Article: Genital Pain Vs. Genital Pleasure: Why The One And Not The
Other?
GENITAL PAIN VS. GENITAL
PLEASURE:
WHY THE ONE AND NOT THE
OTHER?
James W. Prescott, Ph.D.
Institute of Humanistic
Science
San Diego, CA
Published in The Truth Seeker, July/August 1989, pp.
14-21.
Male circumcision is not primarily a medical issue but
rather has its roots in deeply held religious beliefs and social customs
that defy rational and humane understanding.
Genital mutilations of both
males and females have been a common practice in many cultures and
have existed from the earliest days of recorded history. These
excruciating painful procedures have been inflicted upon newborns
and adolescents for a variety of reasons. Religious beliefs and
social-cultural customs, particularly "rites of passage
ceremonies" have been historically the primary reasons for both
male and female genital mutilations. Only recently has one form of
genital mutilation, male circumcision, come under a different rubric
of justification, i.e. modern medicine.
It is a major thesis of
this presentation that male circumcision is not primarily a medical
issue but rather has its roots in deeply held religious beliefs and
social customs that defy rational and humane understanding. The
devastating practices and consequences of female genital mutilation
that have been so well documented by Fran Hosken (see page 22 in this
conference report) provides a context for understanding the forces
of toleration and support for male genital mutilations, i.e.
circumcision. Why is it that certain elements of the medical
profession can offer support for male genital mutilation
(circumcision) but not female genital mutilation that is so
widespread in other cultures of the world?
And why have the medical
professions, until very recently, ignored and denied the
extraordinary and excruciating pain that the newborn experiences
when part of its skin (the foreskin) is shredded and cut from the
rest of its body?
This
indifference to human pain and suffering of the circumcised newborn
is not confined to the medical profession but is widespread
throughout many cultures, particularly where other forms of male and
female genital mutilations are practiced. In this psychologist's
opinion, all forms of genital mutilation that are inflicted upon
unconsenting children are de facto acts of torture
and mutilation which are in violation of Article 5 of
the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights
which states that "NO ONE SHALL BE SUBJECTED TO TORTURE OR TO
CRUEL, INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT".
This position statement has
been unanimously approved as a resolution by the General Assembly
of this Conference (see page 53).
It is my conviction that
the acts of newborn and adolescent torture and mutilation which
occurs in ritual male and female genital mutilations must be
understood within the broader context of human torture, mutilation
and violence against the human body which are pandemic throughout
the world. The key to understanding this pain and violence is to be
found in understanding its converse, i.e. pleasure and peace where
physical pleasures of the body, particularly sexual pleasures, are
considered inherently immoral by many fundamentalist/orthodox
religious traditions which they believe threatens the salvation of
the soul and society.
The key to understanding this pain and violence is to be
found in understanding its converse, i.e. pleasure and peace . . .
This understanding of the
reciprocal relationship between pain and pleasure; our tolerance and
support for the torture and mutilation of the human body and
intolerance for the physical pleasures of the body involves profound
issues of moral philosophy of good and evil; of the moral theology
of pain and pleasure; and how these moral value systems become
encoded in the developing human brain and thus, behaviors which
includes the social-moral values and ideologies of human culture. In
brief, it is my contention that the ultimate resolution of the
circumcision issue and other forms of male/female genital
mutilations will involve primarily the ethical, moral and
neuropsychological issues involved in torture and mutilation and
less in the presumptive medical and social benefits of genital
mutilations.
Before proceeding with a
summary of the religious, philosophical and scientific data in
support of this thesis, I would like, to comment very briefly on two
medical studies that purport to provide statistical medical evidence
for the practice of circumcision and which raises serious
ethical/moral issues when findings from presumptive pathological
groups are generalized to healthy groups to justify surgical
procedures on healthy groups in the guise of "preventive
medicine".
First, is the study of
Dr. William Cameron of the University of Manitoba where it was
reported in a sample of 292 men who had patronized prostitutes in
Nairobi, Kenya that 20% of uncircumcised men became infected with
the AIDS virus, whereas, only 3% of circumcised men became infected
with the AIDS virus. It was reported that 85% of the prostitutes
were infected with the AIDS virus. It was concluded that
circumcision offered a degree of prevention against the AIDS virus.
