The Parts of Lust

The parts of lust are the species or types of lustfulsins. These parts are six: fornication, adultery, incest,seduction, rape, unnatural vice.

Fornication is the normal, but unlawful, use of sex byan unmarried man and an unmarried woman. Fornication is a mortalsin,for it is a great inordinateness in the parties who areguilty of it; is opposed to the good of offspring (for onlymarriage establishes the home which children require, and to whichthey have a right), and it is plainly against the common welfareboth in physical and moral effects.

Fornication is a grave sin of the flesh. It is not thegreatest of all sins, for sins of the spirit, sins of malice, aremore grievous than any carnal sin.

Kisses and touches that are lustful are also mortalsins.

Whatever occurs in sleep cannot be sinful in itself.Yet it may be sinful in its cause. If, before sleeping, a person isguilty of thoughts, desires, or deeds that are lustful, he is atleast partly responsible for impurities that subsequently occurduring sleep.

Seduction is the violation of a virgin. It is a speciesof lust, and is therefore a grievous sin.

Rape is a species of lust-and gravely sinful-in whichforce is employed in committing a lustful action.

Adultery is the normal, but unlawful, use of sex by amarried and a single person, or by two married persons, who,however, are not married to each other. This grievous sin is farworse than fornication, for it violates not only chastity, but itis a gross violation of justice (committed against the true spouseof the married party, or against both spouses of the marriedparties). Besides, it is a more damaging offense against the commongood than fornication is.

Incest is the use of sex by man and woman who arerelated by ties of blood, or by affinity, that is, by relationshiparising out of a marriage. It has all the grievous character oflust, plus the violation of justice (if either party is married),and the violation of the virtue of piety.

Lust becomes sacrilege when it involves sacred orconsecrated persons, things, or places.

Unnatural vice is any lustful perversion of normal andnatural processes for procuring sex pleasures.

Unnatural vice is the worst of all sins of lust, forit is most gravely shameful as acting against the ordinance ofnature. Yet all willful sins of lust are mortal sins.