Body, Sex and Pleasure: Reconstructing Christian Sexual Ethics

doi:10.1177/106385129700600319

Paper

Body, Sex and Pleasure: Reconstructing Christian Sexual Ethics

Published Aug 1, 1997 · C. Gudorf

Pro Ecclesia: A Journal of Catholic and Evangelical Theology

UNKNOWN SJR score

29

Citations

5

Influential Citations

Full text Semantic Scholar

Abstract

Christine Gudorf sets for herself a monumental challenge. Convinced that traditional Christian sexual ethics are not only inadequate but also inherently flawed and convinced that our "society is in a crisis over sexuality" that the churches have been unable to address because of their unwillingness to abandon "a familiar but unworkable sexual ethic" (p. 1)her aim is to construct a new ethics of sexuality that would be faithful to the central revelations of the gospel, do justice to the Incarnation, avoid the body/soul dualism of the tradition, and accurately reflect both the latest scientific knowledge and people's experiences. Simply modifying or adjusting the tradition is not acceptable, Gudorf argues, because it has brought so many people harm, being responsible "for innumerable deaths, the stunting of souls, the destruction of relationships, and the distortion of human communities" (p. 2).

Study Snapshot

Key takeawayGudorf's new ethics of sexuality must be faithful to the gospel, avoid body/soul dualism, and accurately reflect both scientific knowledge and people's experiences.

PopulationOlder adults (50-71 years)

Sample size24

MethodsObservational

OutcomesBody Mass Index projections

ResultsSocial networks mitigate obesity in older groups.

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Paper

Body, Sex and Pleasure: Reconstructing Christian Sexual Ethics

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References

Citations

Because They Don’t Know Bits from Bobs: Exploring the Hows and Whys of Teaching Sex Ed Alongside Sexual Ethics

Teaching sex ed alongside sexual ethics is crucial for improving learners' knowledge and critical thinking about sexuality, particularly in areas like vocabulary, pleasure, and risks and rewards.

Ventures of Women in Relation to Religion and Violence

Grace Jantzen, Hannah Arendt, and Judith Butler have influenced my feminist leanings, promoting the idea that 'natality' can initiate dynamic change and promote ethical responsibility in an era of'senseless death'.

Peat Bogs, Sperm, and Family Values: Teaching Naturalism Charitably

Teaching naturalism with a charitable account can restore deliberative balance in classrooms, promoting understanding and acceptance of biological considerations in sex, gender, and sexuality courses.

Experience, Authority, and Social Critique: A Comparison of Margaret Farley and John Dewey

Margaret Farley and John Dewey offer alternative characterizations of experience, addressing criticisms of its radical interiority or uncritical foundation for truth claims in moral philosophy and theology.

Bringing the Body Back to Sexual Ethics

The bodily experience of sex has ethical significance, as it conveys trust, affection, care, sensitivity, enjoyment, and pleasure, and can be misleading when people don't have these feelings.

Disrupting the Meaning of Marriage?

Voluntary childfree unions in traditional Christian branches may be hindered by the perceived dissolution of conventional marriage, as it may lead to a similarity between straight and gay childfree marriages.

Enfleshing the Erotic

An embodied theological ethic of human sexuality can critique social realities of heterosexism and sexism, while celebrating the erotic as an essential, creative contour of human sexual experience.

A History of Erotic Philosophy

Erotic philosophy has evolved from ancient Greeks to modern Western philosophers, influenced by various literary figures and influenced by theology.