Pete Wright

What do you know when you think about lust, our topic today? What do you think about? How does it hit you? How do you feel when you think about lust?

I've got the negative one first.

Yeah, for sure. We don't necessarily need to perseverate on that particular angle of the church because you're exactly right. I mean, it's a sin because it... takes away from spiritual purity and attention to the church. But what's really interesting about lust in particular is its association as original sin and its deeply gendered interpretation over sin.

centuries and centuries and centuries right because um it is you know when you look at at the first sort of interpretations of of lust and original sin it's because of adam and eve it were were you know thrown out of the garden of even because eve was was in inciting lustful feelings in adam and tempting right the garden of temptation wait a minute is that right

The original sin is believed to have been a corruption of human nature introduced the inclination toward vice. Lust was a consequence of human nature's corruption, right? This is the manifestation of humanity's fallen state, right? That's where it started. That's where we started. That's the first time we started talking about it. Right.

Like the sin, the original sin of sexual temptation and lack of purity. I see.

Pretty much. That's what we did.

I know too much about the Bible. You sure do.

Yeah. The books that were not allowed in the Bible. Yes. It's like the Cimmerillion from J.R.R. Tolkien. You read a lot of that. Sure. You don't even know. Nerds are with me. Yeah, okay. I think I mispronounced it. The Cimmerillion. Oh, sure. Okay, got it. You get it now. Yeah, of course. All right.

So anyhow, the thing about lust being so super gendered, like that has stayed with us over thousands of years.

I did some searching for the, you know, the myths of lust. And I found so many, I found a lot of pages of people talking about the immodest woman, right? That it is, and this is the genderfication of lust. This is the big misconstruction of lust that blaming women for dressing a certain way, looking a certain way, behaving a certain way, for creating an environment that is lusty in men.

And it is such a myth, right? It's such a grotesque misinterpretation of humans living together, that particular thing. To me, I think that's really tough to read, that stuff. Mostly because the data,

goes the other way the data says that men and women can lust equally that lust is when it becomes negative it's a loss of control but when it's positive it's erotic sexual attraction that serves a purpose right that serves a purpose in us so it is I think it's really a complicated thing because it's like a derogatory term for sexual attraction that is used to

No, I don't – I mean this – I think it underscores why it's such a complicated – Yeah. Like topic. Right. Because I think you're absolutely right. There is healthy sexual desire and attraction, which is good. Like we like that we support sexual attraction. And then there's what obsession, unhealthy obsession with the thing.

And that could be like you mentioned it, a lust for money, a lust for food, a lust for when lust becomes shorthand for a loss of control in our desire for a thing. That, I think, makes sense. That becomes like the maladaptive behavior. Right.

Yeah, now we've gone to full ASMR. Gross.

That was the worst. So, yeah, so I don't even remember what that slur got us to.

Yeah, lack of control, loss of control.

Maybe not. Like, okay, so I look at my own relationship, right? I think lust is an important part of a healthy sexual relationship. And I think the idea of lusting after my long-term partner is awesome. And I want to be lusted after the same way. I want to be objectified that way too. That makes it fun, right? Yeah. That's fun.

It is super consensual and kind of like using the word lust is kind of naughty and feels like invigorating and tantalizing. And that that feels OK to me. But again, the complicated part is like, you know, meeting somebody for the first time and saying, hey, totally lusting after you right now.