Lust in the Eyes

Jimmy Carter said it first. Sometimes he lusts in his heart. I wish Pope John Paul II had not said anything about lust, so soon after Jimmy. In the United States at least (and, there is reason to believe, elsewhere) lust is having a big century. The first century, a.d., is said to hold the record, which the Medici and friends in the sixteenth were trying to crowd, but the twentieth is (according to the latest polls) the nearest competitor. Lust is big today.

Feminists do not like Pope John Paul II. On the other hand, feminists applaud new laws against, for example, rape in marriage. Rape in marriage? Is there a look in a man’s eyes before or during rape in marriage? A look which regards his wife as an object? Consider a husband who gets drunk, whacks the children, beats his wife, demands intercourse, uses force. Has he a look in the eye?

About the Author

Michael Novak

Michael Novak was a Catholic philosopher, journalist, novelist, and diplomat.

Featured Tags

Jimmy Carter said it first. Sometimes he lusts in his heart. I wish Pope John Paul II had not said anything about lust, so soon after Jimmy. In the United States at least (and, there is reason to believe, elsewhere) lust is having a big century. The first century, a.d., is said to hold the record, which the Medici and friends in the sixteenth were trying to crowd, but the twentieth is (according to the latest polls) the nearest competitor. Lust is big today.

Feminists do not like Pope John Paul II. On the other hand, feminists applaud new laws against, for example, rape in marriage. Rape in marriage? Is there a look in a man’s eyes before or during rape in marriage? A look which regards his wife as an object? Consider a husband who gets drunk, whacks the children, beats his wife, demands intercourse, uses force. Has he a look in the eye?