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December 5, 2015
HOT ON THE BLOG
Featuring fresh takes and realtime analysis from
HuffPost's signature lineup of contributors
Roger A. Sneed
Michael Roth
Jim Wallis
Dr. Peggy Drexler
Sting
Become a fan
Associate Professor of Religion at Furman University
A Brief Defense of Masturbation
Posted: 12/01/2015 5:25 pm EST
Updated: 12/01/2015 5:59 pm EST
At a recent plenary, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops released a "Pastoral Response to Pornography," in which they outlined the
assumed manifold dangers of pornography and... wait for it... masturbation. "Create In Me A Clean Heart: A Pastoral Response to
Pornography" characterizes pornography as utterly without merit and leading to a host of social (and sexual) ills and sins including but
certainly not limited to masturbation. The bishops' logic is rooted in conceptions of original sin:
God created us out of love and for love, but we know that all of history is marked by the sin of our first parents and our own sin. Sin
damages our relationships with God, our own selves, others, and all of creation. We are all in need of the Lord's grace, including his
mercy and healing.
I'd agree only with the argument that sin damages our relations with each other but then again, I am quite certain I have a different view
of sin than the U.S. Conference of Bishops. I certainly disagree with the claim that all humans are in need of "the Lord's grace" especially
as I suspect that their conception of grace is tied to a punitive deity. As a black gay nontheist, I have first hand accounts of how "sin" gets
deployed against the marginalized usually people of color, women, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender people and nontheists. We can
also include sex workers in this category. Also, I have first hand knowledge and experience with how languages of "sin" are deployed
alongside hoary claims of "love." For example, the phrase "love the sinner, hate the sin" is often thrown out there in order to show that anti
gay and antisex narratives aren't hateful, but supposedly "loving."
According to the Bishops, pornography is evil on the face of it. The way they define pornography is itself a lesson in circular reasoning, as the
definition that they use comes from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. That in of itself is problematic, but what I find even more
troublesome almost to the point of shocked hilarity is the Bishops' argument that pornography leads to the "grave" sin of masturbation.
Once again, the way they characterize masturbation is a lesson in circular reasoning, as they describe it as "always gravely contrary to the
chastity and dignity of one's body." How? How is masturbation always "contrary" to the dignity of the body? I am troubled at the way in
which this particular use of "sin" tends to be linked to our bodies especially our bodies as sexual bodies.
The problem here is that these Bishops in particular and the Church they represent are relying on centuriesold understandings nay,
distortions of the human body and sexuality. While the Church that these Bishops represent understands that intellectual disciplines like
psychology and sociology view masturbation as part of human development and not intrinsically injurious, the U.S. Conference of Bishops
tosses that aside, choosing instead to frame social acceptance of masturbation as the province of "popular culture."
Those distortions that this "pastoral response" wants to reproduce are hardly pastoral. Indeed, these distortions contribute to the silencing
and shaming of human sexuality. This shaming of human sexuality is what alienates us from our own selves, and perpetuates a separation of
ourselves from the larger reality that we may call "God." Rather than see masturbation as some form of "grave sin," why not reimagine
masturbation as part of a healthier sex life, one in which we as sexual beings celebrate ourselves as part of a larger, divine unity? Simply put,
it is time to lay this 2,000yearold distortion of masturbation to rest. As opposed to seeing masturbation as some form of grievous
narcissism, why not see masturbation as enhancing the dignity of our bodies and the ways in which we imagine them? I see masturbation as
a way to get "in touch" with ourselves, to know what we like and the ways we want to be touched and the ways in which we want to touch
others. I see masturbation as part of the human experience, one in which our sexual bodies are indeed a gift (however that notion of gift is
understood) to ourselves and to each other.
