Sexual ethics

Christian teachings
Traditional Christian teachings on sex are associated with marriage. Because sex is primarily concerned with the procreation of
children, and because children need to be raised, then marriage ensures both parents stay with each other. For Christians,
marriage means more than this – it is a sacrament, the union of man and woman into ‘one flesh’.

Premarital sex
In traditional Christian teaching pre-marital sex is forbidden, as both sacramental and covenantal ideas of marriage require an
act of sexual intercourse to complete the marriage process – consummation. New Testament teaching is particularly consistent
that premarital sex is immoral; St Paul tells the members of the Church at Corinth that it is ‘better to marry than to be aflame
with passion’ (1 Corinthians).

Cohabitation has become increasingly the norm in contemporary Western societies. Whereas in the past, marriage offered
emotional and financial stability, women today have more autonomy sexually (contraception) and financially (equality in the
workplace) therefore the need for marriage is lessened. Cohabitation also reflects the informal nature of modern life, which
does not see the need to formalise relationships. Cohabitation has now become a common part of society; it can be broadly
defined in three categories:

1. Casual – lack of long-term commitment; a relationship that develops so both partners share a sexual and social life.
2. Trial marriage – many argue that premarital cohabitation is essential to ensure compatibility.
3. Substitute marriage for ideological reasons – long-term relationship without marriage. Two types: for those excluded
from marriage (e.g. unable to be divorced for religious reasons) and those who choose to for ideological reasons.

Conservative Christians would argue that marriage is the most stable and satisfactory basis for family and sexual life, so
cohabitation is unacceptable. However, trial marriage is treated by liberal Christians as a normal stage of the process of
marriage. Whether it likes it or not, the Church has to take into account secular attitudes otherwise it risks becoming irrelevant.
The Church can still encourage marriage as the ideal; this was the line taken controversially by John Sentamu, Archbishop of
York, when he publicly supported Prince William and Kate Middleton’s cohabitation as a sensible means to test their desire to
marry (as they did in 2011)

Extramarital sex
Extramarital sex is adultery or sex with a prostitute. In Biblical times, the woman was always held accountable as the
‘temptress’, however now women and men are - supposedly - in the eyes of the Church, scorned equally. Jesus’ teachings in
John’s Gospel (8) emphasises the need for forgiveness and understanding. This is particularly important where a person has
divorced because of adultery and wishes to remarry – the Church should therefore show love and generosity.

Homosexuality
Traditional Christianity – conservative Protestants and the RCC – teaches that the Bible condemns all forms of homosexual
practice because it breaks the covenant relationship between God and his people. Their supporting evidence is as follows:

 The towns of Gomorrah and Sodom were destroyed by God because of their practices of homosexual rape (Genesis 19).
This story in particular become synonymous with the Christian tradition of demonising gay sex
 ‘You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination’ (Leviticus 18:22)
 St Paul makes a list of ‘wrongdoers’ who cannot enter Heaven, which includes male prostitutes and sodomites (1
Corinthians)
 Paul condemns gay practices, which he uses to illustrate Gentile depravity in Rome; arguing that they go against the
natural order and conscience (Romans)

Further, the fact marriage’s primary purpose is procreation means that gay marriage/sex is therefore unquestionable.

 ‘each and every marriage act must remain open to the transmission of life’ (Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI)

It is for this reason that the RCC regards homosexuality as contrary to both Scripture and natural law. Homosexual sex is
therefore considered a misdirection of the sexual organs given the impossibility of conception. Homosexuals are called to
chastity; the Church has declared that even though ‘homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered, homosexual people must be
treated with ‘respect, compassion and sensitivity’ (The Catechism of the Catholic Church)

1
Calling a gay person to celibacy is an option for the Church, as ‘they do not choose their homosexual condition’. Likewise, a gay
person may also ‘approach Christian perfection’ by developing his or her gifts as a single person.

