Catholic teaching has sought to present Christian standards and values as reasonable, as standards, which anyone can see to be right if only they think about them in the right way. Arguments have been drawn from scripture and also from philosophy and experience, the latter being particularly important at a time when the church can no longer lay down the law, but has to be able to persuade. However, are the arguments used valid, or are they flawed?...

Brownson argues that Christians should reconsider whether or not the biblical strictures against same-sex relations as defined in the ancient world should apply to contemporary, committed same-sex relationships. He carefully analyzes each of the seven main texts that appear to address intimate same-sex relations, and in the process explores key concepts that inform our understanding of the texts, including patriarchy, complementarity, purity and impurity,...