Doctor Mama Amon
JF-Expert Member
- Mar 30, 2018
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I. Abstract
“What indeed has Jerusalem to do with Athens, the Church with the Academy, the Christian with the heretic?… After Jesus we have no need of speculation, after the Gospel no need of research.”--Tertullian of Carthage, North Africa (155-240 AD),.
“Do not think that we say that these things are only to be received by faith, but also that they are to be asserted by reason. For indeed it is not safe to commit these things to bare faith without reason, since assuredly truth cannot be without reason.”― Clement of Alexandria (150–215 AD)
While squeezed between the above two antagonistic quotations from two great Church Fathers, who held opposing views concerning the relationship between revealed faith and philosophical reason, we conducted a desk research with a view of answering the following general research question: Is there any scientific support for the condition of homosexuality?
And to answer this question, the following sub-questions were addressed, in a step by step fashion:
- Is the condition of normal sexual orientation scientifically supported?
- Is the condition of abnormal sexual orientation scientifically supported?
- Assuming affirmative answers to the above, does one's sexual orientation diminish their moral imputability in a way that warrants an "irregular situations" in the sexual sphere?
- Assuming affirmative answers to the above, how should we handle "irregular situations" arising from disorders of sexual development?
- Abstract
- Introduction
- Answers to the first question
- Answers to the second question
- Answers to the third question
- Answer to the fourth question
- Summary
- Discussion and key conclusions
- References
The Vatican said on 18 December 2023, in an unprecedented declaration, which was approved by Pope Francis, that Roman Catholic priests can provide blessings to "couples in irregular situations," including same-sex couples, as long as these blessings are performed outside the regular Church rituals or liturgies.
A document from the Vatican's doctrinal office, which effectively re-interpreted a declaration the same body had issued in 2021, said such blessings would not legitimize irregular situations but be a sign that God welcomes all.
The Catholic Church formally teaches that the condition of same-sex attraction is not sinful but the practice of same-sex acts are sinful. It also distinguishes couples in regular situations as opposed to couples in irregular situations.
Common “irregular situations” mentioned or implied by the Church documents since 2016 include an “irregular situation” of adultery, an “irregular situation” of civil marriage, an “irregular situation” of polygamous union, an “irregular situation” of contracepting couples, and an “irregular situation” of same sex couples.
However, while the Vatican's declaration on "irregular Situations," as issued on 18 December 2023, addresses all of these “irregular situation” and more, it was accompanied by misinformation, disinformation and malinformation which were orchestrated by the major media houses in the world.
Confusion mainly erupted because via this information disorder, the media made the world to believe that the Vatican had issued a declaration that endorsed the “irregular situation” of same sex unions, since they said little or nothing at all about the other “irregular situations” which are mentioned in the document.
This information disorder traded on the ambiguity of the word "blessing" which sometimes in the past has been used to mean the process of endorsing and formalizing heterosexual marriages.
However, even the disambiguation given in the declaration leaves one question unanswered, and hence a source of persistent confusion, namely: What is an irregular situation and how does an irregular situation of same sex couples compare and contrast with other irregular situations?
This question is a call to Christian intellectuals, who are trained to formally discuss irregular sexual development, also known as the disorders of sexual development (DSD), to either provide evidence which amounts to "biblical and scientific support for the condition of homosexual irregular situations," as “irregular situations” which are at par with other “irregular situations” or concede that they are a unique case which deserves a special treatment. In this article we argue for the former position.
However, while understanding that, blessings are kinds of petitionary prayers, which may be pointless or otherwise, we shall not address this aspect.
III. Is the existence of a condition of normal sexual orientation scientifically supported?
Our findings in response to this question are as follows:
1. Sexual orientation is: "a psychosexual attraction (erotic, emotional, and affective)
toward particular individual persons of either the same-sex or the opposite sex.(Salzman and Lawler 2008:65)
2. Prevalent sexual orientations includes the following basic gender binary: an individual being attracted by men (androphilia) and an individual being attracted by women (gynephilia).
3. Combining androphilia and gynephilia differently results into the following three classes of sexual orientation: male attracted by female and vice versa (heterosexuality), male attracted by male (male homosexuality), female attracted by female (female homosexuality)
4. According to the demographics of sexual orientation, the statistical prevalence of sexual orientations are as follows: heterosexuality(97%) and homosexuality (2.5%), hence heterosexuality being statistically normal (Wikipedia).
