Philosophy
One of the ways in which religions have managed to control their followers is by controlling their sexuality, telling them what's allowed, what's forbidden, what they can be punished for eternally, what the purpose of sex is, and so on. And for a very long time, religions managed to do this quite well, primarily because they also controlled the means of indoctrination and communication, but then modernity and education happened...
Few events have shocked the church quite the way the introduction of the anti-contraceptive pill did because, for the first time in history, sexuality became democratized and people finally had some control over their own reproduction, control that had previously been the dominion of the church.
With the sexual revolution of the sixties, and the general secularization of the zeitgeist over the last few centuries, orthodox traditional religious restrictions on sexuality (like their adherence to natural law theory and its injunctions against birth control, abortion and homosexuality), though still strongly supported by church officials, have been mainly ignored by the faithful, and the church has lost its grip on the conscience and soul of its constituents.
But is sex only about physical gratification, or is there some important spiritual component to it over which the church really ought to have something to say? Or can such components be achieved without it? Does the very idea of sex as metaphorical forbidden fruit enhance the sexual experience? Are atheists missing out?
And check out a brief summary of the history of the church and child sexual abuse.
Or check out the Unnatural History of Sex (The Revolution and Love).
- Just Asking
The second most horrendous act of terrorism in the United States was committed by Christian nationalists who intentionally planted their bomb at the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City knowing full well that the facility had a daycare center. And...
- Debunking The "naturalistic" Argument Against Gay Marriage, Part I
As John points out over at The NonSequitur"Arguments against gay marriage tend to fall into one of two groups: (1) the slippery slope group, which alleges that if gay marriage is permitted, all sorts of outrageous consequences will follow (such as the...
- From The "irony Can Be So Ironic" File
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere, Last weekend we wished happy holidays to all those non-Comedists celebrating the traditional holy days of their various faiths, and members of the Greek and Armenian Orthodox Churches responded...
- The Devil - Child-abusing Priests
When it comes to evil, no one does it better than the devil... except for Catholic priests who abuse children. That's just crossing the line... Check out the long and embarrassing history of child abuse in the Church. . ...
- A History Of Catholic Church Sex Scandals
The Catholic Church has recently found itself smack in the middle of the same controversy that we've all unfortunately become accustomed to hearing about over the past few years: perverted priests have been molesting children, and as usual, instead...
Philosophy
Sex: An Unnatural History - The Church
Few events have shocked the church quite the way the introduction of the anti-contraceptive pill did because, for the first time in history, sexuality became democratized and people finally had some control over their own reproduction, control that had previously been the dominion of the church.
With the sexual revolution of the sixties, and the general secularization of the zeitgeist over the last few centuries, orthodox traditional religious restrictions on sexuality (like their adherence to natural law theory and its injunctions against birth control, abortion and homosexuality), though still strongly supported by church officials, have been mainly ignored by the faithful, and the church has lost its grip on the conscience and soul of its constituents.
But is sex only about physical gratification, or is there some important spiritual component to it over which the church really ought to have something to say? Or can such components be achieved without it? Does the very idea of sex as metaphorical forbidden fruit enhance the sexual experience? Are atheists missing out?
And check out a brief summary of the history of the church and child sexual abuse.
Or check out the Unnatural History of Sex (The Revolution and Love).
- Just Asking
The second most horrendous act of terrorism in the United States was committed by Christian nationalists who intentionally planted their bomb at the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City knowing full well that the facility had a daycare center. And...
- Debunking The "naturalistic" Argument Against Gay Marriage, Part I
As John points out over at The NonSequitur"Arguments against gay marriage tend to fall into one of two groups: (1) the slippery slope group, which alleges that if gay marriage is permitted, all sorts of outrageous consequences will follow (such as the...
- From The "irony Can Be So Ironic" File
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere, Last weekend we wished happy holidays to all those non-Comedists celebrating the traditional holy days of their various faiths, and members of the Greek and Armenian Orthodox Churches responded...
- The Devil - Child-abusing Priests
When it comes to evil, no one does it better than the devil... except for Catholic priests who abuse children. That's just crossing the line... Check out the long and embarrassing history of child abuse in the Church. . ...
- A History Of Catholic Church Sex Scandals
The Catholic Church has recently found itself smack in the middle of the same controversy that we've all unfortunately become accustomed to hearing about over the past few years: perverted priests have been molesting children, and as usual, instead...