The Church and Human Sexuality

Paper Summary:

In this paper, the writer notes that in recent times, there has been a tremendous amount of discussion about Christianity and its approach to human sexuality. The writer points out that depending on the commentator, the Church's position on sexuality is empowering, negative, supportive, or neutral. In addition, the writer discusses that some suggest that it is impossible to describe one Christian view about sexuality because of the various positions that differing Christians have taken regarding the relationship between one's sexuality and one's spirituality. However, such an answer belies the fact that, until recently, Catholics, Orthodox Christians, and all of the mainstream Protestant denominations took a negative view of human sexuality except for the purposes of procreation. The writer concludes that one must assume that the Christian view of sexuality will continue to evolve, as science and society gain a greater understanding of human sexuality.

From the Paper:

"It is important to recognize that there is not one version of Christianity. Orthodox Christians and Catholics have a similar approach to the church, and their religions are shaped and formed by much outside of Scripture. In fact, with Catholicism, given that the Pope is considered to be the voice of God, some extra-scriptural things are given more weight than the words in the actual scripture. This attitude has allowed for the development of a religion that expands upon, explains, and even contradicts, the teachings in the Bible. Protestantism, as the name implies, began as a reaction to the Catholic Church's deviations from scripture, and has been characterized by faithfulness to the literal interpretation of the Bible. The problem with the Protestant approach is that the Bible relays information about events, which has been perverted by people into an endorsement of those events and behaviors. In fact, Biblical literalism may have damaged the Church, especially in gender and race relations. Anti-Semitism, slavery, homophobia, and sexism have all been explained away and even justified by the use or misuse of Scripture."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Hotz, Kendra. "Christianity: What Are Some of the Religion's Teachings In the Area of Human Sexuality." What Do Our Neighbors Believe? 2005. Explorefaith.org. 17 Feb. 2007 <http://www.explorefaith.org/neighbors/social/sexuality_c.html>.
• Magdalene.org. "Mary Magdalene FAQ." Magdalene.org. 2005. Magdalene.org. 17 Feb.2007 <http://www.magdalene.org/faq.php#gospel>.
• Roberts, Mark. "The Protestant Mary: Reflections on the Time Cover Story." MarkDRoberts.com. 2005. MarkDRoberts.com. 17 Feb. 2007 <http://www.markdroberts.com/htmfiles/resources/Protestantmary.htm>.
• Speyrer, John. "The Madonna/Whore Complex: A Primal Therapy Interpretation." The Primal Feelings Newsletter. 1995. The Primal Psychotherapy Page. 17 Feb. 2007 <http://primal-page.com/madonna.htm>.
• Spong, John. Born of a Woman: a Bishop Rethinks the Birth of Jesus. New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1992.

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