Holiness in the Making

In this essay, I will argue that a political theology of human work can provide the sacramental principle underlying the theology of labor. This principle could complement the foundations of Catholic social teaching, since the sacramental aspects of work have not been made very explicit in the ethical framework of the Church's theology of work. The view of labor as the active participation in God's future is an important aspect of such a theology. In order to serve as a foundation for faith‐based labor organizing, I will claim that it needs to be complemented by a sacramental view of labor as art, a labor‐aesthetic that undergirds a labor‐ethic, in which labor itself becomes a sign and instrument of the way the Church becomes God's work in the world. First, I will sketch an outline of some of the major positions on labor in modern Catholic theology. Then, I will draw on the writings of the British poet and painter David Jones to explore a sacramental view of human work, arguing that a sacramental view of work could support the Church's social criticism of laborer's circumstances.     

The future of Catholic health care: observations from an Orthodox Christian perspective.

The author reflects on the future of Catholic health care by looking at the essays in this volume by Dennis Brodeur, Clarke E. Cochran, and Christopher J. Kauffman. The author argues that (1) Roman Catholic teaching on the Trinity is defective, yielding an inadequate model of society, (2) Roman Catholic teaching on the Incarnation is defective, yielding an impoverished understanding of the "sacramental," and (3) the institutional orientation of Roman Catholicism combined with the lack of true sacramental vision makes it nearly impossible for Roman Catholic theory to criticize the current structure of health care financing.     

Differences in Engaging in Sexual Disclosure Between Real Life and Cyberspace Among Adolescents: Social Penetration Model Revisited

To date, relatively few studies have begun to explore adolescents’ sexual self-disclosure in cyberspace. Rare research has taken a close look at differences in adolescents’ sexual self-disclosure occurring in real life and cyberspace. The social penetration model suggests that an individual’s level of sexual disclosure should be in accordance with relationship intimacy in real life. The current study investigated whether the effects of relationship intimacy on adolescents’ willingness to disclose sexual history differ in terms of sex and communication environment (real life vs. cyberspace). A total of 419 Taiwanese adolescents completed a survey about their willingness to communicate on different sexual topics in the contexts of varying levels of relationship intimacy. The results showed that in real life both male and female adolescents showed a parallel relationship between willingness to engage in sexual disclosure and relationship intimacy, supporting predictions according to the social penetration model. However, in cyberspace, male adolescents exhibited a greater willingness to communicate, regardless of degree of relationship intimacy, whereas females revealed a U-shape trend regarding the effect of relationship intimacy on willingness to communicate. These findings indicate that sexual disclosure on the part of adolescents in cyberspace departs from the perspective of the social penetration model.     

Ecclesial Ethics and the Gospel sine glossa: Sacramental Politics and the Love of the World

This article examines the charge that the approach D. Stephen Long identifies as “ecclesial ethics” is a world-denying approach. The article examines typologies that pit world-affirmers against world-deniers, showing how “neo-Augustinians” end up on both sides of this divide, depending on who is constructing the typology. The article argues that these typologies are inaccurate, distorting, and often self-contradictory. It offers an alternative etiology, making a case that “ecclesial ethics” can be understood as a development of the progressive wing of Catholic thought that surfaced in Vatican II. The article examines Giuseppe Dossetti’s advocacy of a Gospel sine glossa at Vatican II, and argues that this type of ethics has deep roots in a Catholic sacramental theology. Finally, the article examines Henri de Lubac’s work as exemplary of such a sacramental theology. The article concludes that the basis of “ecclesial ethics” is a deeply sacramental view of creation being transformed by the grace of God through Jesus Christ.     

Sustaining a Sacramental Commons

Augustine described sacraments as visible signs of invisible grace, indications of the presence of the Creator in creation. Although the Christian churches later limited “sacrament” to mean only seven or two religious rituals, usually administered by a member of the clergy, U.S. Catholic bishops in 1991 described a “sacramental universe,” recalling Augustine's understanding. The “sacramental universe” is localized as the “sacramental commons”; people are called to care for it responsibly. The gospel account of Jesus' encounter with the Rich Young Man provides insights about human responsibility to share the goods of the commons as common goods, thereby sustaining the well‐being of the sacramental commons.     

