The Catholic Church’s teachings on sexuality are rooted in the fact that God designed sexual expression to be a sacred, unifying act between a man and woman in the context of marriage. The marital act is the beautiful, God-given expression of becoming “one flesh” in marriage and renewing the marriage covenant. Therefore, m*sturbation is a violation of the God-inscribed unbreakable bond between the love-giving and life-giving aspects of the marital act.
Fecundity is a gift, an end of marriage, for conjugal love naturally tends to be fruitful. A child does not come from outside as something added on to the mutual love of the spouses, but springs from the very heart of that mutual giving, as its fruit and fulfillment. So the Church, which is “on the side of life,” teaches that “it is necessary that each and every marriage act remain ordered per se to the procreation of human life.” “This particular doctrine, expounded on numerous occasions by the Magisterium, is based on the inseparable connection, established by God, which man on his own initiative may not break, between the unitive significance and the procreative significance which are both inherent to the marriage act.”
CCC 2366
M*sturbation is a self-indulgent activity that uses the body solely for personal gratification, rather than integrating one’s gift of sexuality into a sincere self-gift to another person. According to the Church, our bodies are not simply things we have, but are essential to who we are and how we express ourselves as human persons.
The Church also teaches that m*sturbation is a mortal sin when committed with full knowledge and complete consent. The Church encourages the use of God’s grace, particularly through the sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist, as well as natural remedies, to overcome sinful sexual desires. Additionally, the Church provides support and guidance for individuals seeking to live a chaste and pure life.
