The word ‘chastity’, at first sight, may seem intimidating, something to be dismissed out of hand. It is, however, something very different to celibacy.
At a time when religion is in decline in the Western world and when it often seems that the senses have run riot, Erik Varden shows that chastity, the single minded direction of the senses, is a loveable quality and one that affects and beautifies humankind.
The terms sexuality and wholeness indicate that to be sexual is to exist in a state of incompleteness longing to be restored. Wholeness points to a healing embrace that we desire so greatly. In Biblical language, chastity is a function of simplicity of sight. We are no longer torn apart by our passions and our desires, indeed they may reach their fulfilment. Body and spirit, male and female, order and disorder, passion and death can move from creative tension to a new kind of wholeness.
Varden’s text is enriched by a wide range of references to scripture, literature, music, painting and sculpture.
Les mer
1. List of Illustrations
2. Norma’s Question
3. What a Human Being Is
Created ‘in the Image’
You Are What You Wear
Life Outside Eden
4. Tensions
Body and Soul
Male and Female
Order and Disorder
Eros and Death
Marriage and Virginity
Freedom and Ascesis
5. Negotiating Passion
The Call to Perfection
Rest in Unrest
To See Clearly
6. Contemplative Life
7. Notes
Les mer
At a time when religion is in decline in the Western world and when it often seems that the senses have run riot, Erik Varden shows that chastity, the single minded direction of the senses, is a loveable quality and one that affects and beautifies humankind.
Les mer
Varden's first book The Shattering of Loneliness has been a critical and commercial success.
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9781399411417
Publisert
2023-10-12
Utgiver
Vendor
Bloomsbury Continuum
Høyde
216 mm
Bredde
135 mm
Aldersnivå
G, 01
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Heftet
Antall sider
176
Forfatter