The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) teaches that masturbation is an intrinsically and gravely disordered action because it deliberately seeks sexual pleasure apart from the purposes of marriage—unity and procreation—and thus contradicts the call to self-giving love;
while acknowledging that factors such as immaturity, psychological conditions, or ingrained habits may lessen personal responsibility,
the CCC emphasizes that Christians are called to purity, self-mastery, and reliance on God’s grace to overcome this sin (cf. CCC 2352).