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Homosexuality and the Formation of Conscience Duquesne University Duquesne Scholarship Collection Electronic Theses and Dissertations Spring 2011 Homosexuality and the Formation of Conscience: An Examination of Traditional Catholic Anthropological, Theological, and Ethical Evaluations in Light of Contemporary Moral Markers John Slovikovski Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/etd Recommended Citation Slovikovski, J. (2011). Homosexuality and the Formation of Conscience: An Examination of Traditional Catholic Anthropological, Theological, and Ethical Evaluations in Light of Contemporary Moral Markers (Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/1209 This Immediate Access is brought to you for free and open access by Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. For more information, please contact [email protected]. HOMOSEXUALITY AND THE FORMATION OF CONSCIENCE: AN EXAMINATION OF CATHOLIC ANTHOPOLOGICAL, THEOLOGICAL, AND ETHICAL EVALUATIONS IN LIGHT OF CONTEMPORARY MORAL MARKERS A Dissertation Submitted to the McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts Duquesne University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By John J. Slovikovski May 2011 Copyright by John J. Slovikovski 2011 HOMOSEXUALITY AND THE FORMATION OF CONSCIENCE: AN EXAMINATION OF CATHOLIC ANTHOPOLOGICAL, THEOLOGICAL, AND ETHICAL EVALUATIONS IN LIGHT OF CONTEMPORARY MORAL MARKERS By John J. Slovikovski Approved March 25, 2011 ________________________________ ________________________________ James Bailey, Ph.D. Daniel Sheid, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Theology Assistant Professor of Theology (Committee Chair) (Committee Member) ________________________________ George Worgul, Ph.D., S.T.D. Professor of Theology (Committee Member) ________________________________ ________________________________ Christopher M. Duncan, Ph.D. George Worgul, Ph.D., S.T.D. Dean, Dean, McAnulty College and Chair, Department of Theology Graduate School of Liberal Arts Professor of Theology iii ABSTRACT HOMOSEXUALITY AND THE FORMATION OF CONSCIENCE: AN EXAMINATION OF CATHOLIC ANTHOPOLOGICAL, THEOLOGICAL, AND ETHICAL EVALUATIONS IN LIGHT OF CONTEMPORARY MORAL MARKERS By John J. Slovikovski May 2011 Dissertation supervised by James Bailey, Ph.D The question of homosexuality remains a daunting task to be addressed by the Church as well as theological ethicists. Lively, and often biased opinions have been presented in the last two centuries; however, use of traditional sources, such a Scripture, Natural Law, empirical data, and Tradition result in a doubt of fact, which, according to the established tradition of the Catholicism, requires the Church to follow the safest course of action, i.e., upholding the traditional heterosexual norm. Given that some individuals experience an irreversible homosexual orientation coupled by a lack of a vocation to a celibate lifestyle, which in turn results in a doubt of law, they are required to follow the most reasonable course of action. This situation indicates a clear need for other sources to be consulted in terms of the formation of individual consciences, while not challenging the normative nature of the Church‟s teaching regarding same-sex iv relationships. Accordingly, homosexuality is viewed vis-à-vis the areas of Catholic social teaching, in particular in the area of justice in its various manifestations, liturgy and sacraments, spirituality, and eschatology, especially in terms of the nature of resurrected life, to allow for the subjective possibility of same-sex relationships in very selective contexts to allow for full human flourishing and fulfillment of the narrative of human destiny thoroughly considered. Appeal to these resources respects both the official teaching of the Church and the integrity of individual conscience. v DEDICATION To Sister Mary Benedict Joseph Watters, RSM, friend and provider of great editorial support. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................... iv INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER I: Traditional Sources for Theological and Ethical Evaluations of Homosexuality: A Precis, Critique, and Modest Proposal ................................................ 1 Scripture ...................................................................................................................... 2 Natural Law and Complementarity ............................................................................ 15 Complementarity ................................................................................................... 19 Using the Empirical Sciences to Evaluate Homosexuality .......................................... 23 Tradition: Homosexuality and the Community of Faith ............................................ 28 Conclusion: Traversing a Wider Path ......................................................................... 34 CHAPTER 2: Just Love or Unjust Restraints: An investigation of Contemporary Catholic Social Teaching and Homosexuality ................................................................ 42 The Role of Justice in the Formulation of a Same-Sex Ethic for the Formation of Conscience ................................................................................................................ 43 The Role of the Concepts of Solidarity, Participation, and the Common Good in the Formation of a Same-Sex Ethic to Conscience Formation .......................................... 71 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 85 CHAPTER THREE: Lex Orandi, Lex Vivendi: Liturgy, Sacramentality, and Homosexuality .............................................................................................................. 87 Ritual, Liturgy, and Sacrament: The Heart of the Catholic Tradition ......................... 88 The Sacred, The Symbolic, and The Ritualistic Dimensions of the Sacraments ...... 89 The Paschal Mystery and Its Sacred Embodiment: ..................................................... 96 Liturgy, Sacramentality, and Human Sexuality .......................................................... 96 Incarnating the Paschal Mystery vis-à-vis the Formulation of a Sexual Ethic: .......... 108 The Eucharistic Liturgy, Sexuality, and the Evaluation of Same-Sex Relations ........ 108 The Eucharist and the Moral Life ......................................................................... 109 The Eucharist, Catholic Sexual Ethics, and Homosexuality .................................. 114 A Word on Eucharist, Inclusivity, and Homosexuality ......................................... 121 Homosexuality and Other Dimensions of the Church‟s Sacramental Life................. 123 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 129 vii CHAPTER 4: Homosexuality, Wholeness, Holiness, and Spirituality .......................... 132 Christian Spirituality: Theology, Theory and Praxis ................................................ 134 Spirituality and Moral Theology .............................................................................. 141 Morality, Love and Sexual Spirituality: General Parameters ................................... 151 Spirituality and the Formulation of a Same-Sex Ethic .............................................. 162 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 171 CHAPTER 5: Resurrected Sexuality: Homosexuality and the Formation of Conscience Vis-à-vis Catholic Eschatology .................................................................................... 173 Anticipation of the Future While Valuing the Present: ............................................. 176 A Catholic Interpretation of the Theology of Death and Eternal Life ....................... 176 Resurrected Embodiment: Eternal Celebration of the Whole Person ........................ 178 Sexual Interaction as an Eschatological Reality: ...................................................... 185 A Conflation of Past, Present and Future Realities in a Narrative Key ..................... 185 Heavenly Sex: From Partnership, Pleasure, and Potency to Eternal Perfection ........ 191 Homosexual Orientation and Activity in Light of the Eschatological Horizon .......... 208 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 213 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 215 SOURCES CONSULTED........................................................................................... 221 viii INTRODUCTION HOMOSEXUALITY AND THE FORMATION OF CONSCIENCE: THE STATE OF THE QUESTION, A RATIONALE FOR THE PROPOSED STUDY, AND PROPOSING A WIDER PATH FOR AUTHENTIC HUMAN FLOURISHING IN THE EVALUATION OF SAME-SEX RELATIONSHIPS As noted by Margaret Farley, “Questions surrounding the ethics of same-sex relationships are in Christian communities as in Western society at large marked by ongoing controversy and, for many ongoing anguish and anger.”1 The Official Roman Catholic tradition has been somewhat limited
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