Problems of Celibate Friendship
- Bangalore Asian Trading Corporation 1983
- 103p
includes index and biblioraphy
The problem of the sufficiency of the love of God ...1 A. Human love in the life of man ...2 a. The basic need for human love ...2 b. Love as the prerequisite for human fulfilment ...4 B. The greater need for human love today than ever before ...6 a. The place of human love in the current evolutionary stage ...6 b. The experience of the modern man ...8 C. Our love of God . Generally insufficient for psychological Fulfilment ...10 D. The meaning of loving God with an undivided heart ...14 The problem of compatibility between celibacy and friendship ...17 A. The distinction between genital and generic sexuality ...17 B. Consercrated celibacy excludes only conjugal love abd Genital sexual fulfilment ...19 C. The possibility of deep friendship without genital sexual fulfilment ...20 The problem of the sufficiency of homosocial friendships ...23 A. The exceptional depth and quality of herterosexual friendships ...23 B. Some practical conclusions ...25 The Problem of risks ...29 A. The risks of friendship, not to be exaggerated ...29 B. The permssibility of resonable riska ...32 C. The risks of not loving ...34 a. The psychological risks ...35 b. The spiritual risks ...39 The problem of celibate asceticism ...41 A. Consecrated celibacy and the Supposed separation from the world ...41 B. The ascetical aspects of celibate friendship ...43 C. The true face of christian aseticism ...49 a. The teology of happiness ...50 b. The meaning of the asceticism demanded by the nt ...51 c. Renunciation as such has no vlue ...53 d. Love never to be renounced ...55 The problem of particular friendship ...57 A. Every friendship is necessarity particular ...57 B. They meaning of the law of universal charity ...58 C. Dealing with false particular friendships ...61 The problem of scandal ...64 A. The pharisaical nature of many scandals ...64 B. Over protectionism as cause of scandals ...65 Practical problems of celibate friendship ...68 A. problems arising from the present day stituation ...68 a. Difficulities arising from the genetral situation of today ...68 b. Diifficulties arising From present one`s community ...68 c Censorship of correspondence ...73 B. The problem of sexual temptation ...80 a. The unavoidability of sexual temptation ....80 b. Some practical reflections ...82 C. The problem of expression of love ...89 a. Some prerequisites ...90 b. The legitimacy of prudent and appropriate expression of love ...93 c. Moral considerations ...98 d. Pastoral reflections ...101