5. According to the Counterfactual Theory of causality, one event, e, causally depends upon a distinct event, c, if and only if, had c occurred, e would have occurred; and, had c not occurred, e wouldn’t have occurred either. (J. Dmitri Gallow 2017)
6. The fact of "absence" of something as a result of some "preventive" intervention can also be counted as a causal factor as explained next:
(i) Causation by prevention: An event C causally prevented event E, that is, C caused not-E if C occurred and E did not, and there was an event X such that: (1) there is a causal relation between C and the process P, of the object x, such that either C is a causal interaction with P, or C causes Y, which is a causal interaction with P; and (2) If C had not occurred, then x would have caused E.(J. Dmitri Gallow 2017)
7. For example, in the sexual sphere, "causation" is exemplified by the following reproductive causal process: heterosexual sexual excitement, copulation, ejaculation, fertilization, implantation, gestation, delivery, and parenting.
8. A scientific theory of sexual development and differentiation proves that, the normal sexual orientation of an individual person, whether androphilic or gynophilic, is congenitally, and not volitionally, determined, by the following factors: SRY gene, a protein called TDF, anti-Mullerian hormone, and other factors. This thesis is defended next.
According to Speroff and Fritz (2005) and Carlson (2013), the process of sex determination for the unborn child is governed by several genes within the first seven weeks of pregnancy. This process goes through five main stages.
(a) Determination of the sex of the child at the cellular level (chromosome sex) during fertilization is explained in terms of the following steps.
(i) Through sexual intercourse, a male sperm with 23 chromosomes, including 22 chromosomes called "X" and one called "Y," unites with a female egg with 23 chromosomes called "X", creating a new compound cell having 46 chromosomes, which is called a zygote.
(ii) So, the result of the fertilization an egg by a sperm is a zygote capable of undergoing cell division to form a new individual.
(iii) Thus, this zygote can have either 46 chromosomes with a female format, that is, 'XX' (46XX Female), or 46 chromosomes with a male format, that is, XY (46XY Male).
(iv) In this first stage of sex determination, the pregnancy has a neutral reproductive system. Instead, there is a "tissue" having three parts: two bipotential gonads, two Mullerian ducts and two Wolfian ducts.
(v) Depending on the circumstances of the time, the bipotential gonads and their ducts can turn into male genitalia or female genitalia.
(vi) Thus, chromosomal sex answers the questions: Does the person have 44+XX chromosome structure that is typical of normal female persons? or Does the person have 44+XY chromosome structure that is typical of normal male persons?
(vii) A negative answer to both questions implies an "an irregular genetic situation" called a "Disorder of Sexual Development (DSD)."
(b) In the seventh week of pregnancy, witnesses the establishment of the sex of the child at the level of the gonad (gonadal sex). At this point, the two bipotential gonads, either will turn into female ovaries or will turn into male testicles.
(i) If the bipotential gonads turn into ovaries, the pregnancy of a female child is established. And if they turn into testicles, the pregnancy of a male child is established. These changes occur in the fifty-day-old pregnancy.
(ii) This stage is controlled by several genes, but the most important gene are the "sex determining region Y gene, that is “SRY gene." The "SRY gene" is a gene found at one end of the "Y" chromosome, which is the male chromosome.
(iii) The job of the "SRY gene" is to produce a chemical that turns the bipotential gonads into testicles. That chemical is a protein called called "testicle determining factor (TDF)."
(iv) The availability of SRY and TDF forces the two free gonads to turn into testicles, so that, a male pregnancy is achieved. This is an event in the seventh week of pregnancy.
(v) On the other hand, the absence of SRY and TDF allows the bipotential gonads to acquire the 'XX' genetic format, and hence to turn into ovaries, and thus, to facilitate a female pregnancy. This is an event in the seventh week of pregnancy.
(vi) Thus, if a child is born as a complete male, he has a genetic system having an "XY" format which is accompanied by the "existence" of "SRY gene." That is, he has a genetic structure having the format of “46XY Male, SRY+.”
(vii) On the other hand, if a child is born as a full female, she will have a genetic system having the format of "XX" being accompanied by the "lack" of an "SRY gene." That is, she will have a genetic makeup having the format “46XX Female, SRY-.”
(viii) So under stage two, two types of sex emerge. We have genetic sex and gonadal sex.
(ix) In short, genetic sex answers the questions: Does the person have genes that determine sexual development that is typical of normal male persons? or Does the person lack the genes that determine sexual development that is typical of normal female persons?
(x) And gonadal sex answers the questions: Does the person have two testicles that are typical of normal male persons? or Does the person have two ovaries that are typical of normal female persons?
