Orthodox Tradition and Human Sexuality / / ed. by Aristotle Papanikolaou, Thomas Arentzen, Ashley M. Purpura.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter EBOOK PACKAGE COMPLETE 2022 English
• MitwirkendeR: Ambrosius, Helsinki, Metropolitan,; Arentzen, Thomas,; Ashbrook Harvey, Susan,; Athanasopoulou-Kypriou, Spyridoula,; Bauer, Katerina Kocandrle,; Behr, John,; Džalto, Davor,; Harvey, Susan Ashbrook,; Hjälm, Michael,; Kalaitzidis, Pantelis,; Kočandrle Bauer, Kateřina,; Krawchuk, Andrii,; Papanikolaou, Aristotle,; Purpura, Ashley M.,; René, Richard,; Rich, Bryce E.,; Tsalampouni, Ekaterini,; Uzlaner, Dmitry,; Ventis, Haralambos,; Woloschak, Gayle E.,; Woloschak, Gayle,
• HerausgeberIn: Arentzen, Thomas,; Papanikolaou, Aristotle,; Purpura, Ashley M.,
• Place / Publishing House: New York, NY : : Fordham University Press, , [2022]; ©2022
• Year of Publication: 2022
• Language: English
• Series: Orthodox Christianity and Contemporary Thought
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (352 p.)

Sex is a difficult issue for contemporary Christians, but the last decade has witnessed a new-found openness regarding the topic among Eastern Orthodox Christians. Both the theological trajectory and the historical circumstances of the Orthodox Church differ radically from other Christian denominations that have already developed robust and creative reflections on sexuality and sexual diversity. Within its unique history, theology, and tradition, Orthodox Christianity holds rich resources for engaging challenging questions of sexuality in new and responsive ways. What is at stake in questions of sexuality in the Orthodox tradition? What sources and theological convictions can uniquely shape Orthodox understandings of sexuality? This volume aims to create an agora for discussing sex, and not least the sexualities that are often thought of as untraditional in Orthodox contexts.Through fifteen distinct chapters, written by leading scholars and theologians, this book offers a developed treatment of sexuality in the Orthodox Christian world by approaching the subject from scriptural, patristic, theological, historical, and sociological perspectives. Chapters devoted to practical and pastoral insights, as well as reflections on specific cultural contexts, engage the human realities of sexual diversity and Christian life. From rethinking scripture to developing theologies of sex, from eschatological views of eros to reevaluations of the Orthodox responses to science, this book offers new thinking on pressing, present-day issues and initiates conversations about homosexuality and sexual diversity within Orthodox Christianity.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Foreword -- Acknowledgments -- Sexuality and Orthodoxy: An Introduction -- Part I: Thinking through Tradition -- 1 Relationality, Sexuality, and the Desire for God: Historical Resources -- 2 Something New under the Sun: Sexualities, Same-Sex Relationships, and Orthodoxy -- 3 Science, Homosexuality, and the Church -- 4 Biblical Tradition and Same-Sex Relations: A Difficult Hermeneutical Path -- Part II: Cultural and Pastoral Contexts -- 5 Civil Marriage and Civil Union from an Ecclesial Perspective: The Case of the Orthodox Church of Greece -- 6 Eastern Orthodoxy Identity and “Aggressive Liberalism”: Nontheological Aspects of the Confrontation -- 7 Salvation and Same-Sex Relations: An Orthodox Response on the Decision by the Lutheran Church of Sweden -- 8 Homophobia in Orthodox Contexts: Sociopolitical Variables and Theological Strategies for Change -- 9 Meeting Michelle: Practical Theological Reflections on the Personhood of a Transgender Inmate -- Part III: Thinking with Tradition -- 10 A Desire for All Is the Desire for God: “Sexual Orientation” in Light of Gregory of Nyssa’s Account of Gender, Desire, and the Soul’s Ascent to God -- 11 Intersex People: Not Physical Mistakes but God’s Image -- 12 A Theology of Sex -- 13 The Antinomic Eschatological Transfiguration of Christian Eros and Sexuality -- 14 Sex, Love, and Politics: An (Un)Orthodox Theological Approach -- 15 From Adam to Christ: From Male and Female to Being Human -- Contributors -- Index