ABSTRACT
The history of the traditional Christian church’s current teachings on sexuality and the body, the impact of anti-intellectualism, and persistence of cultural biases are considered in this chapter. Particular attention is paid to the Greco-Roman culture predating Christianity as a key factor influencing the early church fathers whose subsequent theological writings still impact our current un-ease with the sexual body. Further, the suspicion of science and anti-intellectualism within some quarters of Christendom keeps people disempowered and uninformed. But to value reason and knowledge and apply this to biblical questions about the body requires digging into the cultural, historical, and interpretive context of one’s own culture and the subcultural contexts of our clients. A knowledge of the intersectional aspects of sexuality discloses Christianity’s racist underpinnings that continue to have a significant influence on the views of the body by the church and wider culture.
