Sex, Gender, and Christian EthicsCambridge University Press, 1996 M08 28 - 327 pages This book endorses feminist critiques of gender, yet upholds the insight of traditional Christianity that sex, commitment and parenthood are fulfilling human relations. Their unity is a positive ideal, though not an absolute norm. Women and men should enjoy equal personal respect and social power. In reply to feminist critics of oppressive gender and sex norms and to communitarian proponents of Christian morality, Cahill argues that effective intercultural criticism of injustice requires a modest defence of moral objectivity. She thus adopts a critical realism as its moral foundation, drawing on Aristotle and Aquinas. Moral judgment should be based on reasonable, practical, prudent and cross-culturally nuanced reflection on human experience. This is combined with a New Testament model of community, centred on solidarity, compassion and inclusion of the economically or socially marginalised. |
Contents
Sex gender and the problem of moral argument | 1 |
Feminism and foundations | 14 |
Particular experiences shared goods | 46 |
The body in context | 73 |
An interlude and a proposal | 108 |
Sex gender and early Christianity | 121 |
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Aquinas Aristotelian authority behavior biblical biological birth bodily body celibacy century child choice Christian ethics church commitment concrete consensus consent context couples critical critique cross-cultural cultural defined discourse discourse ethics divorce domination donor early Christian economic Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza embodied equality especially female Feminism Feminist Theology Foucault freedom fulfillment function gamete heterosexual historical homosexuality human sexual Humanae Vitae Ibid ideal identity individual infertility intercultural interpersonal interpretation intimacy Jesus Judith Butler kinship liberal liberation theology male marital marriage married Martha Nussbaum Maryknoll meaning modern motherhood mutual natural law needs norms Nussbaum one's parenthood parents patriarchal Paul perspective physical political postmodern practical procreation procreative purity rationality reality reason relation relationships religious reproductive technologies roles Roman Catholic sex and gender sexual ethics sexual pleasure shared social society solidarity spouses Testament theologians tion tradition University Press values Vatican Veritatis Splendor virtue woman women York