Enlightened Sexuality: Exploring the Implications of Sacred Sexuality (original) (raw)

Sanctification or inhibition? Religious dualities and sexual satisfaction

Journal of Family Psychology, 2020

Religiosity can influence sexual satisfaction both positively and negatively. To test positive and negative mechanisms, we assessed how religiosity is indirectly associated with sexual satisfaction through sexual sanctification and inhibited sexual passion. We sampled individuals from Amazon's Mechanical Turk (N ϭ 1,695, Study 1) and mixed-sex dyads from Bovitz Inc. (N ϭ 481 dyads, Study 2). Religiosity consistently had a positive indirect association with sexual satisfaction through sexual sanctification; little evidence suggested religiosity had an indirect association with sexual satisfaction through inhibited sexual passion. When accounting for these mechanisms simultaneously, however, religiosity consistently had a negative direct association with sexual satisfaction, supporting the possibility of religious dualities. In the couple study, men's religiosity predicted their partner reporting higher sexual sanctification (for married couples), but women's religiosity did not predict partner sexual sanctification. Altogether, these results paint a complex picture for how religiosity might influence sexuality. Understanding the nuance of these results may help people maximize the potential benefits of their belief systems in sexual relationships.

Associations Between Religious Orientation and Varieties of Sexual Experience

Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 2003

This study examined associations between religious orientation, newly discovered sexual dimensions of personality, and other sexual desires. All participants (n = 161) completed measures of religious orientation, sociosexuality, seven sexual personality dimensions, short-term and long-term mating desires, and mate-poaching behavior. Participants also completed scales assessing social desirability and the Big Five personality factors. Intrinsic religious orientation was positively associated with more restricted sexuality and desire (i.e., decreased sociosexuality, less desire for a large number of sex partners across time). Extrinsic religious orientation was positively associated with more unrestricted sexuality description and desire (i.e., increased sociosexuality and mate poaching; decreased sexual restraint and relationship exclusivity). Both religious orientations accounted for unique variation in sexual dimensions of the self when gender, socially desirable responding, and the Big Five personality factors were statistically controlled. As such, multidimensional measures of religiosity could be theoretically important to include in future scientific research on sexuality and personal relationships.

Does religion spoil your sex life? Exploring sexual satisfaction in the Jewish community

2018

This thesis aimed to explore whether religion, sexual knowledge and sexual attitudes impact sexual satisfaction amongst Orthodox Jews. This thesis intended to address weaknesses of previous research by using robust multidimensional measures of religion and sexuality and focusing on a specific religious group. 515 participants completed measures circulated through an online survey. The measures used were: The New Sexual Satisfaction Scale; Centrality of Religiosity Scale (CRS); threes subscales of the Brief Sexual Attitudes Scale (Permissiveness, Communion and Instrumentality); and a new measure, the Brief Sexual Knowledge scale, developed for this study. Participants were also presented with optional open-ended questions that asked about their sexual expectations and sexual education. Religious level was categorised using self-defined groups for Religious Culture; Ultra-Orthodox, Modern-Orthodox and Non-Orthodox groups as well as CRS categories for Religious Practice; Highly Religio...

Understanding Religious Variations in Sexuality and Sexual Health

In this chapter, we provide an overview and critical examination of published research concerning the impact of religious involvement on the outcomes of sexuality and sexual health across the life course. We take a broad approach, focusing on a variety of important topics, including sexual behavior, sexual health education, abortion attitudes and behavior, HIV/AIDS, attitudes toward gays and lesbians, and the lived experiences of sexual minorities. In the future, researchers should (1) employ more comprehensive measures of religious involvement, (2) investigate understudied outcomes related to sexuality and sexual health, (3) explore mechanisms linking religion, sexuality, and sexual health, (4) establish subgroup variations in the impact of religious involvement, and (5) formally test alternative explanations like personality selection and social desirability. Research along these lines would certainly contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of religious variations in sexuality and sexual health across the life course.

Sacred Sexuality and Conservative American Christianity: Probing the Boundaries

This paper explores the conflicted sexual and spiritual beliefs of five present or former evangelical Christians living in the south-western US. The churches associated with these individuals traditionally teach that the only legitimate expression of sexuality is within the confines of monogamous heterosexual marriage. Embracing their individual sexuality and recapturing their individual sexual autonomy, which includes the freedom to choose non-monogamy or same-sex couplings, these persons moved across the boundaries of sexual and social normalcy proscribed by their religion. For most of these individuals, their pilgrimage towards sexual liberty (the capacity to experience and express healthy sexuality without coercive constraints) is self-perceived as personally and spiritually rewarding even as they experience isolation and condemnation from their original church affiliations. They found that sacred sexuality is a matter of perspective; sexual purity is not abstinence or withholding pleasure, but in becoming a generous and sincere partner. For professional clergy, departure from mainstream Christianity came after a long period of growing frustration at the heavy-handed tactics used by church leadership to suppress heteroglossia concerning sexuality within the Scriptures. As this clergyman expressed divergent views from the accepted theological paradigm concerning sexuality, he was labeled a heretic by his church and many of its members. A series of informal ethnographic interviews with this couple and three individuals reveals the various social and religious dimensions of their experiences: expressing erotic desire as worship, fearing public censure, experiencing loss.

RESEARCH: "At the Crossroads of Sexuality and Spirituality: The Sanctification of Sex by College Students

International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 2005

Consistent with embodiment/incarnational theological perspectives on sexuality, this study applies the construct of sanctification to college students' sexual behavior and satisfaction. One hundred and fifty-one college students from a mid-western university completed measures on the extent to which they viewed sexual intercourse in loving, non-marital relationships as a manifestation of God (e.g., God is present in sexual intercourse between two partners who love each other) and as characterized by sacred qualities (e.g., holy, blessed, sacred). A sub-sample of 65 participants completed a parallel set of sanctification measures regarding their views of sexual intercourse in their current loving relationships. As expected, greater levels of both forms of the sanctification of sexual intercourse were related to greater sexual satisfaction in the sub-group.

SEXUALITY AND FAITH: PASTORAL REFLECTIONS ON SEXUALITY AND A THEOLOGY OF SEXUAL BEING

This article discusses the complex relations between sexuality and faith, and pastoral reflections on sexuality and faith in the contexts of Protestant religious traditions. Four general principles that guide faithful sexuality are offered: Covenant, Grace, Empowerment, and Intimacy. Sexuality is defined as an integral part of individual and social life and being which involves relationships with persons, groups, communities, societies, cultures, and God. Sexuality is also discussed in terms of the dynamics of gender, power, role identity, and self-image. Faith is understood as deep investment in centers of value through which the persons and groups seek to establish or construct coherence, meaning, and value in life.

Navigating Sex, Sexuality, and Christian Values

2000

This is an autobiographical essay that attempts to illuminate the cultural factors (e.g., race, religion, social class, gender, and sexuality) that shaped the author's efforts to embrace herself, including her non-conforming sexuality in a context that was quite rigid about most things. The reader is invited to experience some of the author's grapplings about Christianity, growing up black and female in a changing America, and the constant longing to please others that many people from non-dominant positions express. This essay also hopes to provide at least one point of entry into an academic and/or personal exploration of culture and sexuality in America, including discussions about how morality, social class, race, and gender socialization may interact to shape choices and personal expressions of who one is.