There are degrees which distinguish the qualities of evil, just as there are for the qualities of good. Any evil therefore may be more or less serious, just as any good may be better and richer. It is the same with fornication, which, being a lust and belonging to the natural man who is not yet purified, is an evil. But since everyone can be purified, the nearer he approaches to being purified, the less serious that evil becomes, for to that extent it is wiped away; the same happens the closer fornication approaches to conjugial love, which is a state where sexual love has been made pure. It will be seen in the next section that the evil of fornication is the more serious, the closer it approaches to the love of adultery.

[2] The reason why fornication is the less serious the more it has conjugial love in view is that the person then looks from the unchaste state in which he is towards a chaste state; and the more he prefers this, the more he is as regards his intellect in that state; and if he not only prefers it but yearns for it, the more he is as regards his will in that state, thus as regards his inner man. If he then persists in fornication, it is because he needs to do so, for reasons of which he is well aware.

[3] There are two reasons which ensure that fornication is not serious in the case of those who prefer and yearn for the married state. The first is that married life is their plan, intention and aim. The second is that they are separating the evil in themselves from the good. As regards the first, that married life is their plan, intention or aim, this is because a person's nature is dependent upon the nature of his plan, intention or aim. This is the nature he displays to the Lord and to angels, in fact he is so regarded also by wise people in the world. For intention is the soul of all actions, and determines blame or excuse in the world, and after death what is imputed to a person.

[4] As regards the second reason, that those who prefer conjugial love to the lust of fornication separate evil from good, and so unchastity from chastity, [this is because they keep these two apart in perception and intention]*; and those who keep these two apart in perception and intention are also separated and purified from that lust, before achieving a good and chaste state, when they enter the married state. It will be seen in the next section that this does not happen to those who in fornicating have adultery in view. * There appears to be an omission in the original here.