§ IV. On sacrilege

496. Definition. - Sacrilege (in matter of luxury) is the violation of a sacred person, place, or thing through a venereal act.

It is a great sin: for reason dictates that holy things are to be treated holily; and it contains a twofold malice, one against chastity, the other against religion.

Principles. - I. Concerning the person, sacrilege is committed if someone sins luxuriously having a vow of chastity, or with one having it. Hence a priest sinning with another sacred person commits a twofold sacrilege.

St. Alphonsus notes:¹ 1° "A Religious who is also a priest, by harming chastity, more probably commits one sacrilege"; because he offends one virtue of religion. - 2° "A priest inducing by his counsel a layman to fornicate commits sacrilege, if he induces him to lust from affection. Otherwise, if from another evil end."²

II. Concerning the place, every luxurious action in a sacred place will be sacrilege. Thus, for example, voluntary pollution in a church is sacrilege, although it is secret and the church does not need reconciliation, as it needs in notorious pollution.

Note. - 1° Lightly base touches in a church are more probably not sacrileges; because from them there does not result a great irreverence against a sacred place. 2° Enormously grave touches are commonly held as sacrileges; and St. Alphonsus affirms the same as absolutely more probable if the touches (likewise words and sight) are simply grave. 3° Internal acts are not sacrileges, if you except desires of sinning externally in a sacred place.³

III. "Concerning the thing, he commits sacrilege who abuses sacred things for base things. - The same must be said concerning a priest who sins basely vested for Mass, or while carrying the Eucharist, or immediately after Communion, for example, within half an hour."⁴