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Sexuality and Catholicism
"A balanced, broad summary of Catholicism's response to sexuality." Kirkus Sexuality and Catholicism offers a concise and well-rounded analysis of all the most important and most widely discussed issues concerning sexuality and Roman Catholicism. The theme of this volume--the sin of sexuality--is as old as the creation story and as new as the Vatican's reassertion that divorced and remarried Catholics must choose between the sacraments and having sex in marriage. A daily presence in the news, this highly controversial subject affects millions within the church and millions more who look to the church for moral guidance.
- GenresSpirituality
390 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 1995
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 23, 2025
not the most erotic book to read despite the title, in case you wanted to get your rocks off. very informative though
September 20, 2024
THE NCR PUBLISHER SUMMARIZES VARIOUS ISSUES RELATING TO SEXUALITY AND GENDER
Thomas C. Fox is the publisher of the National Catholic Reporter; he also wrote 'Pentecost in Asia: A New Way of Being Church.' He wrote in the Preface to this 1995 book, "The times call for dialogue, for creative responses to a host of global problems... Religion needs to play a key role in the quest for harmony. However, the all too frequent impression is that the Catholic hierarchy... stays apart from the real world, issuing absolutist statements. The result has been to lessen church influence by keeping it out of the broader moral conversations... And yet the church, as always, has much to offer...
"[But] Many Catholics ... who have found the Vatican's proclamations too sweeping and unyielding have abandoned the church... In addition, all too frequent reports of priests molesting children have driven laypeople even further away... Despite dwindling numbers in seminaries... church leaders adamantly resist studying the problem. They will not allow the discussion of optional celibacy. For the past fifteen years ...
"I have witnessed these complex issues unfold. I have seen their often harmful effects on the lives of countless Catholics... 'Sexuality and Catholicism' looks at the critical sexuality questions facing the Catholic Church as it enters the twenty-first century. This book presents the histories, backgrounds, people, and theologies that have brought Catholicism to this juncture. It attempts to tell the Catholic sexuality story in a straightforward, comprehensible way."
He says in the first chapter, "Scripture... does not concern itself much with sex. Efforts to find a systematic presentation of a moral sexual ethic will be found wanting. Neither the Old nor the New Testament offers much specific guidance. (The same, of course, is true of peace or social or political ethics.)" (Pg. 10)
He notes, "the first internal church skirmishes surrounding homosexuality occurred on the political field... a young Catholic nun, a School Sister of Notre Dame named Jeannine Gramick... [and] Robert Nugent, a Philadelphia diocesan priest... began to meet with gay men, counseling them and celebrating home liturgies. Soon the two began to write and lecture on issues of pastoral care for gays and lesbians, then to lobby for legislation to secure gay rights... what was emerging was a conflict between two components of the Catholic faith: a gospel-based call to compassion and a call to uphold traditional church teachings... [to] many gay and lesbian Catholics ... old traditions and prejudices stood in the way of Jesus' teachings...
"Nugent left in 1975 to join a religious order... known for its sympathetic attitudes toward gay and lesbian concerns... he began to associate with a newly founded Catholic peace and justice center... Gramick also joined the staff. In 1977, their join work and organization was formalized under a new name: New Ways Ministry." (Pg. 136-137)
After the controversial 1986 Vatican letter, "all but a handful of U.S. dioceses and archdioceses expelled Dignity from church buildings. Within five years, the organization's membership dropped from about five thousand to under three thousand. Remaining chapters continued to meet off church property. In the early 1990s, Dignity opted to downplay differences with church authority in order to find ways to exist in local dioceses as opportunities occurred. Some archdioceses ... began to sponsor weekly masses for Catholic gays and lesbians. Many gay and lesbian Catholics felt alienated from the church... Many others simply left the church altogether." (Pg. 152)
He recounts how Sister Theresa Kane [administrator general of the Sisters of Mercy of the Union] told the Pope during his 1979 visit to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception that he "needed to be mindful of 'the intense suffering and pain that is part of the life of many women in these United States.' ... Politely but unhesitatingly, Kane said what she thought needed to be said: Christian dignity demands that women be allowed to be ordained priests. The pope never responded. That day Theresa Kane became a Catholic celebrity, admired for her boldness by many Catholics, admonished for her lack of respect by many others." (Pg. 199-200)
He notes, "Women who have met in the name of Women-Church find support in each other, saying they seek out strictly feminist communities to worship as women in spiritually nurturing ways. They say they seek the creation of temporary separate bases from which both to critique the patriarchy and block its power. The Women-Church Convergence is a network of Women-Church organizations and groups rooted in the Catholic tradition but claiming to encompass a spirituality that goes beyond it. Women-Church claims it does not seek to establish alternative structures, saying that institutions will provide resources for their transformation but not for their competition." (Pg. 225)
He points out, "Dating back to the early 1980s... the bishops sent word to Rome that the exclusion of girls as altar servers was causing morale problems in the parishes. Rome said it would take the matter under advisement, doing nothing to forward the discussion. The result was that... priests simply went ahead and allowed the practice. Most bishops were forced to look the other way... It wasn't until 1994 that Rome finally sent word that girls would serve at the altar, at the discretion of the local bishop." (Pg. 233)
He points out, "While frequently there are solid grounds for granting annulments, the practice often become a legal game, an effort aimed more at fulfilling canonical requirements than healing old wounds and restoring the petitioner to spiritual health. Between 45,000 and 50,000 Catholic annulments have been granted in the United States annually from the late 1980s to the early 1990s, representing a small fraction of the number of Catholics who get divorced each year." (Pg. 309-310)
This is a very informative survey of issues affecting gender and sexuality in modern Catholicism, and will be of keen interest to ("progressive," mostly) Catholics.