A negative answer to both questions implies an "an irregular genetic situation" called a "Disorder of Sexual Development (DSD)."
(c) The third stage is the determination of sex at the genital level and several parts of the body, thus giving it a special morphology/appearance (genital sex).
(i) This stage is controlled by male hormones, such as testosterone, which is produced in the testes of the male fetus; and female hormones, such as estrogen, which is produced in the ovaries of the female fetus.
(ii) At this stage, the female fetus acquires the following external genitalia: the vulva, the vagina, the cervix and the urethra. In addition, a woman gets the following internal genitalia: the reproductive tract, uterus, two fallopian tubes and ovaries.
(iii) The male pregnancy, gets the following external genitalia: a penis and two testicles that descend into his pouch. In addition, the male pregnancy acquires the following internal genitalia: the prostate, the epididymis, the seminal vesicles, and the vas deferens.
(iv) Thus, at this stage, two types of sex emerge too. They are internal genetic sex and external genetic sex.
(v) Internal-genital sex answers the questions: Does the person have sperm transport system that is typical of normal male persons? or Does the person have the uterus, oviducts, and upper vagina that are typical of normal female persons?
A negative answer to both questions implies an "an irregular genetic situation" called a "Disorder of Sexual Development (DSD)."
(vi) And external-genital sex answers the questions: Does the person have a penis and scrotum that are typical of normal male persons? or Does the person have clitoris and vulva that are typical of normal female persons?
A negative answer to both questions implies an "an irregular genetic situation" called a "Disorder of Sexual Development (DSD)."
(d) The fourth stage is puberty sex differentiation, which is determined by the production of male and female sex hormones which starts after adolescence.
(i) These hormones have both physical and psychological effect to the growing person. So, we can talk about three types of sex so far, namely: hormonal sex, pubertal sex, and psychological sex.
(ii) Hormonal sex answers the questions: Does the person have hormones that are typical of normal male persons? or Does the person have hormones that are typical of normal female persons?
A negative answer to both questions implies an "an irregular genetic situation" called a "Disorder of Sexual Development (DSD)."
(iii) Pubertal sex answers the questions: Does the person have Adam’s apple, beards, pubic hair, body shape and skeletal growth that is typical of normal male persons? or Does the person have breast development, menstrual cycle system, and body shape typical of normal female persons?
A negative answer to both questions implies an "an irregular genetic situation" called a "Disorder of Sexual Development (DSD)."
(iv) And psychological sex answers the questions: Does the person have an androphilic sexual orientation that is typical of normal female persons? or Does the person have gynophilic sexual orientation that is typical of normal male persons?
A negative answer to both questions implies an "an irregular genetic situation" called a "Disorder of Sexual Development (DSD)."
(v) In summary, concerning the science of normal sexual differentiation, we have seen the following: That, the chromosomal sex of the embryo is established at fertilization.
This stage of embryonic development is sexually differentiated at a genetic level, but having sexually indifferent gonads. However, after six weeks of pregnancy further signs of sex differentiation are noticed.
This process of sex differentiation involves a series of events whereby the sexually indifferent gonads progressively acquire male or female characteristics. The process of gonadal determination is governed by a complex network of genes, including the SRY gene, whose balanced expression levels either activate the testis pathway and simultaneously repress the ovarian pathway or vice versa.
Subsequently, internal and external genitalia will follow the male pathway in the presence of androgens and anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), or the female pathway in the absence of these hormones.
(e) As such, we can scientifically talk about eight categories of human sex, namely: chromosomal sex, genetic sex, gonadal sex, internal-genital sex, external-genital sex, pubertal sex, hormonal sex, and psychological sex.
(f) And, in conclusion, then, we can confidently say that, the normal sexual orientation of an individual person, whether androphilic or gynophilic, is congenital and not volitional, natural and not chosen.
(g) In the case of male pregnancy, it results from the presence of the following factors: SRY gene, a protein called TDF, anti-Mullerian hormone, and other factors.
(h) And in the case female pregnancy, it results from the absence of the following factors: SRY gene, a protein called TDF, anti-Mullerian hormone, and other factors. The fact of absence as a causal factor is explained above.
(j) Thus, preventing Juma to throw a stone at a window causes the window not to shatter. In the sexual sphere, "causation by prevention" is exemplified by contraception, where, we can say that contraception prevents conception or causes conception failure. Similarly, it is exemplified by the event of an embryo turning into a girl babe by reason of non-occurence of certain hormones as explained above.