Assuming that circumcision
vs. non-circumcision, and not other variables, can account for this
difference, how can the grossly negligent and irresponsible sexual
behaviors and poor personal hygiene practices of OTHERS be used to
justify the genital and sexual mutilation of the INNOCENT? Another
example of the misuse of statistical inference from medical data is
provided by the studies of Dr. Thomas Wiswell.
In one of Dr. Wiswell's
studies where he evaluated the incidence of Urinary Tract Infections
(UTIs) in 422,238 boys born to Army families he found a ten-fold
increase in UTIs in uncircumcised vs. circumcised boys. The
incidence was 1.1% vs .11%, respectively, where one third of the
l.1% later developed serious medical complications. This finding of
1.1% and/or the .034% serious medical complications in uncircumcised
newborns is now being used to justify the routine genital
mutilations of 99% of healthy male newborns who do not develop UTIs.
Since female infants were found to have a 0.57% incidence of UTIs
which is 50% of the uncircumcised males (1.1%) it is clear that
there are other variables unrelated
p. 15, July/August 1989, The Truth Seeker
to circumcision that contribute to UTIs. I will leave to other
investigators the exploration of
these other uncontrolled variables that contribute to UTIs.
EARLY
SENSORY INFLUENCES UPON BRAIN DEVELOPMENT AND BEHAVIOR
There is a well established body of scientific data that documents
the role of sensory stimulation and deprivation upon brain development and
emotional-social, psychological and mental development. From the
perspective of the developmental neuropsychological sciences there can be
little question that the extraordinary pain experienced by newborns,
children and adolescents who are subjected to ritual genital mutilations
has a profound influence upon the brain and later behaviors. It is this
writer's conviction that the extraordinary pain and trauma experienced
through genital mutilations -- an organ and brain system that is designed
for the experience of sexual pleasure and the expression of sexual love --
has permanently altered normative brain development for the normal
expression of sexual pleasure and love. It is proposed that this
genital pain has long-term developmental consequences for the ability of
such individuals to differentiate pain from pleasure in love relationships
and to develop intimate sexual relationships.
It is not without
psychobiological consequence that the brain system which is designed
for the experience of pleasure and the expression of sexual love is
first encoded with extraordinary and excruciating pain. In such
individuals, all subsequent acts or experiences of genital pleasure
are experienced upon a background of genital pain that is now deeply
buried in the subconscious/unconscious brain.
It is this developmental
neuropsychologist's conviction that these early experiences of
genital pain contribute to the encoding of the brain that begins
the neurobiolgical foundation for sado-masochistic behaviors. The
brain system that has been designed for pleasure has first and
foremost become saturated or encoded with pain that now limits and
qualifies all subsequent experiences of pleasure. When these early
experiences of genital pain are followed by a developmental
deprivation of physical affectional pleasure in the maternal-infant
relationship and in the adolescent sexual relationship, then violent
destructive behaviors are the inevitable outcome.
Equally
significant is the prediction that the cumulative consequences of
these developmental experiences of genital pain and affectional
deprivation precludes the possibility of realizing the spiritual
dimensions of human sexuality. These relationships have been
discussed elsewhere and need not be repeated here. Suffice it to
note that it has been possible to predict with 100% accuracy the
torture, mutilation and killing of enemy captured in warfare in 49
primitive cultures from the two variables of deprivation of physical
affection in the maternal-infant relationship and in the adolescent
sexual relationship; and that brain dysfunction underlies those
violent behaviors induced by Somatosensory Affectional Deprivation
(Prescott, 1975, 1979, 1989; Heath, 1975). (See March/April issue of
The Truth Seeker)
Tables
I and II summarize the
social-behavioral characteristics of
primitive cultures that engage in male and female genital
mutilations. Tables III and IV
provide a similar summary for
those cultures that punish pre-marital sex and extra-marital sex.
Similarly, for Table V which characterizes
cultures that have
high gods. In general these cultures are patrilineal, subordinate
women to men, have low nurturance of children, are sexually
repressive, punish abortion, are violent and have a high god that
supports human morality.
In summary, the confounding
of pain and pleasure in the developing brain provides the
neuropsychological foundation for individuals who must experience
pain to experience pleasure, or who derive pleasure from the
experience of pain.
One
of the most recent studies that is particularly germane to this
thesis was reported by Jacobson, et. al in Acta psychiatr. scand.
