Family Issues Flashcards
Reasons for celibacy?
Church emphasises no sex before marriage - “A man shall leave his mother & father, be united to his wife to become one flesh”
Pre-marital sex can lead to problems, e.g. STIs, unwanted pregnancy
Way of serving God & devoting life to him
Why are the marriage vows important to a Christian? (5)
Marriage is right place for sexual relationship - “To have & to hold from this day forward”
Should be exclusive - “Forsaking all others”
Marriage should be permanent - “Till death do us part”
Couple should stand by each other - “For better for worse, for richer & poorer, in sickness & health”
Marriage is God’s intention for a couple - “According to God’s holy law”
Vow made publicly before God, showing importance of working for success of marriage
What are reasons a couple might file for a divorce?
Pressures of modern living, e.g. debt, depression, unemployment Health problems or infertility Adultery Addiction Unrealistic expectations Too young/wrong reason to marry
“Living with your partner is preferable to getting married” (10)
AGREE:
By living together, they can share lives together & bring up kids without stress of wedding
Relationship may not turn out to be as long as anticipated - far easier to separate
Get to really know your partner before serious commitment
DISAGREE:
If in love, far more practical to be married, especially if kids planned
Society based on family units where parents of kids are married & in stable relationship
Marriage ceremony implies deeper bond & greater level of commitment
What are the different types of love?
Storge - Familial love, which is natural/instinctual affection towards family members
Philos - Friend loved in personal, intimate way; trusted confidant
Eros - Sensual/passionate love
Agape - Fatherly love of God for humans & reciprocal love for God
What is heterosexuality?
People sexually attracted to the opposite gender
What is homosexuality?
Sexually attracted to people of same gender
Men - gay
Women - lesbian
What are some key laws for homosexuality in the UK?
Homosexuality legalised in 1982 in NI
Sexual Offences Act 1967 - homosexual men over 21 could have sexual relationships in private
1994 - reduced to over 18s
Sexual Offences Amendment Act 2000 - age of consent for homosexuals 16
Came into effect in NI when Sexual Offences Order passed in 2008
Civil partnership act 2004 - gave same-sex couples same rights & responsibilities as civil marriage, but addressed as ‘civil partnership’
Marriage Act 2013 - legalised full same-sex marriage in England & wales, starting March 2014
What does the bible say about homosexuality?
“Do you not know that the sexually immoral will not inherit the kingdom of God… nor men who have sex with men” - 1 Corinthians 6:9
“Just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immortality and perused unnatural desire serve as an example you undergoing a punishment of eternal fire’ - Jude 7
“If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall be put to death” - Leviticus 20:13 - violated gender norms of world, likely why it’s prohibited, but NT’s vision of God’s kingdom is one in which hierarchy between men & women overcome in Christ - so prohibition inapplicable to Christians on its own
“A man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh” - Genesis 2:24
What are christians’ attitudes towards homosexuality?
Some Christians more sympathetic & claim Bible refers to act rather than state of homosexuality - if person doesn’t act on feelings of homosexuality they shouldn’t be condemned
Also groups such as Lesbian & Gay Christian Movement who feel it’s acceptable to be practicing homosexuality & Christianity
Matthew Vines - author of ‘God and the Gay Christian’:
“Paul uses same word to criticise long hair in men in 1 Corinthians 11:14 (“unconventional”)”
“Christians continue to affirm with Paul that we shouldn’t engage in sexual behaviour out of self-seeking lustfulness.”
“But that’s very different than same-sex marriages that are based on giving love, and we shouldn’t conflate the two in how we interpret this text today”
What does the church say about homosexuality?
“Ideally God meant sex to be enjoyed in the context of the full commitment of marriage. It is the physical expression f the deeper reality of the two becoming one” - Presbyterian church
“Human sexuality is a wonderful gift from God… we would urge that young people would question any behaviour that devalues this gift or which hinders its fulfilment within the context of marriage.”
Church of Ireland
“Experience teaches us that love must find its safeguard in the stability of marriage, if sexual intercourse is truly to respond to the requirements… of human dignity” - Catholic Church
“Men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity. Homosexual persons are called to chastity” - Catholic Church
“Where there is genuine tenderness, an openness to responsibility, and the seed of commitment, God is surely not shut out. Can we not say that God can enter any relationship in which there is a measure of selfless love?… to reject people on the grounds of their sexual behaviour is a denial of God’s creation” - Quaker church
Arguments AGAINST homosexuality?
God made male & female according to book of genesis to complete each other and to procreate - even if the couple unable to have children, sexual union still open to production of children
Natural order represented in nature is for male & female to unite - often linked to natural law argument
Homosexual practise forbidden in book of Leviticus
In some of St. Paul’s letters included in Bible, he condemns homosexuality as “unrighteous” & claims men who practise homosexuality wont inherit Kingdom of God
Arguments FOR homosexuality?
Simply because sexual union can’t result in children, it’s not right to forbid any action that’s physical expression of genuine love
Homosexuals simply following natural instincts. This is how God created them, sot they shouldn’t be condemned
There’s evidence of homosexual activity throughout animal kingdom
Many laws in Bible that wouldn’t be accepted now because change of society, e.g. slavery - we shouldn’t be restricted by ancient standards
Some people believe that St. Paul’s comments were about male prostitutes, not homosexuality in general
What is celibacy?
Abstaining from sexual activity
Most people practise celibacy for religious reasons
What is chastity?
Act of saving yourself sexually for particular time or person
Some people take vow of chastity because they believe keeps them sexually pure
Vow may be taken for religious reasons
