Fall 2001

Volume 6, Issue 2

Blame It On Aristotle

by the Reverend Stephen J. Mather

People of faith often assume that their "bibles", the Hebrew or Christian scriptures, are the source of the self-evident truths that guide their lives. But, at least with regard to sex and the role of the sexes, Western civilization is indebted to or, more accurately, has been enslaved by the ideas of Aristotle and the Neo-Platonists. These are the folks who believed in a radical dualism, or a polarity between the spiritual and material realms that translated into a deep suspicion of anything sexual and physical. They viewed each person's immortal spirit as a temporary prisoner in a mortal, corrupt body that could only lead it astray.

Tragically, it was Aristotle's and not Plato's influence that survived and went on to influence early Christianity. Aristotle viewed women as imperfect males, with nothing to contribute to procreation except to be the "incubus" for the male sperm. A woman was fit, by her very nature, to be only the submissive partner to the male, taking direction from him and responding to his perfect knowledge. She was matter, associated with the lowest elements, and therefore her opinions had little value. The male, on the other hand, became identified with the properties of form, with activity, and with the higher elements.

The thinkers who shaped early Christian thinking denied their physical bodies.  "The famous gesture of Adam covering his genitals with a fig leaf is, according to Augustine, not due to the simple fact that Adam was ashamed of their presence, but to the fact that his sexual organs were moving by themselves without his consent. Sex in erection is the image of man revolting against God." In these words the French philosopher Michel Foucault captures much of the accepted Christian legacy about sexuality, particularly as that tradition has reflected the male experience: sexuality equals genital sex, and genital sex is intrinsically uncontrollable and antithetical to authentic spirituality.

Augustine made any number of brilliant contributions to the development of early Christian theology. However, the fact that he accepted uncritically so much of Aristotelian thinking is responsible for much of the fear about sex that haunts the current debate over reproductive freedom and sexuality education and is too often expressed outside Planned Parenthood clinic doors.

We may say thank you to Augustine and Aristotle for their monumental contributions to Western civilization, but we also need to say, here, we part ways.

Many observers, including Paul Ricoeur, the French philosopher, now believe that we are ready to move into a new stage where there is a true synthesis of the body and spirit. No longer will matter or the senses be viewed as a distraction; rather, the physical self, beginning with sexuality, will be welcomed, not as the whole of our personhood, but as one basic dimension of it. Even religious denominations traditionally wedded to Greek philosophical presumptions are now affirming sexuality as part of God's design for people to find their authentic humanity, not in isolation, but in relationship to each other. Even they recognize that we are embodied creatures with emotional, physical, and spiritual needs for intimate communion.

The Aristotelian legacy will not be easy to lay aside. The replacement of a sin-redemption model with a creation spirituality will take a long time. And the struggle? Well, that is easy to see in front of family planning clinics, where the two worlds collide every day.

The sexual dualism affirmed by the protesters is easy to recognize. Sex outside of marriage is sin. Sex inside marriage is mainly for procreation. They insist on punishment for the violation of these standards. In their view, abortion offers an easy escape from the consequences of actions that they believe defy God's will. The value of sex as a form of mutual pleasure that brings people closer together is lost on them. Such is the hold of Aristotle, Augustine, and later of St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Bonaventure who, influenced by Aristotle, shaped the basic tenets of later Christian theology.

The persistence of these ancient ideas, at least in America, explains much of the resistance to the Planned Parenthood agenda. We seek nothing less than a revolution as far-reaching as that brought by Copernicus, Galileo, Darwin, and the granting of women's suffrage. We seek new roles for men and women; new ways to exercise and share power and decision making. We seek a new view of human sexuality that, in the words of Goal One of the Planned Parenthood Vision for 2025, "will ensure that sexuality is understood as a lifelong aspect of being human and that it is celebrated with respect, openness, and mutuality."

To some, Planned Parenthood represents forces that are diametrically inimical to their values. Others see this organization as the catalyst for changes that are long overdue, beginning with Margaret Sanger's campaign to provide basic fertility information to women, and culminating with the 1965 Griswold and 1973 Roe decisions by the Supreme Court. The legalization of birth control and abortion services demonstrates how the influence of Aristotle and Augustine has begun to decline. This is good news to those who embrace a creation spirituality, and a tragedy for those who believe that these ancient writers bequeathed us an eternal truth.

