Catholic Sexual Morality

Many people today believe that the traditional Catholic view of sex is antiquated, unrealistic, and potentially harmful. In Catholic Sexual Morality, Dr. Robert Fastiggi asks whether the permissive sexual attitude of today's culture is really contributing to deeper love, better relationships, and true happiness for men, women, children, and families. He begins with the example of St. Augustine who recognized he was a slave to lust and in need of true freedom. Fastiggi then examines the foundations for Catholic sexual morality in Scripture, reason, and human experience. The hope is that people will realize that the Catholic Church is not ""against sex"" but sees sexual intimacy as something so beautiful and life-giving that it requires the stability of marriage for its true and rightful expression. Catholic Sexual Morality is grounded in the belief that the church's teachings on sex correspond to God's plan for human happiness. These teachings are challenging, and the church understands how easy it is to fail in sexual matters. God's mercy, however, is more powerful than human weakness and sin. This book explains the reasons why the Catholic Church teaches as she does on matters such as pornography, masturbation, fornication, adultery, contraception, divorce, and homosexual acts. It presents these teachings in a realistic way with full recognition of the reasons why people reject them. The ultimate desire is to help people understand that Catholic sexual morality is not a creation of church leaders but a response to what God has made known to us in Sacred Scripture and the natural law. In a world filled with infidelity, divorce, wounded children, and broken hearts, the wisdom of traditional Catholic sexual morality deserves a more sympathetic view--not just because it is Catholic but because it is true. ""Fastiggi begins his work with a recounting of St. Augustine's struggle with sexual sin. . . . Given the fact that most Catholics now have sex before marriage and engage in many other sexual sins such as the use of pornography and contraception, Fastiggi is wise to begin with the story of a reformed sinner who became one of the greatest saints of the Church. . . . Readers of this book may well find themselves undergoing a similar conversion process--to the truth itself, to the necessity of asking for grace, and to the joy of being a member of the Catholic Church."" Janet E. Smith, Ph.D., Father Michael J. McGivney Chair of Life Ethics, Sacred Heart Major Seminary, Detroit, Michigan ""The 'chaotic and tragic force' of sex outside of marriage is especially evident in the anxieties, questions, and concerns it generates for young persons. The secular response often comes in the form of an informational pamphlet from a 'rights based approach, ' while Dr. Robert Fastiggi offers the comprehensive response of the church in the fullness of its truth, beauty, and goodness in accord with reason, human nature, and the will of God. This book is a gem."" Dr. Jane Adolphe, Associate Professor of Law, Ave Maria School of Law, Naples, Florida Robert Fastiggi holds an A.B. from Dartmouth College and an M.A. and a Ph.D. in theology from Fordham University. From 1985-1999, he taught at St. Edward's University in Austin, TX, and, since 1999, he's been on the faculty of Sacred Heart Major Seminary, Detroit, MI, where he's Professor of Systematic Theology. In addition to his own publications, he served as the co-editor of the English translation of the 43rd edition of the Denzinger-Hunermann Compendium of Creeds, Definitions, and Declarations on Matters of Faith and Morals (2012) and the executive editor of the 2009-2013 supplements to the New Catholic Encyclopedia (Gale Cengage Learning in cooperation with The Catholic University of America).