What Is Morality? In its “everyday sense” morality (from Latin moralitas “manner, character, proper behavior”) refers to a code of conduct, by which human beings regulate their lives. Theoretical interest in morality arises from the distinct sorts of questions that might be asked about this code of conduct. One question asks the kinds of practical...
Chastity Is A Virtue Chastity is a virtue concerning the state of purity of the mind and body. Chastity includes abstinence from sexual intimacy for the unmarried, and faithfulness to a marriage partner. Pre-marital virginity (abstinence) is the form of chastity expected of young people. Sexually active married couples are also considered to practice chastity if they remain faithful...
Cleanliness Cleanliness is the quality or state of being clean or the practice of keeping oneself or one’s surroundings clean. Cleanliness is a virtue. Cleanliness means that there is no dirt, no dust, no stains, and no bad smells. The goals of cleanliness are health, beauty, no offensive odor and avoiding...
Ritual Purity In Islam This article covers the importance of ritual purity in Islam. Purity (طهارة, ṭaharah) is an essential aspect of Islam. It is the opposite of najāsa, the state of being ritually impure. It is achieved by first removing physical impurities (for example, urine) from the body, and then removing ritual...
Wudu Wudu (الوضوء al-wuḍūʼ ) is the Islamic procedure for cleansing parts of the body, a type of ritual purification, or ablution. Wudu consists of washing the face, arms, then wiping the head and finally washing the feet with water. Wudu is an important part of ritual purity in Islam. It is governed by fiqh (Islamic...
Ritual Purification Ritual purification is the ritual prescribed by a religion by which a person is considered to be free of uncleanliness, especially prior to the worship of a deity, and ritual purity is a state of ritual cleanliness. Ritual purification may also apply to objects and places. Ritual uncleanliness is not identical with ordinary physical impurity, such...
Bhakti Bhakti (भक्ति) literally means “attachment, participation, fondness for, homage, faith, love, devotion, worship, purity”. It was originally used in Hinduism, referring to devotion and love for a personal god or a representational god by a devotee. In ancient texts such as the Shvetashvatara Upanishad, the term simply means participation, devotion and...
The Virtue Of Decency In the 1937 film Gone With the Wind, Clark Gable shocked a nation of moviegoers when he said to Vivien Leigh, Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a dam. In retrospect, the shock is particularly difficult to fathom because the word dam (not damn) refers to...
Continence Continence may be defined as abstinence from even the licit gratifications of marriage. It is a form of the virtue of temperance, though Aristotle did not accord it this high character since it involved a conflict with wrong desires–an element, in the mind of the philosopher, foreign to the content of a...
Safa’ (Purity) Safa’ (Purity), in the language of Islamic Sufism, signifies the state of a heart at peace because it has been purified of all kinds of things that contaminate it, such as sin, feelings of vengeance, jealousy, and hatred, and suspicion of others. The verse (38:47), They were, in...
Taqwa (Piety) Taqwa (Piety) is derived from wiqaya, which means self-defense and avoidance. Sufis define it as protecting oneself from God’s punishment by performing His commands and observing His prohibitions. Besides its literal and technical meanings, in religious books we find the meanings of piety and fear used interchangeably. In fact, taqwa...
What Is Celibacy? Celibacy is the state of voluntarily being unmarried, sexually abstinent, or both, usually for religious reasons. It is often in association with the role of a religious official or devotee. In its narrow sense, the term celibacy is applied only to those for whom the unmarried state is the result...
Sexual Abstinence Sexual abstinence or sexual restraint is the practice of refraining from some or all aspects of sexual activity for medical, psychological, legal, social, financial, philosophical, moral, or religious reasons. Asexuality is distinct from sexual abstinence; and celibacy is sexual abstinence generally motivated by factors such as an individual’s personal or...
What Is Morality? Morality is the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that are distinguished as proper and those that are improper. Morality can be a body of standards or principles derived from a code of conduct from a particular philosophy, religion or culture, or it can derive from a standard that a person believes...
Justice, Fortitude, Temperance Last week, Straight Answers addressed the topic of the cardinal virtues — those “hinge” virtues that are the foundation of all virtues. Having examined the virtue of prudence, we now turn to justice, fortitude and temperance. St. Thomas Aquinas defined justice as “a habit whereby a man...
Chastity In Prophet Muhammad’s Words This article provides information about Chastity In Prophet Muhammad’s Words. Narrated by the humble servant of One Islam, whose name means al-Haqq from Allah’s Apostle in vision, saying: “All that a pure believer needs is within the True and Holy Qur’an. This is the first. Honor...
What Is Chastity? Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is chaste refrains either from sexual activity considered immoral or any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for example when making a vow of chastity, chastity would mean the same as celibacy. Etymology The words chaste and chastity stem from the Latin adjective castus (“cut off”, “separated”, “pure”). The words...
Chastity In this article chastity is considered as a virtue; its consideration as an evangelical counsel will be found in the articles on CELIBACY OF THE CLERGY, CONTINENCY, and VIRGINITY. As a vow, chastity is discussed in the article VOW. As a virtue Chastity is the virtue which excludes or...