The urge is there to propagate the human race. The best thing to do at your age is to channel your vitality and energy into sports and into growing into a strong and virtuous man. After all, you can always get married and let your urge blossom into a beautiful family, which is the whole purpose of the urge.

The vice can turn a man into a shy and awkward individual around women, because the vitality is there to eventually woo a woman. If you squander it into a life of squandering the energy by looking and thinking about women with impurity, it takes you down a different path. Such acts are ultimately homosexual acts because it is having sex with one’s own self.

Instead of trying to rationalize it, arm yourself for war and fight the battles to conquer yourself. Yes, you will fall, especially if you fill your mind with pornography and do not avoid the occasions that lead you into the act. But with the sacraments God gives us sanctifying grace that empowers us to say NO to sin. With God’s sanctifying grace you can fight those battles, and though you may fall, they help you get right back into the battle.

You will find that when you overcome your temptations you shift into a higher gear spiritually and make great strides in virtue. The last thing you want to do is rationalize sin. That’s what everybody does to justify their sin. Today we have men marrying each other because of their their unconquered urges. Something becomes evil when that something is being misused. The purpose of sex and semen is the creation of a unique human being with an eternal soul. So you don’t want to take something sacred and use your mind and body to desecrate it. Fight the battles. Even if you fall, you are fighting the battles.

Yes, it’s tough, but it is impossible when one does not guard the mind and the eyes. Thus custody of the eyes and mind is the key. Fill your mind with the lives of the saints; Dominic Savio, St John Bosco, etc. and especially, read the New Testament. God will groom you into the noble young man who is in search of the noble young woman, amidst the smut and pornography that is se easy to be a part o today.

God wants valiant saints. That’s the whole point of Him making us with free will. Virtue is only possible when vice is an option. So the key is to grow in love for God and channel your energies into something good, not something shameful.

Fight the battles. With God’s grace you will win the war against the world, the devil, and the flesh. It’s the only way that saints are made…
 
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Marianne said:
…
All of these urges are part of being a human for a reason. …
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Collins Dictionary (Learner):
reason, noun: The reason for something is a fact or situation which explains why it happens or what causes it to happen.
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Catechism
405 … human nature has not been totally corrupted: it is wounded in the natural powers proper to it, subject to ignorance, suffering and the dominion of death, and inclined to sin - an inclination to evil that is called concupiscence". …
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What’s this about with you and mental health? First you complained the girl with anxiety had hate issues. Now this.
 
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jdavani said:
Fornication isn’t as satanic as masturbation. They’re both mortal sins but masturbation is more perverse.

Besides he could get married early
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Where have you heard such rubbish? By fornicating you’re cooperating in another’s sin!

The solution to this problem doesn’t involve getting a girlfriend/boyfriend, fornicating, or getting married. No, this problem requires self control and confession. It is not the END of the World.
 
Aquinas talked about how masturbation was more disordered in the summa
 
So? He’s not infallible.

The remedy is still the same.
  • Confession
  • Communion
  • Self Control
 
Just because he’s not infallible doesn’t mean I can’t agree with him. Masturbation is more disordered than fornication. One is open to life and an expression between two people. One is pathetic.
 
You seem to be painting fornication in a favorable light. That’s rather disturbing… It’s not good to drag others into your sins, and that’s exactly what fornication does.
jdavani said:
One is open to life and an expression between two people. One is pathetic.
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Actually, both are sad and pathetic because they take place outside of the Institution of Marriage.
 
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I don’t know why you’re on my back about this. My first post I said they’re both mortal sins.

But there are certain acts that are more disordered than others. Homosexual acts outside of marriage are more disordered than heterosexual acts. This isn’t up for debate.

Of course they’re both mortal sins. I’m not painting anything favorably
 
You are very sure of yourself and your ability to “grade” sin. You seem to not factor in the concept of culpability. I would be careful with that.
 
I’m not grading sin. I’m saying certain acts are more disordered than others.
 
I was thinking that about that too.
 
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