(2987:76-364-371), entitled Perinatal Origin of Adult
Self-Destructive Behavior. The summary of this study is provided
by the abstract which reads as follows:
The study was undertaken to test whether obstetric procedures
are of importance for eventual adult behavior of the newborn, as
ecological data from the United States seem to indicate. Birth
record data were gathered for 412 forensic victims comprising
suicides, alcoholics and drug addicts born in Stockholm after 1940,
and who died there in 1978-1984. The births of the victims were
unevenly distributed among six hospitals. Comparison with 2,901
controls, and mutual comparison of categories, showed that suicides
involving asphyxiation were closely associated with asphyxia at
birth, suicides by violent mechanical means were associated with
mechanical birth trauma and drug addiction was associated with
opiate and/or barbiturate administration to mothers during labor.
Irrespective of the mechanism transferring the birth trauma to
adulthood -- which might be analogous to imprinting -- the results show
that obstetric procedures should be carefully evaluated and possibly
modified to prevent eventual self-destructive behavior.
Specifically,
the authors reported that a perinatal event of Asphyxia (a lack of
oxygen) carried a risk factor for suicides from hanging,
strangulation, drowning and gas poisoning that was five times
greater than for controls; for perinatal mechanical trauma, e.g.
breech presentations, forceps delivery and multiple nuchal loops,
the risk factor for suicides from hanging and other mechanical
injuries was twice as great as controls; for perinatal
events of opiate/barbituate use the risk factor for drug addiction
was approximately three times greater than the controls.
In an earlier study of 52
adolescent suicides, Salk., et. al., (1985) reported three
prenatal/perinatal risk factors that significantly discriminated the
suicide group from the two matched non-suicide control groups. These
were: 1) respiratory distress for more than one hour at birth; 2) no
antenatal care before 20 weeks of pregnancy; and 3) chronic disease
of the mother during pregnancy which were found in 81% of the
suicide cases. These authors were quite uncertain as to the
mechanisms by which prenatal/perinatal birth trauma were linked to
suicidal behaviors.
David Levy in a 1945 study
on the "Psychic Trauma of Operations In Children" reported
on three cases of male circumcision at ages 12 months (2 cases) and
at 6½ years. Psychological trauma included the development of
night terrors, temper tantrums and rage. In the 6½ year old
suicidal impulses developed. Levy reports:
"... a
circumcision at the age of 6 years 7 months, was preceded by a
struggle of the patient with his father and the anesthetist before
they overpowered him. Immediately after the anesthesia wore off, he
said over and over, "They cut my penis. I wish I were dead."
The rest of the day the patient never left his mother's side.
Thereafter his previous temper tantrums [continued on page 17]
p. 16, July/August 1989, The Truth Seeker
Tables
The % column reflects the percentage of cultures that share in common the
behaviors listed; the P column states the probability level of
statistical significance, e.g. a value of .003 means that the probability
that the behavioral relationships being compared could occur by chance is
3 times out of a thousand; and the N column indicates the number of
primitive cultures involved in the comparision of the paired behaviors.
| |
TABLE I
SOCIAL-BEHAVIORAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURES WHERE MALE GENITAL
MUTILATION IS PRESENT (N=83) VS BEING ABSENT (N=242)
|
| Social-Behavioral Characteristics |
Percent % |
Probability P |
N |
|
| Castes are present |
78 |
.0000 |
304 |
| Weaving by males |
78 |
.0000 |
100 |
| Games of strategy |
75 |
.0000 |
168 |
| Metal working is present |
71 |
.0000 |
238 |
| Exclusively patrilineal |
69 |
.0000 |
325 |
| Slavery is present |
65 |
.0000 |
314 |
| High bride price |
56 |
.0000 |
322 |
| Husbandry is present |
51 |
.0002 |
325 |
| High god supports human morality |
64 |
.0007 |
86 |
| High god is present |
54 |
.0009 |
257 |
| Class stratification is present |
56 |
.003 |
316 |
| Leather working by males |
65 |
.005 |
081 |
| Polygamous rather than monogamous |
60 |
.004 |
321 |
| High exhibitionistic dancing |
57 |
.03 |
82 |
| Totemism is present |
65 |
.04 |
26 |
| Early infant child satisfaction is low |
69 |
.06 |
35 |
| Longer post-partum sex taboo |
67 |
.06 |
124 |
| High oral socialization anxiety |
63 |
.06 |
48 |
| Exclusive mother-son sleeping -- 1 year |
67 |
.07 |
42 |
| High incidence of theft |
66 |
.06 |
35 |
| Patrilineal cultures |
58 |
.06 |
137 |
| High narcissism |
58 |
.08 |
86 |
| High god active |
55 |
.08 |
155 |
| Wife lending and exchange |
71 |
.09 |
28 |
| Infanticide is present |
63 |
.09 |
30 |
| |
TIME OF CIRCUMCISION: A) 1st & 2nd months: 4 cultures;
B) 2 months to 2 years: 4 cultures; C) 2 to 5 years: 7
cultures; D) 6 to 10 years: 23 cultures; E) 11 to 15 years:
21 cultures; F) 16-25 years: 7 cultures.
