Chapter XVIII

THE OPPOSITION BETWEEN SCORTATORY AND CONJUGIAL LOVE

At the outset we must first disclose what is meant in this chapter by scortatory love. It does not mean the love of fornication before marriage or following the death of a partner. Nor does it include having a concubine, if this is something entered into for good, real and legitimate reasons. Nor does it mean the less serious kinds of adultery or even the serious kinds provided a person comes to his senses again; for the more serious kinds change so as not to become opposed to conjugial love, and the less serious are not so opposed. How this is will be seen in the following sections, where each kind is discussed.

By scortatory love as the opposite of conjugial love is meant here the love of adultery, of such a kind that it is not counted as a sin, or as an evil or disgraceful act against reason, but as something allowable with the approval of reason. This scortatory love not only makes conjugial love the same as itself, but also ruins and destroys it so that it turns at last into nausea.

[2] The subject of this chapter is the opposition between this love and conjugial love; and that no other is meant will become clear from the following discussion of fornication, having a concubine and the various kinds of adultery. But in order to display this opposition to the sight of reason, they will be set forth in the following order. (i) It is impossible to know the nature of scortatory love without knowing the nature of conjugial love. (ii) Scortatory love is the opposite of conjugial love. (iii) Scortatory love is the opposite of conjugial love, just as the natural man regarded in himself is the opposite of the spiritual man. (iv) Scortatory love is the opposite of conjugial love, just as the pairing of evil and falsity is the opposite of the marriage of good and truth. (v) Hence scortatory love is the opposite of conjugial love, just as hell is the opposite of heaven. (vi) The uncleanness of hell is due to scortatory love, and the cleanliness of heaven is due to conjugial love. (vii) Likewise there is uncleanness in the church, and cleanliness there. (viii) Scortatory love makes a person less and less human and virile, and conjugial love makes him more and more human and virile. (ix) There is a sphere of scortatory love and one of conjugial love. (x) The sphere of scortatory love comes up from hell, and the sphere of conjugial love comes down from heaven. (xi) These two spheres come up against each other in either world, but do not join. (xii) There is an equilibrium between these two spheres, and a person is kept in this. (xiii) A person can turn towards whichever he pleases, but in so far as he turns towards one, so far does he turn away from the other. (xiv) Either sphere brings joys with it. (xv) The joys of scortatory love begin from the flesh, and remain fleshly even in the spirit; but the joys of conjugial love begin in the spirit, and remain spiritual even in the flesh. (xvi) The joys of scortatory love are the pleasures of folly, but the joys of conjugial love are the delights of wisdom

The explanation of these propositions now follows.