A prototype approach to understanding sexual intimacy through its relationship to intimacy

The nature of sexual intimacy using lay conceptions (i.e., prototypes) of intimacy and sexual intimacy has been explored. In Study 1, participants listed the features of sexual intimacy and intimacy. In Study 2, centrality ratings of these features were obtained. Although the 2 prototypes were very similar, they each had unique central attributes. In Study 3, central features of both concepts were found to be more salient in memory than peripheral features. Finally, in Study 4, the endorsement of central intimacy and sexual intimacy attributes in real romantic relationships were associated with relationship quality and sexual well‐being, respectively. The nature and function of sexual intimacy is discussed, and it has been concluded that sexual intimacy is best conceptualized as a subtype of intimacy.     

Adolescents' reply intent for sexual disclosure in cyberspace: gender differences and effects of anonymity and topic intimacy.

This study examined the effects of anonymity and topic intimacy on adolescents' reply intent for cyber partners' sexual disclosure on the Internet. Two hundred thirty-seven Taiwanese adolescents with sexual self-disclosure experiences on the Internet participated in an experimental study. Regardless of anonymity and topic intimacy, male adolescents were more willing than females to respond to cyber friends' sexual disclosure. The higher the anonymity was, the higher the reply intent for sexual self-disclosure. Participants exhibited higher reply intent when cyber friends self-disclosed sexual topics with higher intimacy. However, the effect of topic intimacy was moderated by anonymity. Topic intimacy displayed prominent influence on adolescents' reply intent in responding to cyber friends' sexual disclosure only when their disclosing condition was under moderate and high anonymity. Implications and future directions are discussed.     

Healing as Constitutive of Jesus’ Mission Handed to the Church

After a basic statement of the Catholic doctrine on healing ministry, this article adopts the understanding of the World Council of Churches’ document Healing and Wholeness: The Churches’ Role in Health, adopted in 1990 by the central committee. The document views health, healing, and wholeness not just as medical issues, but as embracing the political, social, economic, cultural, and spiritual dimensions. Building on the above, this article proposes an integral approach to sacramental healing for the African Catholic Church, arguing that alongside healing of physical ailments and deliverance from evil and malignant forces, healing must include working for social justice and peace for the people.     

Depression and Contributors to Vocational Satisfaction in Roman Catholic Secular Clergy

A nationally selected, random sample of Roman Catholic secular (i.e., diocesan) priests was examined using the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale and an instrument developed for this study to assess contributors to priests' vocational satisfaction. In addition, a self-report inventory gathered information regarding participants' demographics as well as four categories of predictor variables (i.e., overall level of vocational satisfaction, social support, spiritual activities, physical environment). The study yielded a response rate of 45%. Secular clergy reported rates of depression approximately seven times greater than are found in the general population, and also indicated that the recent sexual abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic church had negatively affected their mood. Priests' engagement in sacramental activities contributed greatly to their vocational satisfaction, and low levels of vocational satisfaction were found to be most predictive of depression. Factors comprising priests' vocational satisfaction were External Manifestations (e.g., preaching, teaching), Internal Manifestations (e.g., prayer life, affirmation of God's call), and Social Manifestations (e.g., relationships with parishioners, appreciation from others).     

Intimacy, loneliness and sexual offenders

As part of a general theory of sexual offending, it is suggested that the failure to achieve intimacy in relations with adults produces emotional loneliness, which leads to an aggressive disposition, and a tendency to pursue sex with diverse partners in the hope of finding intimacy through sexuality or through less threatening partners. The development of intimacy and its benefits are described, as are the consequences that befall those who fail to achieve it. The history of sexual offenders illustrates why they fail to develop the attitudes and skills necessary to attain intimacy, and why this failure leads to sexual abuse. Finally, suggestions are made for the modification of programs for the assessment and treatment of sexual offenders, in order to include problems of intimacy and loneliness.     

