rt on every kind of
luxury and pleasure; these are properly meant by the sensual: in the
third degree are those who love only themselves, placing their heart on
the quest of honor; these are properly meant by the corporeal, because
they immerse all things of the will, and consequently of the
understanding, in the body, and look backward at themselves from others,
and love only what belongs to themselves: but the sensual immerse all
things of the will and consequently of the understanding in the
allurements and fallacies of the senses, indulging in these alone;
whereas the natural pour forth into the world all things of the will and
understanding, covetously and fraudulently acquiring wealth, and
regarding no other use therein and thence but that of possession. The
above-mentioned adulteries change men in these degenerate degrees, one
into this, another into that, each according to his favorite taste for
what is pleasurable, in which taste his peculiar genius is grounded.

497. XVI. AND THIS TO SUCH A DEGREE THAT AT LENGTH THEY REJECT FROM
THEMSELVES ALL THINGS OF THE CHURCH AND OF RELIGION. The reason why
determined and continued adulterers reject from themselves all things of
the church and religion is, because the love of marriage and the love of
adultery are opposite, n. 425, and the love of marriage acts in unity
with the church and religion; see n. 130, and throughout the former
part; hence the love of adultery, as being opposite, acts in unity with
those things which are contrary to the church. A further reason why
those adulterers reject from themselves all things of the church and of
religion, is, because the love of marriage and the love of adultery are
opposite, as the marriage of good and truth is opposite to the
connection of evil and the false: see n. 427, 428; and the marriage of
good and truth constitutes the church, whereas the connection of evil
and the false constitutes the anti-church. A further reason why those
adulterers reject from themselves all things of the church and of
religion, is because the love of marriage and the love of adultery are
as opposite as heaven and hell, n. 429; and in heaven there is the love
of all things of the church, whereas in hell there is hatred against
them. A further reason why those adulterers reject from themselves all
things of the church and of religion, is, because, their delights
commence from the flesh, and are of the flesh also in the spirit, n.
440, 441; and