Lust destroys the purity of the soul which renders us as beautiful as the Angels
1 min • Digitized on November 11, 2021
From The Sinner’s Guide, page 347
By Venerable Louis of Granada
Consider also the nobility and the value of virginal purity, which this vice destroys.
Virgins begin here below to live as Angels, for the beauty of these glorious spirits is reflected in the splendor of their chastity.
“Living in the flesh,” says St. Bernard, “and despising its allurements is more angelic than human.” [“In Nat. Virg.”]
“Virginity,” says St. Jerome, “is the virtue which, amid the corruption of this mortal life, best represents the perfection of immortal glory. It brings before us the happy condition of the celestial City, where there is no marrying, and gives us a foretaste of eternal joy.” [“De Virginitatis Laude.”]
Hence virginity is specially rewarded in Heaven. St. John tells us that virgins follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth. [Apoc. xiv. 4.] They have risen above their fellow-men in their imitation of Christ. They will therefore be more closely united to Him for all eternity, and will find in the spotless purity of their bodies a source of ineffable joy.