30. Chastity and Charity
- L Rshaw
- Sep 13, 2019
- 5 min read
Updated: Jun 23, 2022
"A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person"
--- Mignon McLaughlin (American Journalist and Author; 1913 - 1983)
Has there ever been a topic as popular and as timeless as love? Is there anything that could be said that unveils anything new of love? How many songs and movies and books, how many stories in all their forms have had love as their message? It's what almost all of us want to experience. And it's what God embodies. To love another person with all that you are is to love as Christ loves. He teaches us to be faithful and true and how to maximize the happiness that can come from such a relationship. It's a part of His plan of happiness.
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CHASTITY
Obstacles were common. As a matter of fact, I don’t think I met anybody that didn’t have something they needed to adjust in their life in order to be in harmony with the gospel of Jesus Christ (See "Repentance" and "Baptism by Immersion"). Everybody was different. Some people didn’t want to change and didn’t make the effort (See "Sí, Dios Quiere"). Other people had problems preventing them from resolving the other problems; for example, not having the money to get married or divorced from a previous partner before getting married to a current partner, the former often being long gone and unable to contact for divorce arrangements. These kinds of challenges, especially challenges involving the Law of Chastity, prevented people from getting baptized.
Some of these people had children which made that life decision even trickier. A lot of people just didn’t want to spend money to get married. Some people couldn’t afford marriage or divorce. However; every Valentine’s Day, the Mexican government did marry people free of charge. I’m surprised that more couples didn’t marry with that convenience. With that offer, I know I would. Fun fact: Valentine’s Day in Mexico is also called “Día de Amor y Amistad” (Dee-ah Deh Ah-mohr Ee Ah-mees-tahd) or “Day of love and friendship”, which I prefer more because it doesn’t limit it to romance.
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (as well as other churches) believe in the sanctity of marriage and the importance of keeping sexual relations within the bounds of legal marriage between one husband and one wife. It also means complete fidelity in said marriage. This commandment is called the Law of Chastity. It also includes mental and emotional purity—refraining from inappropriate thoughts, keeping our language clean and wholesome, avoiding pornography, and so forth. No one steps into immorality in an instant. The first seeds of immorality are always sown in the mind. It’s important to be virtuous not only on the outside but also on the inside.
Marriage is not synonymous with cohabitation; cohabitation without being legally married is against the Law of Chastity whether anything physical happens or not. It was one of the greatest challenges. The choices were few: 1) Get married or 2) Move out. Often people couldn’t afford their own place. I realized that some cases of cohabitation were just that, to be able to pay expenses together and split the difference. There wasn’t much we could do as missionaries to help financially but we knew that when God commands, He provides a way (1 Nephi 3:7). Sometimes that way was just difficult to arrive at. As missionaries, we were fortunate enough on occasion to help people get married, but that was more miraculous than common. (See "Marriage")
I would wonder why problems with the Law of Chasity were the most tedious to resolve. I believe it’s because it’s one of the most important commandments (Alma 39:5) so the adversary will do anything to stop people from obeying it. It's one of the most important because it involves the whole soul of a person, body, mind, and spirit as well as the souls of others, and when disobeyed mocks the sanctity of family. God has given us the ability to create bodies for His spirit children, which is a great responsibility delegated to us in His Plan of Salvation. We are to use that procreative power for the righteous purposes He has set. Obedience always brings blessings. Every time. The blessings of keeping the Law of Chastity are precious.
CHARITY
When Jesus was asked by the inquiring lawyer, “Master, which is the great commandment in the law?”, Jesus answered:
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matt 22:36-40)
Every commandment is an appendage of love and the greatest love we can know in life is love in the family. Keeping the law of chastity will strengthen true love and loyalty that may otherwise be compromised.
In Greek, there are three different words that can all be translated into English as “love”. The first is Eros, meaning “erotic” or physical love; Eros was not used in the New Testament. The second is “philia” annotating a friendly or brotherly love (Matt. 10:37; Luke 12:4;14:12; John 11:3,36). The third is “agape”, referring to the highest form of love, “charity”, or “godly love”; the latter being the most commonly used form of the three.
Love is more than physical attraction or friendly relationship; true love is giving of one’s whole being to the happiness and well-being of another. Such is the love that God has for us. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…” (John 3:16). Such ultimate love is what God intends for us to have with our fellow man, especially our spouses. This kind of love endures forever and should not be regarded lightly or forfeited gently. Much could be said about love. If there were one word only to sum up the gospel of Jesus Christ, it would be “love”.
There are countless ways to show our love for others. We can pray for others. We can fellowship. We can serve. There is no limit. But a few stories that come to mind when I think of "Charity" and "Love" include: "Fast", "Refugees", "Called to Serve", "You've Been Served!", "Yard Work, Hard Work, Smart Work", "One", "Attributes of Christ", and many more!
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