Chaste Hearts
On June 19, 2021 by steadfastheartofgodThere is a more recent devotion in the Church that is gaining popularity, especially in this Year of St. Joseph. The Most Chaste Heart of St. Joseph came about after a series of apparitions, which were approved by Bishop Dom Carillo Gritti on January 31, 2010. During these apparitions, St Joseph appeared and spoke about how God would bless so many people through this chaste heart. He asked that there be an official feast to celebrate the Most Chaste Heart of St Joseph, which is to be celebrated on the first Wednesday after the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. This truly is a beautiful devotion that I recommend everyone to read more about.
So what exactly does it mean for St Joseph’s heart to be described as chaste? Chastity is a virtue that is so needed in our world today. It is most commonly related to virginal purity, but it is actually a much broader virtue that all people are called to practice. All men and women, single, married and religious alike, are called to live chaste to some degree.
In this day and age it seems nearly impossible to think that a boy and a girl would remain chaste (virgins) in their relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend. Likewise, with the overwhelming cultural acceptance of birth control and sterilization, marital chastity (times of withholding sexual intimacy) is pretty much unheard of as well. Furthermore, for our priests and religious, there is talk that it is too hard for them to live a chaste life through their vow of celibacy, so our culture argues that priests should be able to get married or even “come out” as homosexual.
These views are all based on the lie that sex is an uncontrollable urge that we have no control over; and even more so that sexual urges must be acted upon in order for us to be free. To think this way is to deny the inherent dignity of humanity; to believe we are like animals, which act upon instinct alone without reason. The truth is that we were created in God’s image and when we surrender our will to God, when we rid ourselves of sin and strive for holiness, when we utilize our reason and make decisions from our will, we are able to be lifted up in grace in order to practice virtue, including the virtue of chastity.
As a culture, we have moved so far away from practicing the virtue of chastity that it is really not talked about much anymore, not in families, not in schools, not even in the Church. The emphasis in our culture is on allowing our bodies and our emotions to rule us instead of our spirit or our will, which is the deepest part of us and where we encounter God. If we have bought into the lie that what feels good should be our primary focus, then we can quickly fall into the belief that chastity and many of the other virtues are unattainable. This is precisely why the Most Chaste Heart of Joseph is so needed today. As a culture, we need to get back to talking about this most important virtue, and we can now call on the intercession of St Joseph to help us make this cultural shift.
Chastity includes an apprenticeship in self-mastery which is a training in human freedom. The alternative is clear: either man governs his passions and finds peace, or he lets himself be dominated by them and becomes unhappy. “Man’s dignity therefore requires him to act out of conscious and free choice, as moved and drawn in a personal way from within, and not by blind impulses in himself or by mere external constraint. Man gains such dignity when, ridding himself of all slavery to the passions, he presses forward to his goal by freely choosing what is good and, by his diligence and skill, effectively secures for himself the means suited to this end.”
CCC 2339
The catechism has a whole section on chastity that is really beautiful. I am always so comforted to know that the Church has already thought through and proclaimed the truth to us. Most especially when we know that it is the enemy’s primary goal to twist the truth, to convince us of his lies, and ultimately to lead us astray. In our world today with all of our technology and media outlets, it can get really confusing to know what is right and wrong, but the Catholic Church is there to proclaim these truths to us so that we may be able to stand on the solid foundation of the faith that has been handed down to us from Jesus Christ himself.
The original meaning of the word chastity is defined as “cut off, separated; pure”. At the core of the virtue of chastity is purity and a separation of sorts. If you think about it, chastity requires us to be, in a sense, detached from our body and our emotions. Chastity means to live by our spirit and our will, which is the core of who we are. Living this way is to live from the inside out. Instead of constantly letting the things of the world penetrate our spirit through our body and our emotions, we are to generate our life from our spirit outward. Living from the core of who we are is to tap into the unshakable truth of God, who dwells within us through the Holy Spirit.
The Most Chaste Heart of Joseph is so important to us today because it refocuses us on purity of heart, which can only be attained by strengthening our will. The virtue of chastity stands as the truth we need to battle against the culture of sensuality. For St. Joseph’s heart to be chaste means that his and Mary’s virginity were honored in their marriage. It also means his intentions, motives, and character were also pure. The Holy Spirit sprung forth from St Joseph’s completely chaste heart, which meant he was able to operate in the fullness of purity, both physically and emotionally. Because of his chastity, all the other virtues found a place to flourish within St Joseph, for it is purity of heart that allows us to see God in all other aspects of our lives.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
Matthew 5:8
St Joseph is a model of chastity indeed, through which he points us to all the other virtues. To live a virtuous life should be our lifelong mission. Virtue doesn’t come all at once, but is an ongoing journey of growth and setbacks, of successes and failures. Like clay in the Potter’s hands, may we be willing to be molded and fashioned into the perfect vessel of the Lord’s grace. May we be willing to be humbled and remolded over and over, as many times as the Potter desires.