IV. Is the existence of a condition of an abnormal sexual orientation scientifically supported?
Our findings in response to this question are as follows, based on a sound theory of disorders of sex development (DSD):
(a) Just as there are persons with disabilities at a physical level having impaired parts of their bodies, such as squinting eyes, left-handedness, and other persons with disabilities(PWDs), there are PWDs at a sexual level too.
(b) For example, if a person has two genitals, namely, a "penis" and a "vagina," with one of them not functioning properly, then, that is a person with disability at a sexual level. This is a hermaphrodite.
(c) The science of abnormal sexual differentiation, refers to this abnormal phenomenon as a disorder of sexual development (DSD).
(d) According to the works of Vogel and Motulsky (1996) along with Crooks and Baur(2014) the origins of "Disorders of Sexual Development (DSD)," can be explained scientifically.
(e) Earlier we saw that, if a child is born as a normal male, he will have a genetic system having the format "46XY ME, SRY+." On the other hand, we said that, if a child is born as a normal female, she will have a genetic system having the format "46XX KE, SRY-."
(f) But unfortunately, if it happens that a pregnancy with a genetic system having the format "XY" is accompanied by a broken "Y" chromosome which has suffered a partial or total loss of an "SRY gene," then, serious genetic consequences will occur to the pregnancy, as discussed next.
(g) First, this pregnancy will not receive the Testicle Determining Factor (TDF), which is the "protein that triggers the growth of testicles," so that the child can be born male.
(h) Instead, despite the fact that the pregnancy has a male genetic format of 'XY,' at the chromosomal level, this pregnancy will develop ovaries as if the pregnancy had a female genetic format of 'XX,' which is the female genetic format, at the chromosomal level.
(i) Finally, a child will be born who is male at the cellular level, while he is female at the gonadal level. He will be a person with sexual disability at a sexual level, having a genetic format of "46XY Female, SRY-."
(j) Her ovaries will produce female hormones, and she will have a female morphology, while inside she has cells having a male format. She will be a genotypical male, who is a phenotypical female.
(k) This disorder of sexual development brings about a change which is called “male-to-female sex reversal.” So, this is how a man with a feminine appearance, like Caster Semenya, a South African athlete, comes into the world.
(l) Unfortunately again, if it happens that, a pregnancy with a genetic format of 'XX' is accompanied by an X chromosome that has picked up a "SRY gene," after it has accidentally broken off and dropped from the Y chromosome, serious consequences will befall the pregnancy too.
(m) First, this pregnancy gets "testicular growth protein," that is TDF, causing the child to be born with male genitalia.
(n) For this reason, despite the fact that the pregnancy has a genetic format of 'XX,' which is a female format, it will still produce testicles, as if the pregnancy had a genetic format of 'XY,' which is a male format .
(o) Finally, a child will be born with a female gender at the cellular level, while he has a male gender at the gonad level. He will be a genotypical female and a phenotypical male. He will be a person with disability at a sexual level having a genetic format of “46XX Male, SRY+.”
(p) His testicles will produce male hormones, and he will have a male morphology, while inside he has cells having a female format. This disorder of sexual development brings about a change which is called “female-to-male sex reversal.” This is how a woman with a masculine appearance can come into being.
(q) Again, if the "SRY gene” does not completely drop from the "Y" chromosome, then, male to female sex reversal, or female to male sex reversal, as the case may be, will be partial. As result, the pregnancy may have male genitalia and female genitalia.
(r) This is how hermaphrodites happen. In the modern terminology, they are otherwise called intersexed persons or simply intersexuals.
(s) In other words, hermaphroditism, also referred to as intersex, is a condition in which there is a discrepancy between the external and internal sexual and genital organs. It is grouped together with other conditions as a disorder of sex development (DSD).
(t) There are four different types of hermaphroditism, as follows: 46XX hermaphroditism; 46XY hermaphroditism; true gonadal hermaphroditism; and complex hermaphroditism.
(u) An individual with 46XX hermaphroditism has two XX chromosomes and the ovaries of a woman, but has external genitalia that appear to be male. This type is usually caused by the excessive exposure of the female fetus to male hormones in the womb. There is fusion of the labia, and the clitoris becomes enlarged to resemble a penis. Internally, the female sexual organs such as the uterus and fallopian tubes have a normal structure. Specifically:
- Abnormality name: Fetally androgenized females
- Chromosomal Sex: 46XX
- Gonadal Sex: Ovaries
- Reproductive Internal Structures: Normal female
- External Genitals: ambiguous (typically more male than female)
- Fertility status: Fertile
- Secondary Sex Characteristics: Normal female (individuals with adrenal malfunction must be treated with cortisone to avoid masculinization).