We must remember that the quest to "seek justice, and live" is never easy, particularly for those squaring off against each other in the "coliseum of ideas," where the stakes are nothing less than the way in which we are to live our lives

Rev. Mather is a member of the PPFA Clergy Advisory Board. This article is taken from a longer paper titled, "It's About Sex and Power . . . and Maybe Politics and Religion, Too."

Clergy "Firsts" At The PPFA Annual Conference

Rev. Tom Davis presided over the first interfaith prayer breakfast at a PPFA annual conference in Dallas, TX in March. Members of the PPFA Clergy Advisory Board and affiliate clergy participated, and PPFA President Gloria Feldt introduced the featured speaker, the Rev. Dr. J. Philip Wogaman.

The senior minister of Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington, DC, Dr. Wogaman is perhaps best known as the pastor of the church that President and Mrs. Clinton attended and as one of three clergy who gave Bill Clinton the benefit of his counsel during the Monica Lewinsky episode. But Planned Parenthood also knows and honors him for his outspoken support of reproductive freedom and for a host of other causes, including the rights of gays and lesbians, ending racism in his Church, outlawing the death penalty, and securing a more equitable distribution of the world's wealth.

In his talk, "For the Love of Life," Dr. Wogaman urged that if we are to be responsible parents, then we must acknowledge that God did not create us with limitless potential to do that most important of all jobs and that we also have an obligation to conserve the resources of the world in which we live for the benefit of those who come after us. He also noted that, for the most part, the fanatics who assail Planned Parenthood are people who are spiritually bereft and who, ironically, doubt the meaning and the value of their own lives. Finally, he encouraged people of faith who support reproductive freedom to express that support loudly and often, lest they allow the extremist members of the religious community to define them and what they are to believe.

In another first, the PPFA Clergy Project provided a subsidy to help affiliates send clergy who occupy leadership positions to the annual conference. These clergy enjoyed meeting each other. They also made wonderful contributions to the lively discussion at the meeting of the Clergy Advisory Board, where they discussed a paper, The Morality of Abortion, by Rev. Mark Bigelow. In the paper, he discusses his experiences visiting his local affiliate clinic and how he saw for himself that women facing abortions make their decisions with great care and with concern not only for themselves, but also for the health and security of their families. He will be returning to the clinic as a volunteer counselor. (A revised version of Rev. Bigelow's paper can be obtained by calling 212-261-4721. It is slated for publication later this year or early next.)

Clergy also received a briefing on the Bush administration's faith-based initiative, and they discussed in detail the issues involved in developing a clergy statement on comprehensive sexuality. (See this article for resulting statement.)

In yet another annual conference first, Planned Parenthood of North Texas (PPNT) sponsored a symposium, "Balancing Technology, Sexuality and Spirituality," especially for clergy. Kathryn Allen, affiliate vice president of public affairs, worked with members of the PPNT clergy committee to put together a fascinating program, featuring a rousing keynote speech from Debra Haffner, the former president of the Sexuality Information and Education Counsel of the United States and currently a student at the Union Theological Seminary of New York. The five roundtable topics included one on the impact of technology on attitudes toward abortion, one on the bioethics of reproduction, and one on sex and religion. They provided an excellent introduction to some of the issues discussed later in the annual conference at workshops designed to begin the process of realizing the various goals of Vision 2025. The symposium, which was held prior to the opening of the annual conference, got us off to a great start.

More Affiliates Explore Partnerships With Religious Institutions

Four years ago, PPMW got a grant to spread the good word about its partnership program to other Planned Parenthood affiliates, and Planned Parenthood of Georgia (PPG) became the first replication site. Today that program is flourishing, as PPG has established relationships with 25 churches.

Last year, thanks to a generous grant from the Planned Parenthood Foundation Board of Trustees, the PPFA Clergy Project teamed up with PPMW to spread the good word to even more affiliates. After completing a manual on starting and operating a program, staff from PPMW worked with PPFA to organize a training for seven affiliates whose CEOs had expressed a strong interest in making the commitment necessary to undertake partnerships with religious institutions in their communities. These affiliates had already established a connection with at least one religious organization, and several had programs that were already underway.

