Valin Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 Via Meadia: 1/23/13 Peter Berger has a fantastic new post on his AI blog[\url] on the complexities of secularism in the West. Some recent cases limiting religious expression in public spaces led him to connect Western secularism with Christian teachings on sexuality: (Snip) For most of Western history, ever since Constantine linked the church and the state in the ancient Roman Empire, Christians set the cultural and political rules that governed society. When it came to public morality the church and the people agreed more than they disagreed. Whatever people did in their private lives, everyone agreed publicly that the legal and ecclesiastical definitions of marriage should line up. To them, lifelong, heterosexual monogamy wasn’t a specifically Christian idea, or even a religious idea, but merely the commonsensical solution to the problem of sex and babies. (Snip) But Berger is right that traditional Christian teachings on sex are, rightly or wrongly, driving hostility to Christianity. These teachings—no sexual intercourse outside heterosexual marriage, ever—have never been particularly popular, especially among the young. In our society, where widespread access to birth control and the long interval between the onset of puberty and the security of economic adulthood make traditional chastity look unthinkable to a lot of young people, it’s less popular than ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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