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There were so many responses to "The Magnitude of Guilt" that I decided to expand the idea and look more closely at Catholicism.
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Martin was at a primary school not far from mine, and we saw each other on Sundays. We were both ten at the time and met at the camp that the priest had organised to train the new altar boys. We always served at the eight o'clock mass, wearing our white cassocks, and looked ever so holy. After doing our thing at mass we would get together in the toilet stall behind the church and wank. Martin was cute, he had blue eyes and blond hair. He was a little taller than me, quite muscular, and had a beautiful little dick. Both of us had not been through puberty yet.
We would pull our shorts and undies down and lean with our backs against the wall and vigorously wank our little rock-hard dicks. We never wanked each other but looked at each other while we did it.
It would go on for a few minutes and then suddenly I would develop an incredible sensation in my crotch and my body would shudder. We seemed to set each other off. Martin's little body would then shudder, and his facial expression would change. We would pull our undies and shorts up and then go to the Catechism class with Sister Teresa.
I always felt so guilty afterward, and it was only years later when I started reading more widely that I understood what was happening.
If you thought, it was bad being a Jewish masturbator (The Magnitude of Guilt story) you haven't seen the Catholic stuff yet. An article in "Psychology Today" says that touching yourself to produce sexual pleasure, according to many religious doctrines is harmful—both spiritually and physically. John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, preached that masturbation caused nervous disorders and madness. Ellen Gould White, the founder of Seventh-Day Adventism, disparaged masturbation as "vice." Jehovah's Witnesses teach that masturbation is a "form of uncleanness" that can be "mentally corrupting."
When you look at the Catechism of the Catholic Church it says that "the faithful have been in no doubt and have firmly maintained that masturbation is an intrinsically and gravely disordered action". When you read further it says that solitary sex contradicts the meaning of human sexuality, which is meant by God to be shared between a man and a woman in marriage. Now isn't that enough to scare you to death? The Catechism is clear about what it is saying: "By masturbation is to be understood the deliberate stimulation of the genital organs in order to derive sexual pleasure."
I always shuddered at the thought of what the words "intrinsically and gravely disordered action" might mean. So, what are Catholic boys (and girls) meant to do?
One Catholic website makes the false claim that the availability of internet pornography has increased the practice of masturbation to the degree that it can be called an "epidemic." If that doesn't scare you then you should read this: "Masturbation fosters the growth of selfishness, a leading enemy of a healthy personality and marital and mature love. Selfishness fosters emotional immaturity, undermines sacrificial giving, and predisposes individuals to overreact in anger. Growth in mature confidence is damaged by the need to escape into a fantasy world."
While many of the world's religions may appear to be of one mind about masturbation, it is a dramatically mistaken mind. According to the personal experiences of billions of people, as well as the empirical findings of science, masturbation is not bad for you at all. It is, in fact, rather good for you.
I like the answer in one "Psychology Today" issue. Allow me to whisper: "As more and more humans reject the religions of old, they may experience increased well-being—both physically and emotionally—as they satisfy themselves sexually, unencumbered by old ignorance, needless distress, or toxic self-loathing."
So, there you have it. These are the worlds I am still confronted with - grave sin or good for your health. I must choose.