Sex and the Church
Sex and the Church | |
---|---|
Genre | Documentary |
Directed by | Robin Dashwood (episode 1) Charles Colville (episode 2 & 3) |
Presented by | Diarmaid MacCulloch |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language | English |
No. of series | 1 |
No. of episodes | 3 (list of episodes) |
Original release | |
Network | BBC Two |
Release | 10 April 24 April 2015 | –
Sex and the Church is a British documentary series about how Christianity has shaped western attitudes to sex, gender and sexuality throughout history. It was shown on BBC Two and hosted by historian Diarmaid MacCulloch.[1]
MacCulloch, whose books have won a number of prizes, is not only an
Episode list
# | Title[2] | Director and Producer | Air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "From Pleasure to Sin" | Robin Dashwood | 10 April 2015 | |
How Christianity shaped western attitudes to sex, gender and sexuality in its first thousand years | ||||
2 | "Sexual Revolution" | Charles Colville | 17 April 2015 | |
Institutionalising marriage from the eleventh century and the changes brought about by the Reformation | ||||
3 | "Christianity v The West" | Charles Colville | 24 April 2015 | |
Explores how the official Christian Church and Western society have moved apart on issues of sex and gender over the last 300 years. |
Synopsis
From pleasure to sin
For the Jews, procreation was the vital aspect of sex, but it was celebrated as part of a polygamous male-centred culture. Celibacy, adultery and homosexuality were outlawed. The
Jesus decreed monogamy and no divorce but said little else about it and he was not representative of his church in other ways. Paul praised celibacy but was divided: he called one woman an apostle but forbade women from speaking in church.
In the second century,
After
Augustine's sexual conflicts lay at the root of his teaching about sex summed up by the biblical exhortation "make no provision for the flesh". Holiness demanded control, the opposite of lust which he decided was a consequence of the fall: it explains our conviction that sex is shameful.
When Roman power collapsed in the fourth century, Christianity stepped into the power vacuum. Teaching was spread by the monasteries and the penitential laid out endless rules about sex: on only 100 days a year was any sex permitted and years of penitence were decreed for any non-acceptable behaviour such as oral sex or masturbation.
Sexual revolution
It was not until
Excessive sexual desire even for your own wife was now seen as wrong. But alongside this grew the tradition of courtly love, which celebrated adultery and even homosexuality. Thomas Aquinas said that the greatest castle needed a sewer and the churches allowed brothels—the 'stews'—next to the cathedral.
In the 16th century
One aim of the Counter-Reformation was to put this revolution back in the box. Part of the effort was the establishment of the Pious schools by Joseph Calasanz in Spain in the early 17th century. Unfortunately the headmaster of the school in Naples, Father Stefano Cherubini, was found to be sexually abusing his pupils. Because of his powerful Papal connections, Calasanz didn't sack him but instead promoted him, so that he eventually displaced Calasanz.
Across Europe, women were accused of
Christianity versus the West
The 18th century saw the enlightenment with the Christian authorities losing control of sex. In London's Covent Garden there were all types of prostitutes by 1711 and meeting places for gays called "Molly houses" where same-sex marriage was performed.
The
Very often reforming legislation was supported by some within the church. Thus
But the Catholic church generally battened down the hatches, although scandals forfeited trust, with Pope Benedict resigning at the height of the child sexual abuse scandals.
References
- ^ MacCulloch, Diarmaid (2015). "Sex and the Church". BBC. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
- ^ "Sex and the Church Episodes". BBC. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
External links
- Sex and the Church at BBC Online
- Sex and the Church at IMDb