• ContentsPreface   91. The Meaning and Spirit of Christian Living   15Understanding Morality   16The Meaning of Ethics   16Locating Christian Ethics   18Recognizing Our Call to Love   21Jesus and the Commands to Love   22The Experience of True Love   25Love’s Demands for Christian Social Living   30Christian Life as Eucharistic   36Christian Life as Eschatological   37Three Theories of Eschatology   38The Fulfillment of Faith Working in Love   42Scriptural Data on Faith and Good Works   43The Gift of Living Faith   44The Views of Trent   46A Call to Love, to Faith, to Conversion   49Christian Life as Freedom in Christ   50Paul’s View of the Mosaic Law   51The New Law of Love   53The Law of Moses and the Law of the Spirit   54The Meaning of Christian Liberty   55Implications for Christian Morality   57Conclusion   622. The Magisterium and the Role of Conscience   65The Official Teaching Authority Within the Catholic Community   65 The Extraordinary and Ordinary Teaching Authority   67Teaching Infallibly and Fallibly   68The Magisterium’s Teachings in Morality   71Religious Docility and Responsible Dissent   73The Dignity and Inviolability of Personal Conscience   80From Superego to Conscience   81Conscience and Its Levels of Meaning   84Conclusion   893. A Radical Theology of Sin   92Sins Versus Sinfulness   92Grace and Sin as Relational Realities   96Life in Grace, Life in Sin   98Sin, Objective Moral Wrong, Premoral Evil   100The Reality of Sin   106Conclusion 1084. A Context for the Meaning and Morality of Sexuality   114Religion and Sexuality   114Historical Influences   116Augustine   116Thomas Aquinas   118The Dualisms of Spiritualism and Sexism   121Human Sexuality as Language   124The Misuse of Sexuality   127The Genital and Affective Dimensions of Sexuality   132Sexuality, Chastity, and Love   135True Love or Illusion?   138Conclusion   1445. The Issue of Premarital Sexuality   146A Moral Norm for Genital Sexuality   149Committed Love as the Context for Genital Expression   151The Meaning of Sexual Intercourse   151Morality, Humanity, and Social Sensitivity   157Reflecting God’s Creative and Faithful Love   158Marriage as a Sacrament   161Theological Tradition and Development   168Theological Speculation   171Conclusion   178 6. Contraception and Marital Sexuality   182Contraception in the Twentieth Century   184Pius XI and Casti Connubii   184Pius XII’s Address to Italian Midwives   186Vatican II on Marriage and the Family   187Humanae Vitae and Its Background   190Theological Responses to Humanae Vitae   193Are the Two Meanings of Conjugal Sex Inseparable?   193Is Periodic Abstinence Natural?   196Toward a Moral Evaluation of Artificial Contraception   200Avoiding Pregnancy   206Sterilization Procedures   206Coitus Interruptus   209Hormonal Methods   210Intrauterine Devices   220Barrier Methods   222Contraceptives and the Unmarried   223Natural Family Planning   228Responsible Dissent from Authentic Fallible Teaching   232The Canadian Bishops   240The Scandinavian Bishops   241The South African Bishops   241The Swiss Bishops   242Special Questions on Conjugal Sexuality   242Marital Sexuality Beyond Contraception   2437. Morality and Homogenital Expressions of Love   249Why the Myths and Stereotypes?   250Some Definitions and Distinctions   253Sexual Orientation Versus Genital Activity   254Pseudo-Homosexuality   259Sorting Psychology’s Data   259Is Homosexuality a Mental Disorder?   262Attempts to Explain the Homosexual Orientation   264Arguments Against the Morality of Homogenital Activity   268Scriptural Prohibitions   268The Natural Law Argument   278Homogenital Activity and Human Frustration   282Current Moral Evaluation of Homogenital Acts   286 Official Roman Catholic Teaching   286The Quaker View   288Roman Catholic Theological Opinions   289Summary Remarks on the Revisionist Position   296Human and Civil Rights and Issues of Public Policy   299The Magisterium’s Call for Respect and Tolerance   299Decriminalizing Private Sex Acts   300Anti-Discrimination Legislation   301Focusing the Debate   306Some Pastoral Observations   3088. Masturbation   314Psychological Interpretations and Human Meanings   315Moral Evaluations   319Pastoral Advice   331Achieving Sexual Integrity   3349. Abortion   338Introductory Clarifications   338The Start of Personhood   341Treating Victims of Sexual Assault   353When May Innocent Human Life Be Taken?   362The Principle of Double Effect   363Direct Versus Indirect Abortion   365Moral Physicalism   370The Principle of Proportionality and Beyond   374Abortion, Law, and Public Policy  396Conclusion   406Abbreviations   409A Selected Bibliography   411Index of Names and Authors   420Index of Subjects   424

Rarely can one find in a single volume both a thorough and accurate account of the teaching of the magisterium and a clear and consistent appreciation of the best insights of contemporary Catholic theology . . . Honest and courageous, In Pursuit of Love is destined to be a standard text in its field.Peter C. Phan