Edited by Thomas Arentzen, Aristotle Papanikolaou and Ashley M. Purpura
Foreword by Ambrosius Metropolitan, Helsinki
From the Orthodox Christianity and Contemporary Thought series at Fordham University Press, this book will be published in November of 2022. My contribution is a chapter entitled "Something New Under the Sun: Sexualities, Same-Sex Relationships, and Orthodoxy." The essay began as a presentation at the Fourth Oslo Coalition Seminar on New Directions in Orthodox Theology (Oslo, Norway) in 2016.
Description
Sex is a difficult issue for contemporary Christians, but the last decade has witnessed a new-found openness regarding the topic among Eastern Orthodox Christians. Both the theological trajectory and the historical circumstances of the Orthodox Church differ radically from other Christian denominations that have already developed robust and creative reflections on sexuality and sexual diversity. Within its unique history, theology, and tradition, Orthodox Christianity holds rich resources for engaging challenging questions of sexuality in new and responsive ways. What is at stake in questions of sexuality in the Orthodox tradition? What sources and theological convictions can uniquely shape Orthodox understandings of sexuality? This volume aims to create an agora for discussing sex, and not least the sexualities that are often thought of as untraditional in Orthodox contexts.
Through fifteen distinct chapters, written by leading scholars and theologians, this book offers a developed treatment of sexuality in the Orthodox Christian world by approaching the subject from scriptural, patristic, theological, historical, and sociological perspectives. Chapters devoted to practical and pastoral insights, as well as reflections on specific cultural contexts, engage the human realities of sexual diversity and Christian life. From rethinking scripture to developing theologies of sex, from eschatological views of eros to reevaluations of the Orthodox responses to science, this book offers new thinking on pressing, present-day issues and initiates conversations about homosexuality and sexual diversity within Orthodox Christianity.
Editorial Reviews
In this unique collection, Orthodox-identified authors expand Orthodox approaches to sexuality with sources and methods distinctive to Orthodox theology. Both where same-sex marriage is legal, and where homophobia reigns, Orthodox readers need this book.
- Eugene F. Rogers, Jr., author of Sexuality and the Christian Body
I am deeply grateful to the scholars who contributed to this volume for providing us with new information and enlightening perspectives on Christianity and sexuality. It is refreshing to find so many chapters agreeing that all committed and faithful sexual partnerships among humankind may show authentic spiritual value. In a loving relationship―whether gay or straight―the presence of God may reside, as several chapters in this volume attest, as long as it opens up to the saving work of theosis.
- Metropolitan Ambrosius, Helsinki, from the Foreword
