Reflection On Sexuality And Religion

In today’s Christian churches there has come about a very controversial subject, one that has been developing for many years, and is now at the fore front of controversial issues dealing with the church. The issue at hand is homosexuality and the Christian church. This controversy has caused there to be a split between the church into two different beliefs, liberal and evangelical, which one is right and which and which one is wrong? Issues such as should homosexuals be aloud in the church? If so how involved should they be? And most importantly what does God have to say about homosexuality? These are tough question brought about by a tough issue and the only way these questions can be

Unlike sex, the history of sexuality is dependant upon society and limited by its language in order to be defined and understood.

In “Sexuality and American Religion,” Kathryn Lofton expands upon the usually restrictive definitions of religion and sexuality. A particularly poignant, yet brief, point that she makes is one for the relationship between economics and religion. This relationship is commonly overlooked in discussions of religion. In fact, in our second lecture, while mapping out the definitions and aspects of religion and sexuality, one student said “Prophet,” which was misunderstood as “profit,” the classes laughed, seemingly at the silliness of profit being a part of religion, but when the class actually began to discuss it, it was no longer a laughing matter.

Frykholm, A. (2012, June 13). Facts of life: the case for sexuality education. The Christian Century, 129(12), 22+. Retrieved from http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A295445750/GPS?u=colu97977&sid=GPS&xid=97b16839

Their beliefs and understandings of faith are being challenged and questioned in order to strengthen their understanding. Rather than having the adults in their life tell them what to believe, they are now responsible for forming opinions about everything in their lives. For this reason, it is vital that students stay connected to God during their college years. If they are not firmly grounded in truth, the controversial ideology that college courses may bring will easily sway them. If a spiritual foundation is not there, a student will face a “spiritual struggle: an experience with which many students are familiar, particularly those who concern themselves with deep reflection on faith, purpose, and life

“Those of us who trust sexuality must not allow ourselves to be controlled by those who fear it (Marty Klein).” In America censorship has affected various mediums: print, art, television, and internet, as it pertain to sexuality. However the first amendment “protects” the right to free speak, and press. Congress has tried to pass bills to outlaw pornography, (but have failed) ban books for sexual content, and dictate what can be said on TV and radio. If the government is allowed to censor these ways of communication then we, as citizens of a democracy, will be treated as citizens under a dictatorship. “Censorship may even suppress new and different ideas, keeping them from being made public. It may also set limitations, which stifle the

Sexuality is part of every culture and is used for many different purposes. Stories we tell create a normalization of the dominant version of sexuality in society. The borders of what sexuality can be are set within the normal. In both the Wicked + the Divine and Ceremony sexuality plays a major role. They are both trying to challenge the constraints that Western society places on sexuality, the role sexuality plays, and the cultural imposing of one version of sexuality on another. Those who have power do not have to obey the limitations placed on sexuality.

My experience before was nothing in comparison to what great classmates and wonderful teacher I have had to muster up ideas and express your questions and opinions. With this class it makes you want to engage because the words we have can lead to a great future for this and the next generations to come. Course has been great to work along a diverse group and bind from those conversations.It has furthered my learning eperience about multiculture and the views that the world see it as today.This course really gradually became more and more and depth with culture. How we are all the same , but defined for our different religion and backgrounds as in”The Raisin in the sun”. How the boy was poor and viewed different as going to a school that was

However, at evangelic school’s students were expected to wait until marriage to have their first sexual encounter as a way of honoring their relationship with God. These students battled with the same feelings of shame, guilt, and regret if they went against their religious beliefs. Based on these findings it became apparent that it was difficult to unify sex and the soul at evangelic schools because of the severe involvement of religion. At the same time, students at spiritual schools appeared to be unsatisfied with there being no spiritual involvement in these relationships. Therefore, intimate relationships were either perceived to be meaningful or casual depending on the institution. Freitas concludes that evangelical schools manifest healthier practices however, believes that both types of colleges can do better in finding balance and helping students achieve a sustainable connection between sex and the soul. In her text she advises parents and schools to have conversations about sex, religion, and spirituality as it does foster the way people perceive and understand

Overall, I found the course to be freeing, liberating and challenging. I have what many think to be an unorthodox view regarding sexuality and the way that the physical union between husband and wife reflects our relationship with God. It was freeing to be confirmed in my open exploration and beliefs. It was liberating to apply areas of Penner’s readings to my marriage. It is good to introduce freshness to a marriage along the way and even more so as the years go by. I am challenged to new levels and depths of biblical thinking regarding sex and sexuality. The Crooks and Baur text was a good contrast to Penner’s text. The two text books coupled with the Bible made for interesting discoveries and confirmations.

Some of the biggest questions can be tied together. Why are we here? What is the meaning of life? Does God exist? Numerous amounts of people ask these questions, every day, every second. Though it can be a bit hard to find the answers, especially when people have different opinions on topics. But there is one place in where people can take comfort and read when they have the huge questions. These all can be answered by reading the Bible. My worldview has also been altered by this course. Although it is not completely the same as what I have been taught, it has changed some.

my understanding of themes and ideas such as gender, violence, and privacy and has advanced my sense of critical thinking. It has supplied me with the tools needed to analyze daunting texts which would have been seen as beyond my abilities. This class has enabled me to relate what is currently going on in our modern-day American society with what goes on in the various types of places described in the great works that we read. Over the course of this school year I have also learned some things about myself that I had never known before. This has led to a self-actualization that I would have never saw coming and has changed my views on life in ways I did not think possible.

Throughout history, definitions of sexuality within a culture are created and then changed time after time. During these changes, we have seen the impact and power one individual or group can have over others. In the Late Nineteenth Century into the Early Twentieth Century, we see multiple groups of people and or authorities taking control over the idea of sex and how they believe society is being impacted by sex. At this point in time, society had groups of people who believed they had the power to control how society as whole viewed and acted upon sex. Those particular groups and ideas changed many lives and the overall definition of sexuality within that culture.

According to Anderson (2015), women have a higher ranking in some sections of Hinduism, but as an overview, without women, men would not be complete. Men use women to complete rituals, sacrifices and have women become read at his beckon call. Sexuality in Hinduism has a variety of viewpoints. For example, “Women are not to have any independent sexuality outside of the context of marriage” (Bannerji, 2001). Hijras identify themselves with feminine terms and as wives. Avilasha Ghosh explained that the LBGTQIA community is being recognized as outsiders, and transgender communities have been legally recognized as “Third Gender” by the Supreme Court. Anderson shares that the Hindus are usually conservative about their sexuality and family matters,

Opposition to gay marriage has increased since the summer and a narrow majority of Americans also oppose allowing gays and lesbians to enter legal agreements that fall short of marriage. Moreover, despite the overall rise in tolerance toward gays since the 1980s, many Americans remain highly critical of homosexuals ­ and religious belief is a major factor in these attitudes.