With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility… and with Great Responsibility Comes Great Chastity
It’s been said across almost every form of media, comics, cartoons, movies and more. With great power comes great responsibility; a simple sentence that becomes the guiding principle for one of the world’s most popular superheroes. Spider-man’s mission statement is unique because it tells us not what he does but why he does it. This makes it a universal calling, not one specific only to Spider-man. All of us have been given some sort of power that comes with the responsibility to use it for good. While the words of Uncle Ben motivate Spider-man to protect the people of New York they can also describe our call to live out the virtue of Chastity.
Wait a second, am I saying that Spider-man has something to do with Chastity? Absolutely I am. Let me explain. Chastity is typically seen by the world as something that is restrictive. A set of rules that stops us from doing what we want. The truth is that Chastity frees us to love others. That’s right the virtue chastity is all about love. Living a chaste life means saving sex until marriage not in order to restrict us but in order to love those around us. This is a loving action because it makes the good of the other person the motivation behind our actions. We give up things that we want in order to not use another. Now what does this have to do with Spider-man? Well Spider-man’s story always includes him giving up the life that he wants in order to live for others. There is always a moment of choice. A choice between what he wants and what he is called to. He wants to be a normal high schooler and go to homecoming with his friends but has a responsibility to stop The Vulture.
Chastity is a similar choice, a choice to put others before ourselves. Sometimes this requires sacrifice, but it is always worth it. After all Spider-man never regrets saving the city. In fact, that is the life that truly fulfills him. It is the life he was made for. We are all made for Chastity, made for virtue. It might not make sense that living a life thinking only of others will fulfill us but it does. We have been given great power in the gift of sexuality. We can use that power to only gratify ourselves and use other people. We can deeply hurt the people we are in relationships with. We each have free will, we each have that choice. However, we are each called to use our power responsibly, to make our lives a gift to others. To give without thought of return. This is a radical way of life. A life of great challenge and adversity to overcome. Also a life of great purpose. Peter Parker becomes more himself when acting as Spider-man, free to use his gifts for a purpose, for good. We become fully ourselves when we live a life of virtue. Freedom is found in giving.
This underlying purpose must be at the heart of all our decisions in order to live chastity well. Just as we have the ability to hurt others, we also have the power to affirm them. Even the smallest actions we make can be oriented toward others. Holding the door open, helping someone bring their groceries to their car, we have a responsibility on this level as well. In fact, these small acts of virtue are crucial. They build habits that allow us to make a gift of our entire lives. If we don’t love each other when it’s easy how can we expect ourselves to love when it’s hard? When it does get hard we need only to remember that our lives are meant to be given. That every person has an infinite value, worthy of love and respect. That we have not only the power but the responsibility to uphold that dignity.
