more in-depth
Submitted by Bach on 2002-12-11 11:05:34, Wednesday
In reply to Yeah, I need you guys ;-) submitted by PlatonicDieci on 2002-12-9 21:52:24, Monday
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What I'd like to know in addition to your view on paedosexuality is how you balance your view on sex with minors as opposed to sex with males, in the light of Christianity. You don't ask for much, do you? ;-) You go first! While you have explained a bit, I don't feel that you have presented any fundamental theology that I could begin to relate to... Certainly I agree that experiences shape our beliefs - but where do those beleifs come from, and how do we organize our thoughts? For the Christian, as Forgiven pointed out, our belief system is built on Scripture, and the cornerstone which is Jesus Christ. In this post you talk about being Spirit-led and walking in love. All this is good stuff, but I have to take exception to your sentence : I have seen the amazing fruit of relationships that have become sexual in their expression of love, and how much more wonderful would such fruit be if used to honor the Lord? Your theology of good fruit/ bad fruit seems to ignore the fundamental nature of human beings is not exclusively good. I do believe that the Holy Spirit within us is a positive influence. I do not believe that Good People cannot do Bad Things. How do sexual relationships honor God? What does it mean to use sexual feelings in a positive way? How do intergenerational relationships best honor God? Why do you believe (it was implied in your statement) that sexual love transcends the not-sexualized-love of a YF/AF relationship? If you plan on asking me to answer my own questions - why don't you take a stab at one of them first? Elsewhere you asked about the negative consequences of AF/YF relationships which are sexual in nature. Many responses have talked about sin, about social stigma that accompanies a disclosure, etc. Let's change the frame of reference somewhat from your YF and yourself, to a young person that chooses to engage in prostitution. Why take an example that is outside your experiences? - because you might see more clearly some of the issues which are very close to you. As a church worker I have come to know several youth (15-17 yrs) who have chosen to sell their bodies. They made this choice, in most cases, because their other choices for income were extremely limited. However, some of these young men were exploring their sexuality, and felt that engaging in sex in return for cash was not a problem within their belief system. As I came to know these individuals I noticed that they viewed every relationship through a sexual prism. They assumed that the only reason an adult would chose to befriend them was for sex - even outside of the sex trade. All relationships, desires, perceptions, exchanges became focused on sensual, sexual, erotic feelings. It has taken many years for them to build relationships on trust, exchange of ideas and a true interdependance not tied to their bodies. By now you are likely shouting in your head that a true boylove relationship could not possibly look anything like that. I believe that sexualizing any relationship brings a fundamental shift in perception and experience for *both* partners. This shift is so intense, that it can't help but magnify feelings, concerns, worries, needs and emotional bonding. I believe that a typical AF/YF is better off without this added baggage. I can intellectually understand that some loved boys could experience the sexual contact in a positive way. I know of at least one BL who needed to establish the sexual relationship with a young prostitute before he was able to build the friendship. Simple friendship was not an option in this particular case. But that isn't really the paradigm that you have been exploring. I would be happy to explore further the spiritual dimension - the sinfulness of sexuality, the current Church doctrine as opposed to the biblical texts - but we need to build a broader theological framework to do such effectively. Peace of Christ, Bach |
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