Overview

A profound feminist Christian reframing of sexuality examines contemporary social practices and ethical sex From the sexual abuse crisis in the Roman Catholic Church to the US Supreme Court decision outlawing state-level bans on same-sex marriage, it has become clear that Catholics and other Christians cannot afford to downplay sex or rely on outdated normative understandings of its moral contours. Feminist theological approaches offer a way forward by considering not just what we should do in sexual spheres but also what sort of sexual people we should aspire to be. In Reenvisioning Sexual Ethics, author Karen Peterson-Iyer adopts a feminist Christian anthropological framework to connect robust theological and ethical analysis to practical sexual issues, particularly those confronting college-aged and younger adults today. The book examines four divergent yet overlapping contemporary social practices and phenomena wherein sex plays a central role: “hookup” culture; “sexting”; sex work; and sex trafficking. Through these case studies, Peterson-Iyer shows that ethical sex is best demarcated not as a matter of chastity on the one hand and purely free consent on the other, but rather as ideally expressing the fullness of human agency, communicating the joy of shared pleasure, and conferring a deep sense of possibility and wholeness upon all participants. This feminist Christian framework will help facilitate frank and profound discussions of sex, enabling young adults to define themselves and others not by hypersexualized and gendered social norms or attitudes but by their fundamental status as dignified and beloved by God.

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9781647122287

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Reenvisioning Sexual Ethics is well researched, with detailed footnotes and an extensive bibliography and index. This insightful and nuanced analysis will interest a wide audience ranging from college students to church members and beyond. * Catholic News Service *

Reenvisioning Sexual Ethics is well researched, with detailed footnotes and an extensive bibliography and index. This insightful and nuanced analysis will interest a wide audience ranging from college students to church members and beyond. * Catholic News Service * The book is well-rounded: she draws on both Catholic and Protestant traditions, emphasizes the flourishing of individuals and society, and is attuned to issues of race, socioeconomics, and sexual orientation. [T]his work offers a much-needed progressive Christian sexual ethic that advances the field further. * Christian Century * This is the book many of us have been waiting for in the field of Christian sexual ethics. Peterson-Iyer presents a compelling vision for sexual flourishing that honors inherent human dignity, prioritizes individual agency, centers relationships marked by equality and mutuality, and articulates normative claims for advancing justice in society. * Journal of the Society of Christian Ethics *

Author Information

Karen Peterson-Iyer is an assistant professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Santa Clara University. She is the author of Designer Children: Reconciling Genetic Technology, Feminism, and Christian Faith, as well as articles and chapters in sexual ethics, bioethics, and labor ethics. She holds a PhD from Yale University.

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