THE CRITERION OF THE PRACTICAL IDEAL
Homosexuality as a Laboratory to Explore a Principled Approach to Personal Morality
Keywords:
Homosexuality, LGBT, Nature, Pastoral Practice, Pope Francis, Procreation, Unnatural, James F. Keenan, A History of Moral Theology in the Twentieth Century. From Confessing Sins to Liberating Consciences. New York: Continuum, 2010.Abstract
The development of moral principles involves analysis of the underlying theory and reflection on their use in practice. This short article examines one type of principle (the criterion of the practical ideal) from these perspectives. The theoretic part is an analysis of the assumptions used in the traditional moral manuals, and how these are being questioned in the light of recent magisterial statements. Homosexuality is the particular subject where the use of the criterion is examined in practice. The article concludes with an explanation of the author’s understanding of this criterion, the limits but also its potential in pastoral care.
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