# Sex Disrespectful to God?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-disrespectful-to-god/125995>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [August 28, 2002, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-disrespectful-to-god/125995 "2002-08-28T21:53:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\
**Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-disrespectful-to-god/125995/41 "2002-08-30T06:42:01Z")

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RE a few observations on sex, sacredness, the Sabbath & the Torah clean/unclean rules-

Rabbinic opinion actually calls for married couples to enjoy sex as part of keeping the Sabbath holy.

Torah law considers one “unclean” after having sex (or experiencing many things have to do with the borders of life & death)- which only means inability to participate in Tabernacle/Temple worship, which also deals with the borders of life & death (for example, the death of the animal sacrifices to renew the life of the people). One’s personal “spilling of life” (whether in sex, menstruation, bodily secretion, etc.) in natural life exempted one from participating in the Congregational “spilling of life” in the Hebrew “Sacraments”. Btw, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen used this principle to defend priestly celibacy. I respect the man & his writings a great deal, tho I also totally disagree with him here as I believe that aspect of Torah law  
was superseded by Christ for Christians.

Now I better clarify something else- since a Catholic priest in daily consecrating the Sacraments, it is considered appropriate for Catholic priests to be continually abstinent. However, since the Torah Priests took turns serving in the Tabernacle/Temple & performing sacrifices, they were allowed to be married & sexually active on their days off  
(encouraged to do so actually, as the Priesthood was transmitted on family descent).

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**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2002, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-disrespectful-to-god/125995/42 "2002-08-31T01:21:41Z")

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This thread reminds me of a little sketch on SCTV:

“Tonight’s topic is _Sex and the Church_. Our first question is, Should sex be practiced in the church? Well, no. Of course not. They might kick you out.”

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