- Gender Identity: Usually female, but significant level of dissatisfaction with female gender identity; oriented toward traditional male activities
Specific case one:
- Abnormality name: Androgen insensitivity syndrome
- Chromosomal Sex: 46XY
- Gonadal Sex: Undescended testes
- Reproductive Internal Structures: Lacks a normal set of either male or female internal structures
- External Genitals: Normal female genitals and a shallow vagina
- Fertility status: Sterile
- Secondary Sex Characteristics: At puberty, breast development and other signs of normal female sexual maturation appear, but menstruation does not occur.
- Gender Identity: Female
- Abnormality name: Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) deficient males
- Chromosomal Sex: 46XY
- Gonadal Sex: Undescended testes at birth; testes descend at puberty
- Reproductive Internal Structures: Vas deferens, seminal vesicles, and ejaculatory ducts but no prostate; partially formed vagina
- External Genitals: ambiguous at birth (more female than male); at puberty, genitals are masculinized.
- Fertility status: Sterile
- Secondary Sex Characteristics: Female before puberty; become masculinized at puberty.
- Gender Identity: Female prior to puberty; majority assume traditional male identity at puberty.
(x) Complex hermaphroditism involves other disorders of sexual development beyond simple 46XX and 46XY. These may include: 45XO, 47XXY, and 47XXX. This type is not usually associated with a discrepancy between the internal and external genitalia. Instead, the individual shows abnormal levels of sex hormones and incomplete sexual development.
Specific case one:
- Abnormality name: Turner’s syndrome
- Chromosomal Sex: 45XO
- Gonadal Sex: Fibrous streaks of ovarian tissue
- Reproductive Internal Structures: Uterus and fallopian tubes
- External Genitals: Normal female
- Fertility status: Sterile
- Secondary Sex Characteristics: Undeveloped; no breasts
- Gender Identity: Female
- Abnormality name: Klinefelter’s syndrome
- Chromosomal Sex: 47XXY
- Gonadal Sex: Small testes
- Reproductive Internal Structures: Normal male
- External Genitals: Undersized penis and testes
- Fertility status: Sterile
- Secondary Sex Characteristics: Some feminization of secondary sex characteristics; may have breast development and rounded body contours.
- Gender Identity: Usually male, although higher than usual incidence of gender identity confusion
(z) These are biological facts, which are congenital and not chosen, natural and not cultural. These facts, obviously contract the binary model of human sexuality which is presented by religious scriptures in Genesis.
(za) But, if the binary model of human sexuality which is presented by religious scriptures in Genesis is read together with the eunuchs narrative, mentioned by Jesus in the new testament, the binary sexual model vanishes, and both the Bible and science converge around a non-binary model of human sexuality of men, women, and eunuch-like humans, where the latter category includes homosexuals, bisexuals, and sexual impotents.
V. Assuming affirmative answers to the above, does one's sexual orientation diminishes their moral imputability in a way that warrants an "irregular sexual relationships"?
Our findings in response to this question are as follows, in light of the work of Sherwood O. Cole(1997), Robert P. George (2012) and Pope Francis (2016):
Generally, a resolution of the biological-moral issue of heterosexual and homosexual behaviors rests on proper answers to a number of critical questions.
(a) What is the nature of the biological explanations of heterosexuality and homosexuality? Do the explanations imply absolute immutability and determine one’s destiny, or do they express itself in ways that still permit the exercising of one’s will? And which moral system do we use to evaluate them?
(b) But the degree of biological influence on heterosexual and homosexual behaviors becomes critical to this discussion. That is, biological explanations of behavior have important implications for moral judgment and culpability, including homosexual behavior.
(c) Our point, here is that, If biology equally explains both heterosexual and homosexual behaviors, as it has been shown above, it can be presumed that, some times, individuals in "irregular situations," regardless of their sexual orientations, have little choice in sexual matters and thus should be tolerated for behavior they can rarely control.
(d) Indeed, such an attribution proscribes discriminatory moral censure such that both the homosexual and heterosexual behaviors ceases to be judged differently. As such an "irregular situation" of heterosexual adultery and an "irregular situation" of homosexual adultery are at par.