Predicting Marital Adjustment from Young Adults’ Initial Levels and Changes in Emotional Intimacy over Time: A 25-Year Longitudinal Study

Emotional intimacy has long been known to influence marital adjustment. However, little is known about whether emotional intimacy experienced and developed during early adulthood predicts marital adjustment at a later time. Using longitudinal data from a sample of recent university graduates (N = 144) at five data points over a period of 25 years, it was found that higher levels of earlier emotional intimacy with a closest other and change in emotional intimacy over the first 8 years predicted Wave 5 marital adjustment. On average, women reported greater emotional intimacy than men at Wave 1. Neither change in marital status nor gender moderated the associations between emotional intimacy intercept and slope with marital adjustment at Wave 5. These as well as cluster analytic findings are discussed in light of Erikson’s developmental theory and applied to the idea that emotional intimacy may be a skill that can be developed and potentially modified.     

The Natural Order of Disorder: Pedophilia,Stranger Danger and the Normalising Family

Over the past two decades critics have challenged the validity of pedophilia as a mental disorder and have implored us to think differently about child sexuality as well as incidences of sexual contact and intimacy between adults and children or adolescents. This growing literature provides compelling evidence against using a medical framework for understanding and responding to pedophilia, yet most people in the English-speaking world still cling to a post-World War Two construction of the pedophile as a dangerous stranger, pathologically unable to control his insatiable sexual desire for young people. This article aims to address this particular dilemma. Drawing on the work of Ann Laura Stoler, it argues that the construction of the pedophile is a vector of normalisation processes, “a tactic in the internal fission of society into binary oppositions, and means of creating ‘biologized’ internal enemies, against whom society must defend itself”. As a social construction, the pedophile persists because it plays an important ideological function in modern society: it affirms the white, middle-class, ‘traditional’ heterosexual family as the ideal site for the production and reproduction of social and political norms.     

Is it all about intimacy? Age,menopausal status,and women’s sexuality

Two studies examined the contribution of aging to various aspects of sexual functioning. Study 1 examined the association between age and sexual response among 289 women. Results showed that aging and relationship length were associated with relatively low sexual desire, excitement, and intimacy, with sexual intimacy mediating the association between relationship length and sexual excitement. Furthermore, the negative association between aging and sexual desire was particularly pronounced among women experiencing lower sexual intimacy. In Study 2, 93 women were classified according to menopausal status. Findings paralleled those of Study 1, indicating that postmenopausal state was negatively associated with sexual desire, mainly among women who experienced low sexual intimacy. Implications for the understanding of sexuality of women at midlife are discussed.     

The development of adolescent sexual intimacy: implications for counseling

This paper proposes a perspective for understanding the development of adolescent sexual intimacy. A "transitional stage" is described in which adolescents, driven by a variety of developmental needs influenced by external forces such as peers and family, experiment with sexual behaviors. The completion of the transitional stage results in the adolescent's ability to achieve "relational" sexual intimacy, which is also described. The problems and implications for counseling associated with the biophysiological and family dynamic influences on the development of adolescent sexual intimacy are discussed.     

Reassuring sex: Can sexual desire and intimacy reduce relationship‐specific attachment insecurities?

Past research has shown that attachment orientations shape sexual processes within relationships. Yet, little has been done to explore the opposite direction. In the present research, we examined whether sexual desire and emotional intimacy reduce attachment insecurities over time in emerging relationships. In an 8‐month longitudinal study, we followed 62 newly dating couples across three measurement waves. At Time 1, romantic partners discussed sexual aspects of their relationship and judges coded their displays of sexual desire and intimacy. Participants also completed measures of relationship‐specific attachment anxiety and avoidance in each wave. The results indicated that men's displays of desire predicted a decline in their own and their partner's relationship‐specific insecurities. Conversely, women's displays of desire inhibited the decline in their partner's relationship‐specific insecurities, whereas women's displays of intimacy predicted a decline in their partner's relationship‐specific insecurities. These findings suggest that different sex‐related processes underlie attachment formation in men and women.     

