The faithful attend the Angelus prayer led by Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican on Aug. 14, 2016. RNS Photo/courtesy of Max Rossi, Reuters

New Vatican manual warns that sex is not just for pleasure

By  Josephine McKenna, Religion News Service
  • August 26, 2016

VATICAN CITY – Sex should be focused on love, not egotism or pleasure, according to the Vatican.

The Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Family is sharing its latest views on sexuality in a manual titled “The Meeting Place,” which is aimed at young people and was presented at World Youth Day in Krakow in July.

According to Italian daily La Repubblica, the manual stresses that sexuality should be “ordered” and sexual relations should not be about individualism, hedonism or materialism.

“Autoeroticism or masturbation do not help people to leave themselves and move towards another,” the document says, according to La Repubblica. “Sexuality is not only for pleasure.”

The newspaper noted that premarital sex and casual sex are also unacceptable in the Vatican’s sex education guide, given to young people after the April release of Pope Francis’ exhortation on the family, “Amoris Laetitia” (“The Joy of Love”).

The manual “follows the line indicated by Pope Francis, where sex education is a part of a more comprehensive picture of education to love and mutual self-giving,” said Monsignor Carlos Simon Vazquez, undersecretary of the Vatican department, in a statement released at the time.

Films including “Batman” and “Superman” are referenced in the manual to illustrate the value of moral choices and righteousness, La Repubblica said.

Developed with the Spanish Bishops’ Conference, the guide is being promoted by the Vatican through multimedia, including YouTube, in five languages — English, Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese.

Please support The Catholic Register

Unlike many media companies, The Catholic Register has never charged readers for access to the news and information on our website. We want to keep our award-winning journalism as widely available as possible. But we need your help.

For more than 125 years, The Register has been a trusted source of faith-based journalism. By making even a small donation you help ensure our future as an important voice in the Catholic Church. If you support the mission of Catholic journalism, please donate today. Thank you.

DONATE