Saints LightThe Ninth Commandment: Purity of Heart
Guard your heart and your eyes, because purity begins inside. A temptation is not a sin, and with grace, prayer and modesty we learn to see others as persons, not objects.
What this lesson teaches
- The ninth commandment guards the heart against cultivating lustful desire.
- Purity of heart lets us see others as persons and prepares us to see God.
- An unwanted temptation is not a sin; sin lies in deliberate consent.
- Modesty is reverence for the body and the person, not shame.
Catechism paragraphs this lesson cites
- CCC 2514-2519
- CCC 2520-2527
CCC means the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Saints Light teaches it in its own words and never quotes it. Look up any paragraph in a printed copy or at vatican.va. See every lesson by paragraph in the Catechism index.
Scripture read in this lesson: Matthew 5:8; Psalm 50:12 (51:10 in most modern Bibles); Philippians 4:8.
A sample question from this lesson
A tempting thought comes into your mind without your choosing it. What does the lesson say?
- It is already a mortal sin
- You must confess it immediately
- The temptation itself is not a sin; sin is in deliberately welcoming it
- It shows you have no faith
Show the answer
The temptation itself is not a sin; sin is in deliberately welcoming it. The lesson explains that sin lies in deliberate consent, not in an unwanted temptation.
The lesson in the app has three questions, each with an explanation.
Words to know
- Concupiscence
- The disordered pull toward sin that remains in us after Baptism, which is not itself a sin.
- Modesty
- The part of purity that protects the dignity and mystery of the person in dress, speech and gaze.
More terms in the Catholic glossary. More passages in the Scripture index.
Read the full lesson in the app
"The Ninth Commandment: Purity of Heart" is lesson 10 of The Ten Commandments. In Saints Light you get the whole teaching, the Scripture quoted in full, all three questions and a step to live it this week.
Every course is open free for your first 14 days. After that, one payment of $14.99 unlocks every course. There is no subscription.