Liberal teaching
Liberal Christians argue that the Bible must be read contextually and that a principle tenet of Christianity is the protection of
marginalised people against the prejudices of society. So, it is only right to value all human relationships as all people are made
‘imago dei’. With these lines of argument in mind, they interpret Biblical teachings as follows:

 Sodom and Gomorrah are condemned for all kinds of other wickedness. Jesus takes Sodom’s notorious lack of
hospitability as an example of the events which will be particularly judged on the final day (Matthew 10)
 Leviticus condemns gay prostitution, not explicitly gay relationships
 In St Paul’s letter to the Romans, he uses homosexuality as an example of Jewish cleanliness laws which have been
superseded since the formation of Christianity, implying homosexuality is also acceptable: ‘I know and am
persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself’

Liberals are inspired by the presentation of Jesus the liberator, whose message was to ‘let the oppressed go free’. Jesus
preached to all kinds of people, therefor, for liberals, it is the role of the Church to be inclusive and to accept that it must also
mdcc

adjust itself to society as well as contribute to it. Alan Wilson, a Bishop of the Church of England, argues that the RCC should
support same-sex marriage as an enrichment and healthy development of marriage. Wilson is, however, a minority voice among
Anglican bishops. (More Perfect Union? 2014)

The middle way

Is there a middle way between the conservative and liberal positions on homosexuality? The Church of England report ‘Issues in
Human Sexuality’ (1991) illustrates the biblical view that marriage is normally between a man and a woman, but it also goes on
to say that God does not condemn homosexuality because ‘God loves us all alike’.

The report seems to be a mere tolerance of homosexuality, although it does not allow a person who is in a gay sexual
relationship to be a priest (even though it allows a gay priest to be in a celibate gay-sex union). Prayers are allows to be made for
civil unions, but priests are restricted from blessing a same-sex union. Increasing pressure from gay Christians has led to English
bishops requesting a review of the report. However, the bishops’ request was not supported by the traditionalist clergy.
Discussions continue.

Secular views
Since the late 18th century, the close relationship between the Church and society has widened in part due to diversity of
religious beliefs, the development of science and technology and self-conscious humanist philosophies. John Stuart Mill (1806-
73) was a significant figure of secularism, and devised the liberty principle.

‘Freedom… is that of pursuing our own good in our own way, so long as we do not attempt to deprive others of theirs’ (On
Liberty, 1859)

Mill defends negative liberty, the reduction of interference by the state or anyone else. He supports liberty in the basis that:

 diversity enriches society

 liberty allows people to ‘flourish and breathe’
 morality cannot be monopolised; people should be allowed to choose for themselves
 tolerance makes for a happier society

A good example of Mill’s LP in use is Lord Wolfenden’s report on homosexuality. Despite his own Christian objections to
Christianity, the Lord adopted Mill’s LP as the only means for judging whether it was right for the state to interfere in an
individual’s private sexual behaviour. Not long before The Wolfenden Report was published, the Enigma codebreaker and
Cambridge mathmetician Alan Turing had been charged under the Criminal Law Amendment Act (1885) and had been
chemically castrated for ‘gross indecency’.

‘The only purpose for which power can rightfully be exercised over any member of a civilised community, against his own will, is
to prevent harm to others.’ (On Liberty, 1859)

Mill argued that causing moral offence was not a sufficient reason to outlaw any activity.

2
The 1967 Sexual Offences Act permitted private homosexual relationships in private for consenting adults over 21; in 1994 this
age was reduced to 18 and reduced again to 16 in 2000.

The UK Civil Partnerships Act 2004 gave same-sex partnerships the same rights as heterosexual relationships. The Marriage Act
of 2013 made gay marriage legal in England and Wales, although priests still reserve the right to refuse to marry a same-sex
couple. Gay marriage was made legal across the whole of the USA in 2015, and Australia in 2017.

Application of ethical theories to sexual ethics

The views of normative ethical theories with reference to sex
Natural law  although natural law does not necessarily have to be religious a religious ethic, the form it has taken in the
West has been through Christianity, and in particular, Catholicism.
 marriage and heterosexual sex reflects Divine Law: God instructs humans to ‘be fruitful and multiply, and fill
the Earth’ (Genesis 1:28)
 in accordance with Aquinas’ primary precepts, marriage allows for the proper ‘ordering’ of society ensures
reproduction and provides the right environment for children to be educated and worship God.
 marriage as a Sacrament is ordained by God, but enshrined in Human Law in terms of legislation and local
customs.
 Roman Catholicism continues natural law teaching. Marriage is a Sacrament, where an indissoluble bond is
formed
 natural law cannot condone extramarital relationships as these undermine Divine, Natural and Human Law.

