Celabacy - Repression or Growth (celibacy, grace, translation, grace)

[Sunstone]

Go for it!

[Trinity]

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Go for it!

This is not an easy thing to explain, esp at 12:30 in the morning.

Celibacy in not the giving up of anything, nor is it repression of instintcs. Rather it can be understood in several different ways.
1. The Church, and society until the sexual revolution (despite some cultures) hold that sex is a great gift, and is to be used for a purpose. Now being a great gift, does it seem right to use it for just any old thing? Would you use your new tooth brush to clean the dog's mouth? and that is a $3 tooth brush. Imagine the life generating power of sex. Is this something that is worthless, so worthless you would use it for anything? say to satisfy some simple desire?

If you think hard enough, no matter what you state or religion, there must be at least one time you resisted you sexual urges and did not give into them... did you die? It does not seem so. But we are talking about this on a larger scale, so lets draw it out.

There may also be times, when we do give into those desires. Let me ask this (I know this does not seem fair, I ask questions and them answer them) did that satisfy your desire, or temporality bat it down? Did that desire come back? How did you handel it the second time? When did you feel better, when you "took care" of the desire or let it go.

The world today has given sex a very high priority, with a very low standard. I am not sure how much of the question I answered, please let me know where it falls short.

[Bright-ness' Shadow]

Originally Posted by Trinity

Do you feel that celibacy is a repression of natural instincts or a sacrifice for a higher good?

Perhaps there is a third reason but I can't tell you the "why" or the "what" of the reason. Perhaps it a just another normal aspect of sexuality - asexual in practise.

There's a thread on it Asexuality is a normal part of human sexuality

-pah-

[Trinity]

Originally Posted by pah

Perhaps there is a third reason but I can't tell you the "why" or the "what" of the reason. Perhaps it a just another normal aspect of sexuality - asexual in practise.

There's a thread on it Asexuality is a normal part of human sexuality

-pah-

Celibacy is not asexuality, it takes the sexual feelings one has and transforms them into something greater.

[Sunstone]

Very interesting post, Trinity. If I understand you correctly, you are saying something along the lines that, through celibacy, our sexuality is subliminated to a higher use. Am I correct?

Perhaps this is just a quibble, but I take issue with the notion that society held sex to be a great gift until the sexual revolution. I think it would be more correct to say that society held sex to be a shameful secret until the sexual revolution.

The sexual revolution brought with it some excesses. But I think it also freed some people -- not everyone -- from many degrading ideas about our sexuality.

After all, it wasn't until the sexual revolution that it occured to too many people that women, for instance, could have pleasant sex lives.

[painted wolf]

I would have to say that it is both. Sometimes people choose to give up something, or to test themselves as a form of religious piety. It is a common practice (though most often for limited periods of time) in many cultures.
Its your body so its your choice.

ps, sunstone, that only goes for some cultures... sex is always been seen a gift to both sexes in many other cultures. No need for a 'revolution'

wa:do

[Bright-ness' Shadow]

Originally Posted by Trinity

Celibacy is not asexuality, it takes the sexual feelings one has and transforms them into something greater.

Then you've changed the definition of celibacy - it's primary meaning is not married. One of the reasons may well be asexual feelings or activity.

If you wanted to tie this to a vow, you should have said so and it still would not have changed a possible cause.

-pah-

[The Voice of Reason]

I would have to go with Sunstone on this one - I see the sexual revolution as having been a very good thing for the betterment of American society (I cannot speak to the effects it had on other countries). The truth of the matter is that mankind has been having orgies, practicing what we now call fetishes, and experimenting with sex as long as mankind has existed. The only thing the sexual revolution did was bring it out of the backroom, where Victorian values had forced it to hide. This exposure to daylight has been beneficial in several ways - not the least of which is that sex is now much better understood from a medical point of view.

TVOR

[Sunstone]

I wonder if celibacy is in any way beneficial?

I'm not sure I buy into the notion that celibacy leads to spiritual growth. Do we really grow spiritually whe