Title: Against nature? : types of moral argumentation regarding homosexuality /
Authors: Pronk, Pim, 1948-; Vriend, John,; Hart, Hendrik
Publisher: W.B. Eerdmans,
Year: 1993
Subjects: Homosexuality Religious aspects Christianity; Homosexuality Moral and ethical aspects.
Abstract: "Homosexuality remains a hotly debated subject. Cutting through the confusing rhetoric on all sides, this discerning book serves to clarify the issues involved in arguments on homosexuality." "As Hendrik Hart points out in his extensive foreword, the most unusual aspect of this study is that its author, Pim Pronk, deals with homosexuality from three perspectives - as a biologist, as an ethicist, and as a theologian. Pronk's multilevel expertise enables him to carry on a discussion that breaks out of the traditional patterns and to put forth perspectives that will engage a thoughtful, open-minded readership." --Book Jacket.
Contents: Introduction ---- I. The Traditional Appraisal. 1. Introduction: framing the question --- 2. Elements in the traditional condemnation --- 3. The origin of the elements --- 4. The positions of churches in other countries --- 5. The situation outside the Netherlands: a summary ---- II. A Look at the Explanations. 1. Introduction: framing the question --- 2. The problem of definition --- 3. Homosexuality as psychological phenomenon --- 4. Sexuality and the societal relations of the sexes --- 5. Biological explanations I: ethology and endocrinology --- 6. Biological explanations I: ethology and endocrinology --- 7. Biological explanations II: sociobiology and genetics --- 8. Social-scientific explanations: constructivism --- 9. Explanation and evaluation ---- III. Against Nature? "Nature" and Ethics. 1. Introduction: framing the question --- 2. Nature as normative entity? --- 3. Why homosexuality is not unnatural --- 4. Wants and reasons ---- IV. Homosexuality and the Will of God. 1. Introduction: framing the question --- 2. Bible texts: their exegesis and interpretation --- 3. The role of revelational models of interpretation in theological-ethical discussion --- 4. Ethics and the appeal to revelation.