The politics of a conversion – the case of Robert Isaac Wilberforce

Robert Isaac Wilberforce (1802–1857) was an Anglican archdeacon and a supporter of the Oxford Movement. This article claims that his conversion to the Roman Catholic Church in 1854 had theo-political dimensions. To Wilberforce the constitutional establishment of the Church of England was not only a question of political pragmatics. His sacramental vision of the Church and his diagnosis of the actual ecclesiastical situation in England as ‘Erastian’ meant that his conversion could be seen as an act of existential political theology. His conversion is a strong suggestion that the Oxford Movement needs to be considered both as a spiritual and a political force in nineteenth-century England.     

Treating the Catholic patient: Unique dynamics and implications for psychotherapy

The Catholic patient presents a unique challenge to the therapist because of the special psychological dynamics they present. Issues such as shame, guilt, masochism, anger, sex, and magical thinking, take on a unique significance when applied to Catholic patients. These issues are a constant struggle for the Catholic because they represent “mortal sins.” Committing these sins will result, in the patient's mind, in spending an eternity in the tortures of Hell unless they can be erased by confession and appropriate penance. The therapist must actively work to “exorcise” this punitive superego in a way that may differ from psychotherapy with other patients.     

Barriers to Intimate Sexuality: Concerns and Meaning-Based Therapy Approaches

Despite the voracious need for intimate connection, Western society does not promote intimacy, particularly with regard to partner sexuality. Obstacles to sexual intimacy that are discussed include: Media portrayals of sexual and gender role stereotypes, performance-oriented sexual standards, the invisibility of the elderly as sexual beings, and the glamorization of nonrelational sexuality and clandestine affairs. Unfortunately, the sex therapy literature, too, tends to focus on depersonalized and goal-oriented models of sexuality. Paradigms which can overcome barriers and promote intimate sexual connections are required. This article calls for humanistically based changes, in the media and in sex therapy, to satisfy the need for sexual intimacy.     

The Gender of the Cyborg

Abstract

This article focuses upon the sexual politics of contemporary cyborg iconography. It interrogates the manner in which representational practices confirm or challenge gender regulation and explores the links between the cyborg and the queer. Finally, the potential of ‘cyborg theology’ is discussed. What are the implications for women of this profoundly sacramental theology which challenges dominant understandings of imminence and transcendence?     

Merton’s “True Self”: A Resource for Survivors of Sexual Abuse by Priests

The toxic impact of clergy sexual abuse in childhood and adolescence can be complex and enduring. For some, a particularly painful consequence is noteworthy change in one’s personal identity or sense of self. Survivors frequently experience unrelenting grief over the loss of the “self” that was experienced as “real” prior to the onset of abuse. Memories of days and times when this self was “alive” are often accompanied by strong feelings of affection and joy. Despair over the loss of this identity contrasts sharply with the indifference or hostility felt for the self with which they have been burdened as a consequence of sexual abuse by clergy in childhood. Many struggle with the unbearable conviction that they are fated to live “in the skin” of an identity that is not an authentic expression of the person they were meant to be. This article suggests that the writings of Thomas Merton (1915–1968) may offer a hopeful resource for survivors of clergy sexual abuse and for those working in support of survivors’ recovery. Merton has been described as “the most influential Catholic author of the twentieth century” ). His writings touch the “deeper woundedness of spirit and psyche” (Kilcourse, Cross Curr, 49:87–96, 1999, p. 90) and his elegant examination of the true self lies “at the center of his teaching on the Christian life” (Conn, Pastor Psychol, 46:323–332, 1998, p. 327). For Merton, the true self is indestructible and, because it is “rooted in God” (Merton, The inner experience: Notes on contemplation, Harper Collins, New York, 2003, p. 2), always open to discovery, growth, and transformation. This framework may be especially useful for individuals whose personal identity, as a consequence of sexual abuse in childhood by clergy, is experienced as forever poisoned and beyond redemption.