Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) is the father of modern psychology. Freud is also renowned for his redefinition of sexual desire as the primary motivational energy of human life. He invented the idea of sexual repression - that if we do not act on our sexual appetites we are repressed. Since modern society has accepted this most people think it is necessary and good to experiment sexually. Only by doing this can we discover our true selves. This is why modern society rejects modesty, chastity, monogamy and celibacy. All of these virtues which moderate our sexual appetite will lead to disorder in the Freudian understanding of the human person.
The desire for pleasure is indeed very strong, but it is not the measure of our whole lives. The Christian practices the virtue of temperance, placing the desires of the body under the guidance of the intelligence. The person in the religious life makes a vow of chastity, and lives in freedom not in a state of slavery to the passions. All Christians are called to practice chastity no matter what their state in life. Chastity will preserve the virtue of charity so that we always recognize the dignity of the human person and never use others as mere tools for our own pleasure. It also prevents us from being a slave to our own passions.
No comments:
Post a Comment