ABSTRACT
This chapter concerns the issue of the authority of the Church in the area of sexual morality. It discusses the scriptural roots of morality, and then introduces an historical view of the evolution of moral thinking in the Western Church and examines the claims of authority over morals that popes and others have made. After a short philosophical reflection, the chapter describes the role of the Church in relation to morality. It briefs the human roots of morality and examines critically moral norms drawn too readily from natural law theories. With regard to principles of orientation, the love and respect inherent in good interpersonal relations provide the foundations of morality, including sexual morality. In the case of a society of conscience, which is what the Church is, legitimacy is even more important than in a secular society which can have recourse to sanctions that touch on physical security, property and freedom.