Follow Roger A. Sneed on Twitter: www.twitter.com/rogersneed
MORE: Religion and Sexuality Masturbation Porn U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
Conversations
Desktop Alerts
Log in
Create Account
December 5, 2015
HOT ON THE BLOG
Featuring fresh takes and realtime analysis from
HuffPost's signature lineup of contributors
Roger A. Sneed
Michael Roth
Jim Wallis
Dr. Peggy Drexler
Sting
Become a fan
Associate Professor of Religion at Furman University
A Brief Defense of Masturbation
Posted: 12/01/2015 5:25 pm EST
Updated: 12/01/2015 5:59 pm EST
At a recent plenary, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops released a "Pastoral Response to Pornography," in which they outlined the
assumed manifold dangers of pornography and... wait for it... masturbation. "Create In Me A Clean Heart: A Pastoral Response to
Pornography" characterizes pornography as utterly without merit and leading to a host of social (and sexual) ills and sins including but
certainly not limited to masturbation. The bishops' logic is rooted in conceptions of original sin:
God created us out of love and for love, but we know that all of history is marked by the sin of our first parents and our own sin. Sin
damages our relationships with God, our own selves, others, and all of creation. We are all in need of the Lord's grace, including his
mercy and healing.
I'd agree only with the argument that sin damages our relations with each other but then again, I am quite certain I have a different view
of sin than the U.S. Conference of Bishops. I certainly disagree with the claim that all humans are in need of "the Lord's grace" especially
as I suspect that their conception of grace is tied to a punitive deity. As a black gay nontheist, I have first hand accounts of how "sin" gets
deployed against the marginalized usually people of color, women, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender people and nontheists. We can
also include sex workers in this category. Also, I have first hand knowledge and experience with how languages of "sin" are deployed
alongside hoary claims of "love." For example, the phrase "love the sinner, hate the sin" is often thrown out there in order to show that anti
gay and antisex narratives aren't hateful, but supposedly "loving."
According to the Bishops, pornography is evil on the face of it. The way they define pornography is itself a lesson in circular reasoning, as the
definition that they use comes from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. That in of itself is problematic, but what I find even more
troublesome almost to the point of shocked hilarity is the Bishops' argument that pornography leads to the "grave" sin of masturbation.
Once again, the way they characterize masturbation is a lesson in circular reasoning, as they describe it as "always gravely contrary to the
chastity and dignity of one's body." How? How is masturbation always "contrary" to the dignity of the body? I am troubled at the way in
which this particular use of "sin" tends to be linked to our bodies especially our bodies as sexual bodies.
The problem here is that these Bishops in particular and the Church they represent are relying on centuriesold understandings nay,
distortions of the human body and sexuality. While the Church that these Bishops represent understands that intellectual disciplines like
psychology and sociology view masturbation as part of human development and not intrinsically injurious, the U.S. Conference of Bishops
tosses that aside, choosing instead to frame social acceptance of masturbation as the province of "popular culture."
Those distortions that this "pastoral response" wants to reproduce are hardly pastoral. Indeed, these distortions contribute to the silencing
and shaming of human sexuality. This shaming of human sexuality is what alienates us from our own selves, and perpetuates a separation of
ourselves from the larger reality that we may call "God." Rather than see masturbation as some form of "grave sin," why not reimagine
masturbation as part of a healthier sex life, one in which we as sexual beings celebrate ourselves as part of a larger, divine unity? Simply put,
it is time to lay this 2,000yearold distortion of masturbation to rest. As opposed to seeing masturbation as some form of grievous
narcissism, why not see masturbation as enhancing the dignity of our bodies and the ways in which we imagine them? I see masturbation as
a way to get "in touch" with ourselves, to know what we like and the ways we want to be touched and the ways in which we want to touch
others. I see masturbation as part of the human experience, one in which our sexual bodies are indeed a gift (however that notion of gift is
understood) to ourselves and to each other.
Follow Roger A. Sneed on Twitter: www.twitter.com/rogersneed
MORE: Religion and Sexuality Masturbation Porn U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
Conversations
