Sermonette: Dec. 27, 2021

"Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:8-10) These are two of the last three of the eight Beatitudes that Jesus identified in his Sermon on the Mount. Beatitude means supreme happiness or blessedness. So, following these should, by definition, result in our supreme happiness in eternal life. But, how do they relate to us, today, right now? How do we live them out in our day-to-day life? There is one current issue that is widespread and often ignored that relates directly with these Beatitudes.

Before we get to the issue, let's dissect these Beatitudes a little bit. The first one, which in reality is the Sixth Beatitude, uses the phrase "clean of heart." What does "clean of heart” mean? According to Rev. George Leo Haydock's Notes contained in the Douay-Rheims Holy Bible, it means "those who give themselves to the practice of every virtue... or who are adorned with the virtue of chastity." Either definition emphasizes that the virtue of chastity is present.

In the Eighth Beatitude what does "justice" mean? The same source describes it as "virtue, piety, and the defense of our neighbor." The emphasis appears to be placed on protecting our neighbor when we are aware they are being prevented from practicing the virtue and piety than they otherwise might do without the obstacle preventing them.

When you consider these Beatitudes together, you can see how they can concern making peace with God by defending our neighbor (society) from being less virtuous, especially as relating to chastity, as perhaps they otherwise could be.

It is easy to forget that there was a time in our nation's history when there were laws meant to protect the moral fabric of our society. Specifically, the Comstock Act of 1873 made it illegal to send "obscene, lewd, or lascivious," "immoral" or "indecent" publications through the mail. The law made it a misdemeanor for anyone to sell, give away, or possess an obscene book, pamphlet, picture, drawing or advertisement. Anthony Comstock, who was the head of the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice, convinced Members of Congress to pass the measure to prevent crime and the corruption of children. While this was an extreme way to protect society from the evils of pornography, the pendulum swung to the other extreme in 1997, when in the Reno vs. the ACLU decision, the Supreme Court stated that essentially the Internet and World Wide Web had full First Amendment protection in the same way as print media and could not be regulated like radio and television broadcasting. Therefore, the distribution of pornography through the Internet and World Wide Web is virtually uncontrolled.

Meanwhile, the public as a whole suffers. Pornography has had a devastating effect on families. How many families did not meet together this Christmas because they were broken by the harms of pornography? Hardly a day goes by without seeing some story of a family and a person's life destroyed by the effects of pornography. Studies have found that kids are seeing pornography on the internet when they are as young as six, and the majority have seen some before they turn 18. There is scientific evidence that neurochemicals released while viewing porn create addictions more difficult to overcome than drugs or alcohol. Also, pornography has the additional negative social effect of increasing the propensity for treating others as objects and not as human beings with dignity.

With the harms of pornography addiction now known, might it be a time for religious leaders and secular leaders to at least find a middle ground between the extremes of Comstock laws, and the current anything goes on the Internet and World Wide Web, that would help protect families and children? For Christians, the Beatitudes call for us to bring purity to the world, even if it means persecution in the attempt at justice.

In the meantime if you happen to suffer from this addiction or any other similar addiction, one remedy to consider (this is not my original idea) is to read one chapter from any of the four Gospels. If the temptation is still there, read a second chapter, keep going until the temptation is overcome. Do not worry if you do not fully understand what you are reading. That will follow later. The key is to recognize as is stated in Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is living and effectual, and more penetrating than any two-edged sword: and reaching unto the division of the soul and the spirit, of joints also, and the marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."