(e) This argument appears to be used used repeatedly by Pope Fransis (2016). He argues that being born that way excludes homosexuals from being criminalised and entitles them to legal recognition, religious and social acceptance. He argues that they should be accepted for what they are and welcomed into the mainstream of society, subject to proper guidance and counseling.
(f) The Pope says, for example: “The divorced who have entered a new union, for example, can find themselves in a variety of situations, which should not be pigeonholed or fit into overly rigid classifications leaving no room for a suitable personal and pastoral discernment.
"One thing is a second union consolidated over time, with new children, proven fidelity, generous self-giving, Christian commitment, a consciousness of its irregularity, and of the great difficulty of going back without feeling in conscience that one would fall into new sins.
"The Church acknowledges situations “where, for serious reasons, such as the children’s upbringing, a man and woman cannot satisfy the obligation to separate.” There are also the cases of those who made every effort to save their first marriage and were unjustly abandoned, or of “those who have entered into a second union for the sake of the children’s upbringing, and are sometimes subjectively certain in conscience that their previous and irreparably broken marriage had never been valid.”
"Another thing is a new union arising from a recent divorce, with all the suffering and confusion which this entails for children and entire families, or the case of someone who has consistently failed in his obligations to the family.
"It must remain clear that this is not the ideal which the Gospel proposes for marriage and the family. The Synod Fathers stated that the discernment of pastors must always take place “by adequately distinguishing” with an approach which “carefully discerns situations.” We know that no “easy recipes” exist.” (The Joy of Love, n.298)
(g) Again, The Pope says, for example: “It is true, for example, that mercy does not exclude justice and truth, but first and foremost we have to say that mercy is the fullness of justice and the most radiant manifestation of God’s truth …
"This offers us a framework and a setting which help us avoid a cold bureaucratic morality in dealing with more sensitive issues. Instead, it sets us in the context of a pastoral discernment filled with merciful love, which is ever ready to understand, forgive, accompany, hope, and above all integrate.” (The Joy of Love, n.311 – 312)
(h) What the Pope is saying is that, if we accept the Church-Christ analogy of bride and bride groom, where the Church is a collection of sinful humans, entails the necessary concussion that, "the Christ-Church marriage is an irregular situation," which we cannot do away with. This logic is so devastating to the opponents of Pope Francis.
(i) Public opinion of morality is also swayed by biological explanations of heterosexuality and homosexuality. In general, people are more accepting of sexual behaviors when they are believed to be biologically caused somehow somewhere.
(j) Finally, given that, both heterosexual and homosexual orgasm contribute to the realization of the basic good of body-self integration, although they do it differently, the asymmetrical thinking of the new natural lawyers about morality of heterosexual and homosexual conducts appears to be an unwarranted distinction which contaminates their understanding in the area of human sexuality.
(k) These natural lawyers, as represented by George (2012), often talk about the distinction between heterosexual reasons for action, which are basic human good, as opposed to homosexual desires for action which are not basic human good, on the other hand, from which distinction they jump into the conclusion that, the former are morally behaving and the latter are not.
(l) What these natural lawyers fail to see is that both homosexual and heterosexual copulation are means of realizing the basic good of body-self integration, where pleasure is a side effect. To save their position they need to deny that body-self integration is NOT a basic good, which they cannot afford.
VI. Assuming affirmative answers to the above, how should we handle "irregular situations" arising from disorders of sexual development?
(a) Our findings in response to this question are as follows: The Vatican Declaration as issued on 19 December 2023 shows that the Pope is on the right track, science supports his arguments, and he is already using science to achieve key transformations in the Catholic Church.
(b) The recent evidence for this claim is the fact that, on 01 November 2023 the Pope inaugurated the New statutes for the Pontifical Academy of Theology (PATH), on which occasion he changed the mission of the academy from from “promoting the dialogue between reason and faith” to promoting “transdisciplinary dialogue with philosophies, sciences, arts, and all other knowledge.”
(c) Pope Francis called for a “paradigm shift” in Catholic theology that takes widespread engagement with contemporary science, culture, and people’s lived experience as an essential starting point.
(d) The Pope said that, he has revised the statutes of the Pontifical Academy of Theology (PATH) “to make them more suitable for the mission that our time imposes on theology.”
(e) He argued that, “Theology can only develop in a culture of dialogue and encounter between different traditions and different knowledge, between different Christian confessions and different religions, openly engaging with everyone, believers and nonbelievers.”
(f) The Pope explained that "promoting theology in the future cannot be limited to abstractly re-proposing formulas and schemes of the past." In his view theology is "called to interpret prophetically the present and to discern new paths for the future."
