Science of the Theology of the Body

SCIENCE OF THE THEOLOGY OF THE BODY

Ian MaxfieldThe Catholic Laboratory

www.catholiclab.net

http://www.catholiclab.net

http://www.catholiclab.net

SCIENCE OF THEOLOGY OF THE BODY

Why Science?

Let there be order

Attraction, fertility, sexual intercourse, pregnancy and child development

Chaos theory and practice

Pre-marital sex, same sex relationships & parenting, contraception, IVF, abortion, pornography, and more

Distill, Crystalize, Gel ... Conclude

WHY SCIENCE?

‘The Heavens declare the glory of God / The vault of heaven proclaim His handiwork’ (Ps 19:1-2)

‘The body in fact, and only the body, is capable of making visble what is invisible: the spiritual and the divine. It has been created to transfer into the visible reality of the world the mystery hidden from eternity in God, and thus to be a sign of it’ (TOB19:4)

Adequate anthropology

LET THERE BE ORDER

Rules of attraction and fertility

Sexual intercourse

Pregnancy

Birth and child development

LET THERE BE ORDER

RULES OF ATTRACTION AND FERTILITY

Hormones and the Fertility Cycle

Brain size changes in women

Dress and style changes in women

Sexual motivation is higher

Major HistoCompatible (MHC) complex

Even Lap Dancers earn more!

SEXUAL INTERCOURSE

Body Chemistry ...

Oxytocin - woman is drawn to man

Vasopressin - woman has sexual preference and protection

Bonding increases

LET THERE BE ORDER

SEXUAL INTERCOURSE

“Sexologists state that the curve in arousal in women is different from that in man - it rises more slowly and falls more

slowly. The man must take this difference between male and female reactions into account, not for hedonistic, but for

alturistic reasons. There exists a rhythm dictated by nature itself which both spouses must discover so that climax may be

reached both by the man and by the woman, and as far as possible occur in both simultaneously.”

Climax in both spouses maximises the chances of procreation.

LET THERE BE ORDER

PREGNANCY

Mothers

Obvious and not-so obvious changes

Cell exchange - fetal and maternal microchimerism

Reduced risk of breast cancer if pregnant before age of 20

Fathers

‘Couvade Syndrome’

Experience hormonal changes too

LET THERE BE ORDER

BIRTH & CHILD DEVELOPMENT

Mothers

Oxytocin again - three fold role: labour, milk let-down, assist uterine contractions following birth

Motherly affection benefits child development

MHC and microchimerism again - medical benefits to mother and child

Fathers

More hormonal changes leading to increased bonding and protection, and sometimes post-natal depression

Presence of Father in daughter’s development delays onset of menstruation

LET THERE BE ORDER

Hook ups, casual sex and co-habitation

Contraception

In Vitro Fertility treatments

Same sex relationships and parenting

Abortion

Pornography

CHAOS THEORY AND PRACTICE

HOOK UPS, CASUAL SEX, PRE-MARITAL SEX

Oxytocin & Vasopressin again

Impact on relationships

Performance anxiety amongst young men

Friends with benefits

Increased risk of STDs

Human Papillomavirus (HPV), Cervical cancer and vaccines


CONTRACEPTION

History of Contraception - The Bible, Fathers of the Church, Lambeth Council and Margaret Sanger

Interferes with attraction - impact on MHC

Lowers immune system

Impact on demographics

Does contraception add up?

Environmental impacts - strain on ecosystems


IN VITRO FERTILITY TREATMENTS - IVF

Increased risk of diseases passed on to child

Imprinting disorders - modifying DNA

Low birth weight, cerebral palsey, birth defects, certain types of cancer

Increased risk of infertility passed on to child

‘Vanishing Twin’ Syndrome

‘Survivor’ Syndrome


FERTILITY TREATMENTS - IVF

At any cost, as long as child has positive NPV (Net profit value)

ALTERNATIVES

Egg and Sperm donation - unknown siblings

Surrogate mothers - microchimerism again


SAME SEX RELATIONSHIPS

Hard to generalise affects of same sex relationships

Male to male, female to female, and bi-sexual

Health implications

Men - anal cancer, hemorrhoids, lesions, hepatitus, variety of STDs

Women - risks practically same as casual heterosexual intercourse

No ‘Gay gene’

‘Respect, compassion and sensitvity’ (CCC 2358)


SAME SEX PARENTING

Studies conclude children of same sex parent fair just as well as children of opposity sex parents, but ...

There are problems - small sample size, few random samples, control groups from different populations, few objective questions, etc

Controlling for factors suggest children of same sex parents fair worse, but more research is needed.

Many routes to become a child of a same sex couple that need to be controlled for.


ABORTION

Human life begins at conception - scientific fact!

Medical and psychological consequences

Microchimerism again and again

No guarantee of future children

Fathers suffer too


PORNOGRAPHY

2.8% of time average UK internet user views a news website. 2.7% of time average UK internet user views adult websites (source: UKOM)

Addictive qualities - a triple hook

Dopamine pleasure and reward system

Feedback effect on frontal lobe development

Oxytocin and Vasopressin (bonding chemical) misuse

Turning women into objects

Impact on demographics


CONCLUSION

An adequate anthropology

Anthropoligist JD Unwin’s secular study of 86 cultures spanning 5,000 years

Cultures that practiced strict monogamy in marital bonds exhibited social energy, and reached the zenith of production


CONCLUSION

Adopt a Sacramental, Catholic, Human and Liturgical world-view

‘Grace does not cancel out nature’

We need scientists

Science supports The Theology of the Body but test it for yourselves (cf 1 Thess 5:21)


Thank You

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Spiritual

Science of the Theology of the Body