A* Summary of Sexual Ethics and its application to Normative Ethics
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Course
Ethics
Institution
OCR
A* standard summaries which highlight all the necessary requirements to meet the highest grade. Notes have been a combination of I Think Therefore I Teach and my own findings.
Marriage / Divorce / Adultery / Premarital Sex
Premarital Sex:
Focuses upon the idea of sex before marriage which has become a very unclear argument as people have argued that if you never get married it
isn’t premarital sex and it is an outdated concept for today’s society.
Pope Paul VI = “So that husband and wife become in a way one heart and one soul, and together attain their human fulfilment” = by this he is
arguing that only a traditional marriage and relationship would be able to achieve fulfilment as opposed to the more modern relationships.
For the Catholic Church, premarital sex doesn’t express fidelity (faithfulness), exclusivity and commitment doesn’t tolerate any sex before
marriage. People who engage in premarital sex are committing grave sin and are excluded from the sacramental communion until living in a
morally correct way
Yet, the Church of England does “accept that cohabitation is, for many people, a step along the way towards that fuller and more complete
commitment”.
Extramarital Sex (adultery):
Adultery is clearly condemned in both the Old and New Testament which is partly due to it being seen as a violation of property rights. A
deontological approach would condemn adultery under all circumstances (Natural law = intrinsically evil act) while a teleological approach would
look at the situation and likely consequences (Joesph Fletcher Sacrificial Adultery example). Adultery has many causes and is surprisingly
common. More that 60% of males admitted having adulterous relationships and the figure for women is slightly lower.
Possible Excuses:
- An inadequate marriage
- Growth and good can come from it
- Too much may be expected of marriage
Seen as wrong because:
- It’s hurtful
- Seen as a betrayal
- Harm the children
- Feeling of rejection
Lisa Sowle Cahill in ‘Sex, Gender and Christian Ethics’ argues that historically wealthy, powerful men had concubines (a lower status woman who
lived with them like a wife) as well as their wives. She said that:
1. Men having long term relationships with several women (polygamy) was common.
2. Adultery was a crime that virtually only women were accused of
3. Divorce was exclusively a male prerogative
The church then put a ban on adultery, and made it impossible for men to have concubines and the ban on divorce stopped men abandoning
women.
Marriage:
The joining of a husband and wife in ‘holy matrimony’ is thought to reflect the Union of Christ with his followers. Christians believe that in their
love, married couples will learn of God’s love for his creation. The purpose of marriage should be a lifelong and intimate union. The church has
recognised that not everyone is called to marriage and has at times given a bight value to celibacy. Generally, Christian’s believe that there are 3
reasons for marriage:
1. The right relationship for sexual intercourse
2. The procreation of children
3. The couples mutual help and comfort in life
The RCC and Eastern Orthodox Church and some Anglicans view marriage as a sacrament, or a gift from God. While many Protestants have
portrayed it as an outer or worldly thing. Nevertheless they still see it as a solemn agreement between a man and a woman in the sight of Gods
and the love they have for each other reflects that of the love Christ had for the Church.
Divorce:
We have very little teaching of Jesus on sex and relationships. He seemed far more concerned with justice, integrity and compassion. The only
teaching comes from the Torah (Law of Moses) which allowed a man to divorce his wife, if he found ‘something improper’ in her. Jesus made the
teaching stricter by going back to the scriptures for God’s original intention. This was for a permanent unbreakable union between husband and
wife. Jesus only allowed divorce for one reason = Porneia.
- Porneia refers to a woman who was not a virgin when she married (discovered on the wedding night after this divorce not allowed)
- Porneia refers to adultery
- Porneia refers to sex outside marriage (fornication). This could include marriage from non-believers
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