Kantian ethics  freedom is at the heart of Kantian ethics; it follows, then, for consent to be significant. It focuses on the worth
of two human beings involved and encourage them to be attentive to each other, and not to use either persons
as a means to an end, such as pleasure or social convenience. The human person is of the highest worth, and
should therefore be treated
 sex that objectifies a person and does not express the utmost consideration for them would be unethical
because sexual relations must be based on equality

Utilitarianism  thoroughly secular

 the basic utilitarian maxim is that of the greatest good for the greatest number.
 shares many of the same aims of the liberty principle that a good life is when a person is happy, free from pain
and able to satisfy their preferences
 analysis of marriage is likely to be in terms of the quality of the relationship
 increasingly today, people don’t distinguish sharply between cohabitation and marriage
o a marriage is not a covenant, so it is up to the spouses to decide on the quality of their
relationship
o what matters is the mutual sharing of interests
 a preference utilitarian would favour marriage because it offers better protection of rights (than cohabitation)
and its formality offers long-term security. But for those more focused on the short-term, their interests are
best served by the informal flexibility and open-endedness of cohabitation
 adultery is not intrinsically wrong; rather it is for the couple to decide
o some may have an open marriage
o while this may work for some, for others it may lead to jealousy and threaten the relationship
 for the rule utilitarian, the observation is that monogamy has a tendency to bring about greater satisfaction,
then there is good reason to justify having a rule that prohibits adultery or extramarital affairs

Situation ethics  the 4 working principles (prag, relat, pos, person) are designed to place the needs of people before any dogma
and are based on the Christian principle of agape love.
 Fletcher’s relativistic system of ethics permits people more authority and permissiveness with regards to their
body. However, for his critics, sexual permissiveness just means licence to have sex without commitment
 situation ethics does not set out to undermine traditional Christian teaching on marriage, but it does question
the Church’s absolutist teachings
 marriage is not an intrinsic good; the only good is agape
 challenges the sacredness attributed to sex
 premarital sex is a means of exploring one’s own body and – provided it treats the other person with respect –
cannot be immoral
 In Fletcher’s example of ‘sacrificial adultery’, set during WWII, a woman has been separated from her husband
and children – in a Ukrainian concentration camp – learns that she could get home, if she were to be
impregnated by a guard. This is justified under the 4 working principles.
o pragmatism – the benefits of being with her family outweigh the adultery
o relativism – the commandment ‘do not commit adultery’ can be broken because it is the most loving
thing to do
o positivism – there is no intrinsic law against extramarital sex. The motive is positive, so the situation is
not deceitful and adulterous
o personalism – the child born from the adultery is much loved and accepted as part of the family; the
wife’s sacrificial act was done out of love and respect for the husband and her other children
3
 The views of normative ethical theories with reference to homosexuality
Natural law  according to traditional Christian law, gay sex is explicitly rejected because the purpose of sex is strictly
procreative
o ‘every omission of semen in such a way that a generation cannot follow… must be a sin’ (Aquinas,
Summa Contra Gentiles)
 at the heart of the homosexuality debate is a question over what constitutes ‘normal’ behaviour. Michel
Foucalt’s analysis is that ‘normal’ is usually established by those who have a vested interest in controlling
society. Thus, there is no sexual normality, only sexuality.
 W. Norman Pittenger argues that it is ‘inhumane’ to condemn gay sex; rejection of ‘one’s primary inclination’ is
un-Christian (Towards a Theology of Gay Liberation, 1977)
 other natural law arguments for gay sex:
o the notion of telos is ambiguous. The purpose of marriage may equally be regarded as having a
recreational and loving relationship, independent of gender.
o Aquinas’ judgment is based on all sexual acts which do not lead to reproduction, it is not a judgment
of homosexual relationships exclusively
o modern scientific consensus does not regard homosexuality to be a deviant pathology. Being a
minority is not contrary to any natural law any more than being black handed is.
 The liberal natural law position gives many lawful or licit reasons why gay and lesbians may marry and have
children if they want

