Monday, July 24, 2006

More Sex

It is known that the truly sensitive, and artistic, Greeks held women in great awe, honor, esteem, and respect. Arguably, some even worshipped the feminine. A Goddess is a wonderful alternative, after all, to a god. Early Christians worshipped a goddess named Sophia, and, of course, the Catholic Church has a strong tradition of Marialotry. That might be one of its redeeming qualities. Greek culture was so much more cultured and refined, in many ways, than modern people. Certainly, the goddesses contributed a warmth and humanness to their theology that is totally absent, imho, in a writer such as Augustine.

Of course, sex is largely biology. I have no objection to this; who could? But it has the human potential to be so much more-- to represent and symbolize the sacred, the deepest yearnings and highest aspirations. I believe that it is a degradation of a very high opportunity when people reduce sex to biosex. Of course, it is fun. Nature wanted us to keep "doing it." she made damn' sure that we would! And there is nothing wrong with the great joy that can come from playful and fun sex! But I object to using sex, or dismissing it, as biosex only. This is like using a fine and expensive sculpture for a coatrack. Or, it is like using a computer to type only fourletter expletives all day long, page after page. Or, it is like carelessly handling a fine diamond, so that you crack it, ruining its value and beauty.

Sex is a delightful and wonderful gift of nature, or God, or, Goddess, through nature.

Some of the early cultures had it right when they viewed sex as something to celebrate. But they went far too far in their orgies and total disrespect for women and for sex. For there is a galaxy of difference between Lovemaking and mere "f+++ing." And the distinction is in the attitude. Sex can be art, spirituality, Love, splendor, celebration,joy, sharing, communion, passion-- or, it can be mere "rutting." Since we cannot be totally reduced to "animals," in that word's most perjorative sense, it is a mistake to reduce sex to mere biosex, when it is more fun, and much richer, as both psychosex and pneumosex.

I wrote, "If sex becomes a mere toy, a plaything, and loses its seriousness, it can degenerate into a game of Monopoly, or just some other snore and yawn."

I cannot imagine anything more boring than a god who never plays. The god of mysticism is not the hyperanal Jehovah, who obviously hated sex from the beginning-- even though he, ostensibly, was its creator. It is because of the perceived antisexuality of the god that our culture has used sex so cynically; it has demoralized sex. Sex should be the ideal combination of joy and worship. No, it is not being implied that a couple should grimly pray before sex, or even formally address God at all. the "prayer" is the sex itself, if it comes from Love.

Imho, it is a tragedy that our culture has so thoroughly dissociated sex from Love. This is the real catastrophe, the real abuse. We have abandoned the nobility of fine sex, its elegance and refinement. That is why we have sex without Love, which is mere rape, and why we have the proliferation of pornography, including kiddie-porn. If we could readjust our society to a healthy and respectful view of sex, some of these problems would have much less impact.

Seeing sex as a form of worship could have this salutory effect on what would otherwise be only salacious. We could lift sex out of the "mire of animalism," and return it to Love, where it belongs. (There is nothing wrong with "animalsex," but if sex is reduced to only that, it is stripped of its rich poetic and spiritual heritage, and Love is torn away.

If you hold the same superhigh standards for "performance," for example, it acts against the perfect relaxation that should usually accompany good sensuality.

It is not being suggested that there is one "kind" of sexual experience that is set in concrete as some kind of ideal. Each person must enjoy sex according to her/his own capacities and preferences. My objection is not to the fact that sex comes in many valid varieties, but that sex has been degraded by the deletion of Love.
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