Looking at the Opposite Sex

About Bishop St. Theophane the Recluse

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June 14 (27)

Rom. 1:28-2:9; Mt. 5:27-32

“Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart"’ [Mt. 5:28]. Is it possible, living in the world, not to look at women? Adultery, however, is paralleled not merely to looking at a woman, but to looking at her with lust. You can certainly look at the opposite sex, but make sure to keep your heart in leash.

Look as if through the eyes of a child — with purity, with no sinful thoughts. In fact, we ought to love the opposite sex — for it is not excluded from the commandment of love for our neighbor — but our love should be pure, directed primarily towards the soul and spirit. There are no males, nor females in Christianity, neither before God, nor in personal relations.

“How difficult!” — you might say. Yes, it is difficult. It cannot be achieved without a struggle; but struggle means rejection of evil, and our merciful Lord counts conscious rejection of evil as real purity.

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