Stacey Little-Pyfrom, PPMW director of education, Kimberly Buck, PPMW church partnership coordinator, Elisha Reed, PPG director of education, and Cynthia Marshall, PPG church partnership coordinator, conducted most of the training and were extraordinarily effective. Rev. Larry Greenfield also participated. He is a consultant helping Planned Parenthood/Chicago Area work through religious institutions in underserved areas in an effort to train parents to become the sexuality educators for their children. In addition, attendees heard from clergy participants in the partnership program, the teens themselves, and the executive director of a foundation that has a keen interest in the partnership program and who has provided seed money to several affiliate programs.

Jatrice Gaiter Martel, PPMW president and CEO, ended the program with a presentation on the role of the CEO in founding and maintaining a partnership program with religious institutions. She pointed out that as the "CEO" of a church, mosque, or synagogue a pastor, imam, or rabbi would expect and should receive visits from the Planned Parenthood CEO and the educator or partnership coordinator during the start-up phase of a partnership program. She also warned about the growing anti-choice sentiment in the black Protestant community and made concrete suggestions about contacting those groups that could be helpful in meeting this opposition.

Another training is planned for next spring, and several affiliates have already expressed interest. If your affiliate would like to attend, please call 212-261-4721.

The 1996 welfare legislation supported expenditures of nearly $500 million in state and local funds for abstinence-only education between 1997 and 2002, in addition to the funds provided under other federal legislation.

We, the undersigned, are clergy and lay religious leaders who represent diverse religious traditions and come from all walks of life. We believe that an individual's sexuality must be affirmed as an essential dimension of being human. Concerned about the sexual health of our country, we strongly support the bold and courageous recommendations of the "Surgeon General's Call to Action to Promote Sexual Health and Responsible Sexual Behavior" for more knowledge, more services, and more open discussion.

Accordingly, we call on our elected leaders to ensure that our young people receive medically accurate and balanced sexuality education.

Speak the Truth

As clergy, we have a responsibility to remind our congregations, our communities, and our elected leaders that both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, as well as the teachings of other religious faiths, view the body and the physical world as a sacred arena in which God acts. Did not God bless human beings with the opportunity to bear children as a singular sign not only of the sacredness of life but also as a sign of their capacity for sexual intimacy?

Yet we treat human sexuality as inherently dangerous and off-limits for discussion. Discomfort with their own sexuality inhibits many parents from talking with their children about this most natural part of life. A lack of information and understanding about sexuality also contributes to painful discrimination against sexual minorities.

Our sexuality is God given, and so, too, is the command that we instruct our children so that they will gain understanding and the ability to make wise choices.

Fund Programs That Work

The current debate over sexuality education in the nation's public schools is one more example of how theological abstraction and moral absolutes have been permitted to substitute for common sense and compassion, not to mention the lessons that medicine and science can teach us.

For the sake of our young people, we urge our elected leaders not to ignore the expert findings that there is no reliable, scientific evidence to demonstrate that abstinence-only sexuality education works, while there is substantial evidence to show that comprehensive sexuality education has been successful in preventing teen pregnancy.1

Substituting dicta for instruction stifles the kind of open discussion that fosters the development of healthy and responsible attitudes toward our God-given gift of sexuality.

As community leaders who care about the well being of young people, we, like a substantial majority of Americans, encourage teens to abstain from sexual intercourse. But, like a substantial majority of Americans, we also recognize that many will not.²

Giving young people complete information does not influence them to engage in sexual activity any earlier — that's what the research shows.³ How can we, in all good conscience, deny young people knowledge that would protect them from becoming parents before they are ready to have children and would also protect them from either contracting or spreading sexually transmitted infections?