Thomas C. Fox is the publisher of the National Catholic Reporter; he also wrote 'Pentecost in Asia: A New Way of Being Church.' He wrote in the Preface to this 1995 book, "The times call for dialogue, for creative responses to a host of global problems... Religion needs to play a key role in the quest for harmony. However, the all too frequent impression is that the Catholic hierarchy... stays apart from the real world, issuing absolutist statements. The result has been to lessen church influence by keeping it out of the broader moral conversations... And yet the church, as always, has much to offer...
"[But] Many Catholics ... who have found the Vatican's proclamations too sweeping and unyielding have abandoned the church... In addition, all too frequent reports of priests molesting children have driven laypeople even further away... Despite dwindling numbers in seminaries... church leaders adamantly resist studying the problem. They will not allow the discussion of optional celibacy. For the past fifteen years ...
"I have witnessed these complex issues unfold. I have seen their often harmful effects on the lives of countless Catholics... 'Sexuality and Catholicism' looks at the critical sexuality questions facing the Catholic Church as it enters the twenty-first century. This book presents the histories, backgrounds, people, and theologies that have brought Catholicism to this juncture. It attempts to tell the Catholic sexuality story in a straightforward, comprehensible way."
He says in the first chapter, "Scripture... does not concern itself much with sex. Efforts to find a systematic presentation of a moral sexual ethic will be found wanting. Neither the Old nor the New Testament offers much specific guidance. (The same, of course, is true of peace or social or political ethics.)" (Pg. 10)
He notes, "the first internal church skirmishes surrounding homosexuality occurred on the political field... a young Catholic nun, a School Sister of Notre Dame named Jeannine Gramick... [and] Robert Nugent, a Philadelphia diocesan priest... began to meet with gay men, counseling them and celebrating home liturgies. Soon the two began to write and lecture on issues of pastoral care for gays and lesbians, then to lobby for legislation to secure gay rights... what was emerging was a conflict between two components of the Catholic faith: a gospel-based call to compassion and a call to uphold traditional church teachings... [to] many gay and lesbian Catholics ... old traditions and prejudices stood in the way of Jesus' teachings...
"Nugent left in 1975 to join a religious order... known for its sympathetic attitudes toward gay and lesbian concerns... he began to associate with a newly founded Catholic peace and justice center... Gramick also joined the staff. In 1977, their join work and organization was formalized under a new name: New Ways Ministry." (Pg. 136-137)
After the controversial 1986 Vatican letter, "all but a handful of U.S. dioceses and archdioceses expelled Dignity from church buildings. Within five years, the organization's membership dropped from about five thousand to under three thousand. Remaining chapters continued to meet off church property. In the early 1990s, Dignity opted to downplay differences with church authority in order to find ways to exist in local dioceses as opportunities occurred. Some archdioceses ... began to sponsor weekly masses for Catholic gays and lesbians. Many gay and lesbian Catholics felt alienated from the church... Many others simply left the church altogether." (Pg. 152)
He recounts how Sister Theresa Kane [administrator general of the Sisters of Mercy of the Union] told the Pope during his 1979 visit to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception that he "needed to be mindful of 'the intense suffering and pain that is part of the life of many women in these United States.' ... Politely but unhesitatingly, Kane said what she thought needed to be said: Christian dignity demands that women be allowed to be ordained priests. The pope never responded. That day Theresa Kane became a Catholic celebrity, admired for her boldness by many Catholics, admonished for her lack of respect by many others." (Pg. 199-200)
He notes, "Women who have met in the name of Women-Church find support in each other, saying they seek out strictly feminist communities to worship as women in spiritually nurturing ways. They say they seek the creation of temporary separate bases from which both to critique the patriarchy and block its power. The Women-Church Convergence is a network of Women-Church organizations and groups rooted in the Catholic tradition but claiming to encompass a spirituality that goes beyond it. Women-Church claims it does not seek to establish alternative structures, saying that institutions will provide resources for their transformation but not for their competition." (Pg. 225)
He points out, "Dating back to the early 1980s... the bishops sent word to Rome that the exclusion of girls as altar servers was causing morale problems in the parishes. Rome said it would take the matter under advisement, doing nothing to forward the discussion. The result was that... priests simply went ahead and allowed the practice. Most bishops were forced to look the other way... It wasn't until 1994 that Rome finally sent word that girls would serve at the altar, at the discretion of the local bishop." (Pg. 233)
He points out, "While frequently there are solid grounds for granting annulments, the practice often become a legal game, an effort aimed more at fulfilling canonical requirements than healing old wounds and restoring the petitioner to spiritual health. Between 45,000 and 50,000 Catholic annulments have been granted in the United States annually from the late 1980s to the early 1990s, representing a small fraction of the number of Catholics who get divorced each year." (Pg. 309-310)
This is a very informative survey of issues affecting gender and sexuality in modern Catholicism, and will be of keen interest to ("progressive," mostly) Catholics.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews