How does the Pope feel about alternate forms of sexual gratification?

If the Pope is opposed to anal sex and condom use because both prevent the making of babies, what is his stance on handjobs and blowjobs?

If he’s also opposed to those things, at what point are non baby-making activities acceptable? Is heavy petting allowed?

The general answer is “No” to all of the above. Any non-generative sexual activity between people who are not married in the eyes of the Church is sinful.

So what activities are allowed between people who are married?

Vaginal intercourse, missionary position. And even that is frowned on.

In what part of the Bible is this stated? The Book of (Sexual) Acts?

Who said anything about the bible? you asked about the pope. Here is an article from Americancatholic.com that talks about the Human Sexuality document written by a group of bishops to explain the churches stand. Essentially, sex is only for married couples and must have the potential for conception.

I was making a bit of a joke with the missionary position bit. :wink:

It might be worth someone’s time to review JP2’s Theology of the Body, a document I have not read but which Catholic scholars of my acquaintance have called the most remarkable piece of theology by a Pope in several centuries. From what I understand, he addresses what Catholic teaching on the issue of sex ought to be, among many other things, in that document.

So does that mean you’re not supposed to have sex if you know the woman is pregnant or if she is incapable of having children (no uterus or whatever)?

Personal experience here, although not directly from the mouth of the Pope to my ears. My priest at my local church has actually promoted sex between couples for actual strengthening of the marriage. Although he does not go in details, he has spoken about many things, including ‘quickies’ when the kids are sleeping.

Not sure what the Pope would have to say about that.

And couples where the woman has reached menopause are doomed to Hell if they have sex too…

No problem, unless she had her uterus removed specifically to stop procreation. It’s a matter of intended and unintended consequences. So schtupping your wife after menopause is just fine.

What about masturbation?

Every time you masturbate, God kills a kitten.

Remember, Lust = Bad.

Yeah. If God had wanted people to feel sexual desire, he would have created them with the capacity to feel sexual desire.

Oh, wait… :wink:

“Inherently disordered”

But desire= not bad. Lust is generally defined as the use of people for sexual gratification, as opposed to sex that is about self-giving for your spouse’s pleasure. That relates to the Church’s condemnation of pornography, which is based on porn’s inherent inability to be about two people sharing themselves with each other.
Sex in Catholic teaching has two purposes- the unitive (that which unites) and procreative (the act of creation). They are not, in Catholic teaching, separable. to circumvent either of them deliberately is sinful, by barrier methods or by

The Catholic teaching on hand jobs, oral etc. is that it is fine, but that the end result of sex has to be open to procreation i. e. penile orgasm in vagina. Whether or not the woman is currently fertile is immaterial.

That’s the basic doctrine.

Every time you misuse a semicolon, God kills kittens, too.

My understanding is that you can do anything you want, as long as it culminates in vaginal intercourse, so as not to avoid creating life. So, technically, none of the activities mentioned are “not allowed,” they are just not supposed to be a substitute for regular intercourse.

I should add that this is between married couples, of course…unmarried folks shouldn’t be doing anything! :slight_smile:

Misuse of a colon, though, is a mortal sin. See above: “inherently disordered.” :wink:

From what I have been to** Lisslald ** has stated it as succintly as possible.

The problem is that the Catholic Church (the Pope) has never been able to deal with the problem of “wet dreams”. They can’t condemn them because they are outside of one’s control but, on the other hand, they are the product of lustful thoughts and the desire of other prohibited activities. Such a conundrum . . .

. . . and that’s why it’s all a bunch of BS. It’s a problem when your prohibitions start crashing into each other.

Screw it!