|
| |
| |
TABLE II
SOCIAL-BEHAVIORAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURES WHERE FEMALE INITIATION
RITES ARE PAINFUL (N=9) VS NOT BEING PAINFUL (N=29)
|
| Social-Behavioral Characteristics |
Percent % |
Probability P |
N |
|
| Male genital mutilation is present |
83 |
.006 |
36 |
| High bride price |
61 |
.01 |
38 |
| Cultures are exclusively patrilineal |
79 |
.02 |
38 |
| Segregation of adolescent boys |
75 |
.02 |
28 |
| Youth sex expression restricted |
80 |
.03 |
20 |
| High mother-child households |
78 |
.04 |
27 |
| High child anxiety over nurturant behavior |
91 |
.05 |
11 |
| Torture, mutilation & killing of enemy |
70 |
.07 |
20 |
| Incidence of theft is high |
85 |
.08 |
13 |
| Low infant protection from environment |
75 |
.08 |
13 |
| |
NOTE: Initiation rites mandatory for all girls between 8th &
20th years. Does not include betrothal or marriage customs. From:
R. B. Textor. A Cross-Cultural Summary. (1967) HRAF PRESS: New
Haven.
|
| |
| |
TABLE III
SOCIAL-BEHAVIORAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURES WHERE PREMARITAL SEX IS
STRONGLY PUNISHED
|
| Social-Behavioral Characteristics |
Percent % |
Probability P |
N |
|
| Community size is larger |
73 |
.0003 |
80 |
| Societal complexity is high |
87 |
.01 |
15 |
| Class stratification is present |
60 |
.01 |
111 |
| Slavery is present |
59 |
.005 |
176 |
| Low female income |
71 |
.09 |
24 |
| Personal crime is high (392) |
71 |
.05 |
28 |
| Incidence of theft is high (392) |
68 |
.07 |
31 |
| Kin group exclusively patrilineal |
62 |
.04 |
114 |
| Kin groups patrilineal or double descent rather than
matrilineal |
64 |
.002 |
62 |
| Small extended family |
70 |
.008 |
63 |
| Wives are purchased |
54 |
.02 |
114 |
| Women have property rights |
100 |
.008 |
9 |
| Longer post-partum sex taboo |
62 |
.03 |
50 |
| Extramarital sex is punished |
71 |
.005 |
58 |
| Sex disability is present |
83 |
.004 |
23 |
| Castration anxiety is high |
65 |
.009 |
37 |
| Bellicosity is extreme |
68 |
.04 |
37 |
| Killing, torturing and mutilating the enemy is high |
69 |
.07 |
35 |
| High god in human morality |
81 |
.01 |
27 |
| Narcissism is high |
66 |
.04 |
38 |
| Exhibitionistic dancing |
65 |
.04 |
66 |
|
| |
| |
TABLE IV
SOCIAL-BEHAVIORAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURES THAT PUNISH EXTRAMARITAL SEX
|
| Social-Behavioral Characteristics |
Percent % |
Probability P |
N |
|
| Slavery is present |
67 |
.002 |
83 |
| Personal crime is high |
80 |
.02 |
20 |
| Theft is high |
81 |
.008 |
21 |
| Abortion is highly punished |
76 |
.05 |
17 |
| Premarital sex is strongly punished |
71 |
.005 |
58 |
| Castration anxiety is high |
87 |
.0001 |
30 |
| Military glory is emphasized |
62 |
.002 |
53 |
| Bellicosity is extreme |
77 |
.002 |
43 |
| High killing, torture, mutilation |
78 |
.002 |
42 |
| Aggressive supernaturals |
79 |
.02 |
19 |
|
| |
| |
TABLE V
SOCIAL-BEHAVIORAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURES WHERE A HIGH GOD IS PRESENT
|
| Social-Behavioral Characteristics |
Percent % |
Probability P |
N |
|
| Caste system is present |
52 |
.0004 |
244 |
| Slavery is present |
60 |
.0002 |
251 |
| Patrilineal rather than matrilineal |
68 |
.0006 |
167 |
| Wives are purchased |
65 |
.0015 |
258 |
| High aggression socialization anxiety |
71 |
.01 |
45 |
| High infant pain by caretaker |
63 |
.08 |
57 |
| Early independence training |
69 |
.06 |
29 |
| Male genital mutilation present |
54 |
.0009 |
257 |
| Premarital sex strongly punished |
59 |
.05 |
149 |
|
| |
p. 17, July/August 1989, The Truth
Seeker
developed into destructive rages. During the treatment he played numerous
killing games, in
which his father was the principal victim. The operation represented
a castration by his father." (p. 10).
