Pornography and masturbation, are they sinful?

When someone asks whether something they’ve done is a sin or not, it means they’re already on a path, searching for truth. It’s even more important when the question concerns intimacy or our romantic choices. In life, it’s always important to ask questions and find answers to give sense to our acts. So, pornography and masturbation, are they sinful?

Symptom of suffering

The first thing we have to understand is that watching pornography or masturbating are often symptoms of something else the person is going through. Solitude, frustration, becoming discouraged, quickly lead people to emotionally compensate in ways which are of course insufficient and so create an addiction. There are also cases where we fall into certain ‘practices’ caused by a false vision of sexuality where people are considered only as objects for pleasure (including yourself).

On the ‘spiritual’ side of things

Spiritually speaking; pornography and masturbation are considered in the Bible and in Judaic-Christian tradition, as sinful, because their egocentric nature means they are purely focused on personal satisfaction. And this contradicts the human vocation: of being a gift for others. In pornography, the relationship between the persons taking part is not the fruit of reciprocal love, and the sexual intercourse is artificial and staged; in masturbation, there is absolutely no relationship between persons, and so, the other exists only as a product of imagination. For an act to be good, it must always be ordered towards the good of others and yourself. Sin is “an act or a thought which opposes Love”.

Pornography and masturbation, serious sins… or not?

The production of pornographic material is considered as a serious sin. However, sins of ‘impurity’ such as masturbation or looking at pornographic material can’t be judged as serious ‘at a first glance’; the emotional, psychological and spiritual state of the person must always be considered. To give an example, it’s very difficult for a teenager to manage their sexuality, they haven’t yet learnt about everything, and hormonal changes can reduce their freedom to choose. What is sure, no matter the situation, these sexual practices will always provoke emotional ‘disorder’ in us, which over time risks encouraging our narcissism.

How do I stop?

Every time we fall into masturbation or pornography, we’re damaging our capacity to love, so, in this case, it’s really important to make acts of altruism or generosity towards others. Charity is the best medicine for treating egoism. Of course, it can be very useful to talk about it with a priest, to confess our weaknesses and feel forgiven by God. In cases where the practice has taken root, it’s also good to talk about it with a specialist, to try and see exactly what it is that leads us to act in this way.

We’re here for you! Don’t hesitate to talk to us and ask us your questions:

Going further:

• Porn and masturbation, the same battle?
• Is porn true sexuality?
• What’s wrong with masturbation?

In a video, the pope invites you to liberate yourself from addiction, and be helped, cared for and healed from the suffering linked to it.

Video of Pope Francis, April 4th 2020

We pray that those suffering from addiction may be properly helped and accompanied.

Here are his words:

“The problem of what are called “new addictions” has a solution, but we must find the way. We need prophetic words and human ingenuity, and we need to do many things. It’s time to liberate ourselves from the addictions that seduce us. Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Mt 6:21). If we are attached only to earthly things, sooner or later we will become their slave. However, if our heart is attached to what never passes, we will find ourselves and be free. It’s time to fix our gaze on what lasts forever.

“Surely, you’ve heard about the drama of addiction. And… have you also thought about the addiction to gambling, to pornography, to the internet… and the dangers of virtual space?. Supported by the ‘Gospel of Mercy’ we can alleviate, care for and heal the suffering associated with new kinds of addiction. We pray that those suffering from addiction may be properly helped and accompanied.”

What’s the solution? How to you break out of it?

The problem of “new addictions” has a solution, freedom, but we have to find the path to it. Why couldn’t that path be prayer? It’s already enabled healing in other people.

• Read also: “I was a porn addict, prayer healed me!”

And why not use this deliverance prayer we’ve put here for you?

But remember, prayer is not “magic”! You really can be healed by God, if you ask him from your heart. But if nothing seems to happen, there are still other ways of doing it: being accompanied through a programme like Free to Love, or therapy. You can break this addiction!

• Read also: How to stop watching porn: 10 techniques

It’s time to break the addictions we’ve been seduced by… and which often destroy us. Jesus said: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Gospel of Matthew, chapter 6, Verse 21). If we stick to just earthly things, we’ll sooner or later become a slave to them. But if our heart adheres to what never fades away, it’s there that we’ll find ourselves and we’ll be free. It’s time to fix our eyes on what endures!

Do you too want to receive help from heaven to get rid of this addiction? We are here to pray with you and ask Carlo Acutis for his intercession:

Going further:

• Who was Carlo Acutis?
• Prayer for deliverance from porn addiction, what good can it do?
• Liberated from pornography by Carlo Acutis