(g) He suggested that, to do this, "it will have to face the profound cultural transformations" that society is undergoing. The Pope considers that "to a Church that is synodal" the key to achieving its goal is an "epistemological and methodological rethinking" of theology.
(h) We understand that, as a result of the challenge of “penguinism", that is, a mindset exclusively trained in the social sciences as a result of which it remains rigid and a victim of the past in such a way that it is closed to new scientific evidence, may quickly dismiss the above arguments and facts. In technical philosophy such a mindset is referred to as Kripkean dogmatism (Kripke 2011).
(i) Kripkean dogmatism is a mental state according to which, persons who come to know a given proposition about some subject matter at one time, will continue to believe in the truth of the original proposition about the subject matter at hand at all future times, despite the availability of new evidence which defeats their original belief, in such a way that, this backwardness robs them of knowledge and rational belief at those future times.
(j) It is an irrational position which is anti-scientific, and which has to be battled, if we want to bring about intellectual revolution that is relevant to our time. I suggest that, this is a battle between natural sciences on the one hand, and historical, philosophical, theological, and social sciences, on the other hand. Nevertheless, we expect a rational engagement as we move forward.
(k) Specifically, we propose that. there is an urgent need for relevant Pontifical Academies to provide authoritative advice on disorders of sexual development to the Pope, Bishops and priests, most of whom are trained in the social sciences and lack proper intellectual formation in the sciences.
(l) The case of Father Sally Gross should serve as a case study to remind the Catholic Church on this urgency of now. The manner in which this scandal was handled by Pope John Paul II seriously damaged his intellectual image before the world.
(m) We understand that, a pontifical academy is an academic honorary society established by or under the direction of the Holy See. There are ten Pontifical academies headquartered at the Vatican in Rome. But, only four of them are needed to cooperate in the present matter. They are: The Pontifical Academy of Sciences; The Pontifical Academy of Theology; The Pontifical Academy for Life; The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.
(n) Specifically, "the Pontifical Academy of Sciences" is a scientific academy of the Vatican City, established in 1936. Its aims are to promote the progress of the mathematical, physical, and natural sciences and the study of related epistemological problems; ensuring that science works to advance of the human and moral dimension of man; fostering interaction between faith and reason and encouraging dialogue between science and spiritual, cultural, philosophical and religious values; and providing authoritative advice on scientific and technological matters to the Catholic Church.
VII. Summary
We started this study while squeezed between Tertulian and Clementian Walls, where:
According to Tertulian: “What indeed has Jerusalem to do with Athens, the Church with the Academy, the Christian with the heretic?… After Jesus we have no need of speculation, after the Gospel no need of research.”
And according to Clement: “Do not think that we say that these things are only to be received by faith, but also that they are to be asserted by reason. For indeed it is not safe to commit these things to bare faith without reason, since assuredly truth cannot be without reason.”
These are two antagonistic quotations from two great Church Fathers, who held opposing views concerning the relationship between revealed faith and philosophical reason.
Against this background, we conducted a desk research with a view of etermining "whether or not there is any scientific support for the condition of homosexuality." In order to make this determination, the following sub-questions were addressed, in a step by step fashion:
(1) Is the condition of normal sexual orientation scientifically supported?
(2) Is the condition of abnormal sexual orientation scientifically supported?
(3) Assuming affirmative answers to the above, does one's sexual orientation diminish their moral imputability in a way that warrants an "irregular situations" in the sexual sphere?
(4) Assuming affirmative answers to the above, how should we handle "irregular situations" arising from disorders of sexual development?
Finally, all the questions were answered in the affirmative, as the following section shows.
VIII. Discussiona and key conclusions
Our study questions were answered in the affirmative as follows:
(1) The condition of normal sexual orientation is scientifically supported
(2) The condition of abnormal sexual orientation scientifically supported
(3) Assuming affirmative answers to the above, one's sexual orientation diminish their moral imputability in a way that brings about "irregular situations" such as heterosexual adultery and homosexual fornication.
(4) Assuming these affirmative answers it follows that the "irregular situations" involving homosexual persons should be handled in the same way that we handle "irregular situations" involving heterosexual persons.
These conclusions confirm the fact that, faith and reason are like two wings of knowledge, which have to work together for the common good of humanity. And we think that, by addressing the challenge of irregular situations in today's world, Pope Francis is guided by this principle.
We think that, had the Vatican taken this approach, the Catholic Church could not have faced the "Father Sally Gross Scandal."
