Is sex meant just for fun - for recreation - or is it's real purpose self-evident?
Society sure sees it mostly one way: sex now mostly seems to be seen as a pleasurable experience shared between two people who are willing ― whether they're married, boyfriend and girlfriend, just friends, or have only just met that same evening. As long as the girl is on the Pill or the boy uses a condom, then it's OK they say; do what you like. In a excerpt from a new book, Light Of The World, in which Pope Benedict is interviewed, he says -
I think we can compare it to another human activity: that of eating. Food tastes good and we enjoy eating but is the enjoyment we get from the taste of food the real reason we eat it? No, the real reason we eat food is to nourish our bodies and keep them running. I think God has made the eating of food enjoyable so that we'd do it and keep our bodies going, and of course he wants it to be enjoyable, but can it be abused? Yes, people can and do overeat; they get used to the taste of certain foods and want to eat them all the time. The result is bad health including obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and any other number of maladies.
Likewise, I think that sex is being abused in today's society. The good feeling of doing it is trumpeted as the main reason for sex and society tells us we should do it wherever and whenever we please and with whomever we want. But the good feeling is not the main reason for sex. Sex also is called (or used to be called) 'making love' for a reason. It is supposed to be an expression of love between the two people (hopefully husband and wife) taking part. These days love doesn't have to come into it; lust seems a primary motivator.
Again, I think God made it feel good so that we'd do it, but one of the main reasons is procreation - babies. I'm not saying that babies are the only reason for sex - it is also to draw man and wife closer together in unity, for their enjoyment, and to nourish their relationship - but the fact is that the product of sex, babies, is often unwanted these days. We contracept to avoid having them, and when that fails weabort kill them.
I think that if the subject of sex is looked at logically and scientifically (and yes, emotionally) that the reasons for it are obvious: and it's not predominantly for fun.
Society sure sees it mostly one way: sex now mostly seems to be seen as a pleasurable experience shared between two people who are willing ― whether they're married, boyfriend and girlfriend, just friends, or have only just met that same evening. As long as the girl is on the Pill or the boy uses a condom, then it's OK they say; do what you like. In a excerpt from a new book, Light Of The World, in which Pope Benedict is interviewed, he says -
[...] the sheer fixation on the condom implies a banalization of sexuality, which, after all, is precisely the dangerous source of the attitude of no longer seeing sexuality as the expression of love, but only a sort of drug that people administer to themselves. This is why the fight against the banalization of sexuality is also a part of the struggle to ensure that sexuality is treated as a positive value and to enable it to have a positive effect on the whole of man’s being.I think he hits the nail right on the head there. Sex has become another 'Friday night drug', akin to having a beer, a wine, or a cigarette. Just something you do to feel good, and it often doesn't matter who you do it with. But if we take a step back and really look at it, is this the real purpose of sex or is it just selfishness?
I think we can compare it to another human activity: that of eating. Food tastes good and we enjoy eating but is the enjoyment we get from the taste of food the real reason we eat it? No, the real reason we eat food is to nourish our bodies and keep them running. I think God has made the eating of food enjoyable so that we'd do it and keep our bodies going, and of course he wants it to be enjoyable, but can it be abused? Yes, people can and do overeat; they get used to the taste of certain foods and want to eat them all the time. The result is bad health including obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and any other number of maladies.
Likewise, I think that sex is being abused in today's society. The good feeling of doing it is trumpeted as the main reason for sex and society tells us we should do it wherever and whenever we please and with whomever we want. But the good feeling is not the main reason for sex. Sex also is called (or used to be called) 'making love' for a reason. It is supposed to be an expression of love between the two people (hopefully husband and wife) taking part. These days love doesn't have to come into it; lust seems a primary motivator.
Again, I think God made it feel good so that we'd do it, but one of the main reasons is procreation - babies. I'm not saying that babies are the only reason for sex - it is also to draw man and wife closer together in unity, for their enjoyment, and to nourish their relationship - but the fact is that the product of sex, babies, is often unwanted these days. We contracept to avoid having them, and when that fails we
I think that if the subject of sex is looked at logically and scientifically (and yes, emotionally) that the reasons for it are obvious: and it's not predominantly for fun.