Don't Discriminate

Finally, we believe that public funding that supports only abstinence-only education discriminates against the religious denominations that support comprehensive sexuality education. Twelve denominations favor curriculums that discuss abstinence as one option and include information about all aspects of human sexuality, with the objective of developing sexually healthy adults who can make responsible choices about their reproductive lives.⁴

Many faith traditions teach that children must be treated, with due allowance for their ages, as responsible persons who can make critical decisions about their lives. Each child has a conscience. Each can be taught to become a reasoning and reasonable person. Each must be taught about human sexuality, so that each can make informed and responsible choices about his or her sexual life, including the choice to remain abstinent. As an integral part of this process, our young people have a right to the best information possible. We pledge to dedicate ourselves to ensuring that they receive nothing less.

¹ See Kirby,Douglas Emerging Answers (Washington: The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, 2001).
² Darroch, Jacqueline, et. al., "Changing Emphasis on Sexuality Education in U.S. Public Secondary Schools." Family Planning Perspectives 32(5): 204, 205 (2000).
³ See Kirby, op. cit.
⁴ Haffner, Debra, A Time to Speak: Faith Communities and Sexuality Education (N.Y.: SIECUS, 1998).

PPFA Political Academy Gets a Theology Lesson

A crowd of more than 250 gave Dr. Daniel Maguire, a member of the PPFA Clergy Advisory Board and president of the Religious Consultation on Population, Reproductive Health and Ethics, not one but two standing ovations when he spoke about his new book, Sacred Choices: The Right to Contraception and Abortion in Ten World Religions, at the annual PPFA Political Academy in July. It was no wonder, in view of the message he brought us and the charm and wit with which he delivered it.

What his book does is to prove that 10 world religions, even Catholicism, contain a "pro-choice" position alongside the "no-choice" position. The evidence is compelling. Accordingly, Dr. Maguire makes a powerful case, from a religious perspective, for the rights of individuals to make their own decisions about their reproductive lives and the importance to the health of our society that we have access to the tools and information necessary to help us make responsible decisions, not only for ourselves, but with due regard for the needs of our families and of the larger community in which we live.

The book is only one part of the broader Sacred Choices Initiative, which aims to do nothing less than change the international discourse on family planning and open the way to a more informed and humane stance on women's rights within a religious context. The initiative also includes a one-hour documentary film that will be available next year; a series of symposiums in Egypt and Chile, beginning in 2002; and a Web site www.sacredchoices.org.

PPFA Clergy Advisory Board member Rev. Mark Bigelow and Rev. Joanne Sizoo, a member of the board of Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky, shared their reactions to Sacred Choices from their perspectives as members of the clergy and long-time supporters of Planned Parenthood. (They also led a subsequent workshop on winning clergy support for Planned Parenthood that drew more than 40 public affairs officers.)

Rev. Sizoo stated her reaction to Sacred Choices in one word — "Whoopee!!!!" She then went on to talk about her experiences counseling women who have had abortions and shared a letter written by a woman who had had an abortion and had felt alienated from her faith.Rev. Bigelow spoke about his efforts to found an interfaith group on Long Island and the job of building bridges in an area that has become ethnically, culturally, and religiously diverse.

PPFA Clergy Advisory Board Members Hit The Road

Rev. Donna Morton traveled south to Planned Parenthood of Middle and East Tennessee in Memphis, at the invitation of Rev. Dan Rosemergy, a board member of the affiliate, to address a luncheon meeting designed to launch the affiliate's clergy group. The clergy learned about the broad range of services that the affiliate provides for the benefit of the community and how they could support Planned Parenthood. As a result they plan to be come more involved in affiliate councils and committees, as advocates in the public arena, as a source of information about Planned Parenthood services, and as actual users of our educational programs in area congregations.

In June, Rev. Mark Bigelow participated in a briefing for the staff of members of the U.S. House of Representatives who belong to the Congressional Pro-Choice caucus. The purpose of the briefing was to demonstrate that many denominations and many people of faith, contrary to the claim of religious political extremists, support reproductive rights. There was standing room only, and the questions made it clear that when pro-choice clergy stand up and speak out, politicians will pay attention.

Dr. Dan Maguire returned to Washington, DC in September. Having heard him at the Political Academy (see above), a staff member of the co-chair of the Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus, made sure that he was invited to address the caucus and just as soon after the August recess as possible. The Planned Parenthood family is also keeping Dr. Maguire on the road. He will speak at the Western Region meeting in Los Angeles, the annual meeting of Planned Parenthood of Rhode Island in Providence, and at the annual "Religious Roots of Reproductive Freedom " event in Denver, for which Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains is a co-sponsor. [Dr. Maguire returned home safely.]

