I am a Catholic priest with over 40 years' experience of a religious vow of celibacy. 30 years ago one of my priest formators was preaching that "masturbation is just as natural as blowing your nose." But I could never quite get my mind around that, having swallowed the official teaching that masturbation was a mortal sin. But just recently a non-catholic friend said to me: "Masturbation is a necessary expression of your masculine sexuality," and something clicked. I thought about it for a bit and could see how masturbating helped me to really live in my body and to own my sexuality. This ability to own oneself as a sexual being is necessary to everyone, independent of whether they are going to dedicate their sexuality to another or dedicate it in another way by celibacy. This new position involves a big swing in my mental attitude, and I am not sure that I have properly integrated it yet. I would be interested in knowing how others of a religious orientation react to this, and to have their prayers that I may properly find peace and sexual positivity.
Do you find yourself masturbating more often during some seasons than others? Why?
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