The Vatican and homosexuality : reactions to the "Letter to the bishops of the Catholic Church on the pastoral care of homosexual persons" /

This book hopes ". . .to be a contribution to the lively debate about homosexuality. . .taking place in Catholic circles. . .," and it succeeds. The book contains a helpful introduction and 25 essays on the October 1986 Vatican Letter on the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons. These essays include one episcopal interpreter (Quinn), one apologist (Ashley), two sympathetic critics (Hebblethwaite and Pollack), and 21 outright critics of the Letter. (For a more balanced discussion of morality and homosexuality, one should see Homosexuality and Ethics, ed. by Edward Batchelor, CH, Nov '80.) The writers represent diverse fields, although theologians and those involved in ministry with lesbians and gays dominate, and all seem to be Catholic. Recurring themes include the meaning of homosexual orientation, the proper exercise of teaching authority in the Catholic Church, the worldview and methodology of the Letter, and the relationship between morality and gay rights legislation. Although this reviewer found a few of the essays rhetorical, most offer important insights into the debate. Nearly all of the essays are clearly written and for the general reader. Important antecedents of this unique work include John J. McNeil's The Church and the Homosexual (CH, May '77), and A Challenge to Love: Gay and Lesbian Catholics in the Church, ed. by Robert Nugent (CH, Sep '83). Especially suitable for Catholic college and university libraries. -J. M. Thompson, Saint Joseph College

Beginning with the 1986 Vatican letter to Catholic bishops that affirmed the church's traditional position on homosexuality, this collection of essays presents responses prompted by that document and by the controversial reception it received. Those reactions vary from disappointment and confusion to anger and frustration and are in general linked by negative rejoinders to the content and spirit of the church's message. In only a few instances are attempts made to defend the letter's positions and interpretation. Still, despite the opposing positions taken, a dialogue is established that allows catholicity to confront Catholicism, as it does in Jung and Shannon's Abortion and Catholicism (Booklist 84:1557 My 15 88). Notes; no index. JB. 259'.0880664 Homosexuality-Religious aspects-Catholic Church / Gays-Pastoral counseling of / Catholic Church-Doctrines [OCLC] 87-38094

ea.vol.: Crossroad Pub. Co., dist. by Harper. 1988. pap. $14.95. rel Ever since 1968, when Paul VI surprised his Church by reaffirming Rome's prohibition of contraception, American Catholic response to papal instructions on sexual ethics has been increasingly vociferous. Indication of that response is found in these two offerings from Crossroads. In The Vatican and Homosexuality , 25 Catholics respond to the ``Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons,'' released by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 1986 and reprinted here. Abortion and Catholicism begins with the Catholic bishops' ``Testimony in Support of the Hatch Amendment'' and ``A Traditional Catholic's View,'' by Thomas J. O'Donnell. These two contributions establish the context for the following 21 articles, collected from various published sources. The editors give women a ``privileged voice,'' as those on whom reproductive responsibility falls most heavily. Eleven articles are written by women, although cardinals (Cooke, O'Connor, and Ratzinger) and kings (Mario Cuomo) are represented as well. Highly recommended for their thorough coverage of two timely issues and their intelligent, articulate, and compassionate presentations; libraries with even a peripheral interest in these subjects will want both. Myriel Crowley Eykamp, Suffolk Univ., Boston (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.