Kantian ethics  traditional rules prohibit sex outside of marriage and gay sex
 the universalisation of reproduction as the product of sex would make gay sex unethical
 premarital and extramarital sex sometimes involves abuse of another (e.g. affairs) therefore increases the
requirement for individuals to conduct themselves ethically
 gay sex ‘demeans man below the beasts’ (Lectures on Ethics)
 People must treat each other as ends in themselves; ‘It follows from this that nobody can make themselves into
an object of the other’s enjoyment if it is injurious to their personality, and strictly incumbent obligation to
consummate a promise of carnal intercourse cannot be admitted’ (Lectures)

Utilitarianism  the key requirements are consent and avoidance of harm

 rejection of homosexuality is frequently based on irrational homophobic prejudice, superstition and religious
tradition, none of which take into account the happiness of those involved
 as Foucalt has argued, different types of sexual expression does not cause society to collapse. According to
Mill’s liberty principle, a rich diversity in society makes people happier, because they have the freedom to
pursue their interests
 as with all utilitarian calculations, an assessment as to the amount of harm done caused has to be taken into
account. If homosexuality enrages enough people, then it can be justifiably prohibited
o some consider homosexual behaviour socially harmful, arguing that it may cause a child brought
up by gay parents to be corrupted – nevertheless, there is no conclusive evidence to suggest this
is true – the most important thing is the quality of the relationship

Situation ethics  The Bible is not a source of commands, but indicative of the most loving and fulfilling human relationships.
 Context must also be considered; hence it is clear that while the Bible does condemn homosexual practices,
relationships were not condemned, because the main concern of the writers was to distance themselves from
the non-Jewish and, later, non-pagan practices.

4
More information

Christianity Joseph Fletcher’s example of ‘patriotic prostitution’ (Situation Ethics, 1966)

‘Man should not be alone; I will make him a mate… be fruitful and multiply’ (Genesis)

Stephen Fry argues that the Catholic Church, in its controlling of sexuality, is a ‘force for evil’

4th century prudes The Song of Soloman, an erotic tale of a man with 700 wives and 300 concubines: ‘your love is better
than mine’. Some sermons were banned in the 4 century, including this one.

In the 4th century, monks made celibacy fashionable. Diogenes lived in a bath to avoid the temptations
of the flesh.

St Augustine wrote that Adam and Eve did have sex but that they did not enjoy it – it was just a
necessary act, not motivated by lustful appetite. ‘not needing to be aroused by the excitement of
passion, the man would have poured his seed into his wife’s womb in tranquillity of mind and without
any corruption of her body’s integrity’ (City of God)

Arnobius of the 4th century asserted that intercourse is filthy and degrading; it was blasphemy to even
imagine that Jesus was born of sex.

Pope Francis Pope Francis is hated by many Catholics. He famously asked of gay people: ‘Who am I to judge?’ He
washed the feet of Muslim refugees, took communion with divorcees, attacks global capitalism and
supports migrant rights.

He has scandalised conservatives; almost a quarter of cardinals accuse him of flirting with heresy. He
has encouraged communion to some divorced, remarried couples, and partners who cohabit but are
not married.

Pope Francis is more pragmatic than the absolutist dogma of the Catholic Church. The Archbishop of
Kazakhstan thinks the Pope has allowed ‘the smoke of Satan’ to enter the Church.

‘The Catholic Church ought to be countercultural in the wake of the sexual revolution… the Catholic
Church is the last remaining place in the western world that says divorce is bad’- Ross Douthat.

5
Further secular views

Mill states that self-harm might be a reason to intervene in a person’s private life, but otherwise, we should respect
the autonomy of the individual; there is an exception for certain cases, including children or the mentally disabled
who may lack the ability to make a rational choice.

Harm may also be caused when an action offends another person’s moral values and sense of decency. This is far
more elusive and judging when this actually threatens public stability is notoriously hard to define. Some challenges
are as follows:

 Mill argued that causing moral offence was no reason to outlaw an action
 can one really claim that private consenting acts have no effect on public morality? A person’s private
interests may have a bearing on the way they act in public.

There has been a long-standing view that same-sex relationships cause harm to public decency. In the 18th century,
the ‘Societies for the Reformation of Manners’ was instrumental in the raids of many ‘molly houses’ (gay clubs)
because it was considered a threat to public decency.

While many Britons may not approve of homosexuality, few would deny them equal rights as heterosexual people.
Even so, there is still dispute about whether gay relationships should have the same privileges as straight ones,
namely the right to marry and have children. Over the past decade the law on same-sex relations has undergone
substantial changes.