"Justice, Justice Shall You Pursue"

By Rabbi Cheryl Jacobs

Ed. Note: Rabbi Cheryl Jacobs is the vice president, public affairs, Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic, NY. When asked why she, a Conservative rabbi, works for Planned Parenthood, she replies, "How can clergy not work for Planned Parenthood?" Below is the final section of her article, "Justice, Justice Shall You Pursue," which appeared in the Winter issue of The Reconstructionist Journal. In the article, Rabbi Jacobs describes her unusual journey from the Jewish Theological Seminary to Planned Parenthood.

In truth, what I, as a rabbi, along with the other staff and volunteers at Planned Parenthood, do are the mitzvot (commandments) of pekuach nefesh (preserving life) and gemilut hasadim (deeds of lovingkindness). We empower women who feel they are voiceless, and we preserve and improve the quality of life for all of our clients. We preserve and protect life through prenatal care and by educating women and families about their sexuality so that they will not find themselves victims of disease or pregnant when they are not ready to become parents. We provide information about birth control, and we offer a full range of reproductive health services to more than 2.5 million women and men annually. We discuss adoption, foster care, and abstinence, all the while helping our clients make rational, well-informed decisions about their own bodies and their own lives. Reproductive health care and the decisions that women and couples make about their own bodies should be a right that cannot be questioned by anyone other than those involved.

In the religious world, sexuality is often referred to as an "evil inclination" with dangerous and corruptible powers. However, Ramban, in the Iggeret Hakodesh taught, "Neither sexual organs nor sexual intercourse are obscene, for how could God create something that contains an obscenity? God created man and woman, and all their organs and their functions, with nothing obscene in them." Judaism teaches that each person has been created b'tzelem Elohim, in the image of God and thus, God expects us to be holy. Holiness is not something that is unattainable, reserved for those who live the best of lives. Holiness is something that we grasp every day by making choices that revere and honor our lives. Therefore, every person should have the absolute right to make decisions for herself/himself concerning the care for, use of, and enjoyment of their own bodies.

I am a rabbi, and the work that I do is holy work. My congregation is comprised of the women, children and families who depend on the services of Planned Parenthood. . . .

I, in my position, advocate for each of my "congregants" to take care of their bodies and to use their voices to make decisions for and about themselves. I encourage each of my congregants to care for themselves because each of them was created in the image of God. I do this because my tradition has taught me so. I do this because I have an obligation to share what I have been taught. I do this because I am a rabbi.

Religious Support For Responsible Choices

PPFA recently took a booth at the quadrennial combined conference of the United Church Christ and the Disciples of Christ in Kansas City, MO. This is part of the continuing effort to educate clergy about Planned Parenthood services that can benefit their congregations and to encourage them and lay religious leaders to join the Responsible Choices Action Network (RCAN). (See below for information about the agenda and learn how you can sign up.)

Thanks to Terri Sherron of Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri and the wonderful volunteers who answered her call to help staff the PPFA booth, more than 275 clergy and lay religious leaders learned about Planned Parenthood educational and medical services and picked up our material.In addition, Revs. Allen Fluent, David Helseth, Todd Hensley-Weir, Dan Rosemergy, Judith Stempel, and Jessica Vazquez, who attended the conference and who are all members of the PPFA Pro-Choice Religious Network, encouraged their colleagues and friends to visit the booth and lend their support, as well.

The Responsible Choices Action Agenda
The Responsible Choices Action Agenda is a forward-looking, proactive advocacy and service initiative to expand and secure reproductive health and rights. It seeks to increase the services that prevent unintended pregnancy, improve the quality of reproductive health care, and ensure access to abortion. To realize these goals, PPFA created the Responsible Choices Action Network. Members of the network have the opportunity to send their representatives in Congress a free fax by simply responding to PPFA e-mail action alerts about upcoming legislation or some other action related to reproductive health issues and sexuality education, but only if they choose to do so.