I'm sorry, I was using "you" in the plural and hypothetical sense. Perhaps I should have substituted "one" for "you", since it is easily misinterpreted.
We have been explaining to you what Catholics believe. All our writings are similarly clear and concise. But if you would like an excerpt from our catechism:
2351 Lust is disordered desire for or inordinate enjoyment of sexual pleasure. Sexual pleasure is morally disordered when sought for itself, isolated from its procreative and unitive purposes.
2352 By masturbation is to be understood the deliberate stimulation of the genital organs in order to derive sexual pleasure. "Both the Magisterium of the Church, in the course of a constant tradition, and the moral sense of the faithful have been in no doubt and have firmly maintained that masturbation is an intrinsically and gravely disordered action."138 "The deliberate use of the sexual faculty, for whatever reason, outside of marriage is essentially contrary to its purpose." For here sexual pleasure is sought outside of "the sexual relationship which is demanded by the moral order and in which the total meaning of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love is achieved."139
If you would like to read the full section of the catechism concerning lust, chastity, and its place in our everyday lives, you can find a great online version of the catechism
here. The section I quoted about lust and chastity can be directly found
here. You might think it is a bit lengthy, but there is no "simple" answer to the question, "Is masturbation wrong?
Why?" This is because the understanding of lust and chastity are linked to the understanding of the human person as a whole, the nature of love, etc. Everything is interconnected, as you will find very quickly with Catholic theology.
Basically all the catechism is, is a summary of our beliefs, like we've been trying to explain here. We've explained it properly, but I guess if you want something "official", there is nothing more detailed and in-depth than the catechism.
If you are interested in the issue of human sexuality as a whole, author Christopher West has done a great series based on Pope John Paul II's
Theology of the Body. I read Christopher West's commentary on
Theology of the Body, as the original book is written in high, lofty language, and his commentary makes everything more accessible. I also read another book written by him... it was very brief and to-the-point, basically a summary of
Theology of the Body. I can't remember what it was called, though.
Christopher West has written very extensively on this aspect of Catholic theology as it relates to human sexuality. If you feel inclined, you can definitely check out a list of all his articles and books
at his website.
I hope that helps!
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