Father Sally Gross was born in South Africa in 1953, recognized by his parents as a boy, and baptized as a Catholic in 1976. He traveled to Botwana, Israel, and finally settled in England in 1981 when he joined seminary studies under the Dominican Fathers.
He was ordained in 1987, got a PhD from the University of Oxford and got a teaching position there.
Throughout his life he was aware of the intricacies of his genitals. So, in 1990 he decided to undergo a medical examination. Finally, in 1993 at the age of 40, he was told by doctors that he is neither a woman nor a man, but "intersexual."
For these reasons, Father Sally Gross was advised to undergo plastic surgery in order to have male genitalia, so as to comply with Church norms which bestow priesthood to men only. But he refused arguing that it would not be a righteous act.
Finally, Father Sally Gross was given a passport and a birth certificate with a female name, arguing that, when she was born, the nurses made a mistake in writing her gender. She chose the maiden name of Sally Gross (new female name) instead of Selwyn Gross (old male name).
And in 1994, Father Sally Gross was stripped of her priesthood because of the argument that women like her do not have the right to be priests in the Catholic Church.
He was expelled from the compound of priests. 'Father' Sally Gross now decided to move back to South Africa where she was born, and started a new life. She died in 2014 in South Africa.
Before her death, Father Sally Gross had already written extensively about the turmoil she experienced. She was told by his fellow priests that, since Genesis 1:27 says that God created only man and woman, the essential characteristic of being human is either being a woman or a man, but not the other way around.
Therefore, Father Sally Gross was told that, according to that criterion, he was not a human being. And he was told that, since baptism is for humans, then even his baptism was invalid, because he is not a human being.
Her baptism was invalidated was prevented from receiving Holy Communion because of that fact (Sally Gross 1999). All these upheavals befell Father Sally Gross during the reign of Pope John Paul II (1978-2005).
Fr. Sally Gross (South Africa)
In short, the history and story of Father Sally Gross shows well the challenges of sexual abuse that befall people with disorders of sexual development within the Catholic Church.
And for sure, the problem of Father Gross Sally, of South Africa, exists in Tanzania as well. The article by a journalist, one Florence Majani, of Mwananchi newspaper, "Nyanda Mtanzania with gender controversy," as published in the March 28, 2017 edition, is one of the evidences. Society has always stigmatized Nyanda.
Another evidence is that of a bisexual child who was reported through HabariLeo newspaper, December 2017 edition. At the Muhimbili hospital, he underwent an examination and surgery to turn him into a woman or a woman and not the other way around.
Also, in 2010, in Shinyanga, it was reported that a prisoner was sentenced to 30 years in prison. This one "confused" the prison officers after he was found to have both genders. The prison did not have a procedure to serve such prisoners.
With these few words, it is enough to say that, since for 400 years now, science has been working as a solvent that dissolves the kernels of superstitious and theological ideas that are against the reality of things, now is the time for the same science to stop discrimination against people with disorders of sexual disorders development within the Catholic Church and beyond.
IX. References
1. J. Dmitri Gallow (2017), Seminar Notes for Causality (Online).
2. Leon Speroff and Marc Fritz (2005), Clinical Gynecologic Endocrinology and Infertility, 8th Edition (Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins).
3. Elof Axel Carlson (2013), The 7 Sexes: Biology of Sex Determination (Bloomington: Indiana. University Press).
4. Todd A.Salzman and Michael G. Lawler(2008:49), The Sexual Person: Toward a Renewed Catholic Anthropology(Georgetown University Press).
5. Sherwood O. Cole(1997), "Biology, Homosexuality, and Moral Culpability," Bibliotheca Sacra 154:615.
6. Robert P. George (1999), "Nature, Morality and Homosexuality Get access Arrow," In Defense of Natural Law(Oxford Academic, Online Edition 2012)
7. Friedrich Vogel and Arno G. Motulsky (2009), Human Genetics: Problems and Approaches (Berlin, New York: Springer)
8. Saul Kripke (2011), Philosophical Troubles: Collected Papers, Vol I (Oxford: Oxford
University Press)
9. Robert Crooks and Karlar Baur(2014), entitled “Our Sexuality, 12th edition (Belmonte, USA: Wadsworth)
10. Sally Gross (1999), “Intersexuality and Scripture”, Theology and Sexuality 11:65-74
Prepared by:
Mama Amon
The CEO
Dawati la Utafiti la Mama Amon (DUMA)
SLP P/Bag
"Sumbawanga Town"
Sumbawanga
Tanzania
