Natural Law and the Sin Against Nature
Traditional Christian descriptions of homosexuality as a sin against nature rely on a claim about the transparency of the sexed body to universal reason: homosexual acts are sins against nature because natural law renders them obviously unnatural. This moral description unnatural subverts itself...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
[2015]
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| In: |
Journal of religious ethics
Year: 2015, Volume: 43, Issue: 4, Pages: 629-673 |
| Further subjects: | B
Augustine
B Sexual ethics B Homosexuality B Natural Law B nuptial theology B Marriage |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Publisher) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | Traditional Christian descriptions of homosexuality as a sin against nature rely on a claim about the transparency of the sexed body to universal reason: homosexual acts are sins against nature because natural law renders them obviously unnatural. This moral description unnatural subverts itself for two reasons. First, neo-traditionalist descriptions conflate natural and normal. Dialogue with Didier Eribon's work on the insult shows how such moral descriptions self-subvert and render chastity impossible. Second, neo-traditionalists use the description to require celibacy, which the tradition teaches is likely impossible without a special gift. This use of natural law thus fails to be self-consistent or true to reality and so undermines its ability to serve as a critical principle in the search for truth. A critical use of natural law allows for an alternative, non-insulting description of homosexual characters. This essay outlines the character description through immanent critique of two spheres of Catholic teachings about sex: Augustinian sexual ethics and nuptial theology. |
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| ISSN: | 1467-9795 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of religious ethics
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1111/jore.12116 |