Questions must be raised as
to the extent to which rage and suicidal behaviors are engendered by
the assaults of circumcision whether conducted during the newborn or
child/pre-pubertal periods. (There are approximately a third more
suicides than homicides in the U.S.). Is there a link between
circumcision and the willingness to kill oneself or others for one's
religious/national beliefs, particularly when circumcision occurs at
the age of puberty, as it does in the Muslim cultures? The
willingness of many Muslim men to die or kill for their religious
beliefs is well known, e.g. the cases of Salman Rushdie and Sirhan
Sirhan may be representative here.
Jacobsen, et al. (1987)
noted in their study that hypoxia during birth might cause minimal
brain damage that could result in destructive behaviors. However,
these authors questioned whether neurological injuries due to
hypoxia could be the main factor, "since altogether rather few
victims suffered from asphyxia during birth. None of the 86 suicides
from poisoning by solid or liquid substance and none of the 53
alcoholics were reported to have been asphyxial."
There is a delayed "time bomb" of brain damage
that occurs long after the initial injury or insult.
There are several points to
be made concerning these two studies. First, Faro and Windle (1969)
in their experimental asphxial studies in monkeys documented both
immediate and delayed brain damage by as much as 10 years in these
monkeys. In short, there is a delayed "time bomb" of brain
damage that occurs long after the initial injury or insult. It would
appear that later stages of brain development are dependent upon
earlier stages of brain development which must be normal if later
stages of development are to be normal. Secondly, there are a
variety of traumas/injuries that can simulate or mimic asphyxial
effects.
For example, sensory
deprivation (like asphyxia) can damage the sensory receptors and
sensory pathways of the brain. This neuronal damage from sensory
deprivation prevents normal sensory stimulation of the brain which
is essential for normal brain development and function. This is why
the experiencing of sensory pleasure -- physical affection and sexual
pleasure -- is essential for normative brain development, function and
behavior.
The effects of sensory
deprivation or altered and abnormal sensory environments upon brain
development and behavior are well documented. This is the mechanism
which I will now focus upon since it is my conviction that a variety
of early traumatic events of pain, deprivation and stress, including
asphyxia, damage the affectional neuronal systems of the brain. It
is this damage that compromises or prevents the development of
affectional bonds of pleasure since these brain systems for pleasure
have been damaged by these early insults and injuries. This thesis
constitutes the neuropsychological foundation of my SAD
(Somatosensory Affectional Deprivation) theory of alienation,
depression, addictive and violent behaviors.
It is for these reasons
that SAD is proposed to be the process or mechanism which can
account for the linkage between prenatal/perinatal trauma and
suicides that have been reported by Salk, et al., and by Jacobson,
et al.
Specifically, Somatosenory
Affectional Deprivation (SAD) theory is based on the nature of brain
processes where it has been well established that activation of the
pleasure circuits of the brain inhibit the activity of the violence
circuits of the brain. This normative reciprocal relationship ceases
to function when the neuronal circuits of the brain that mediate
pleasure are insufficiently developed -- a form of brain
dysfunction/damage -- due to sensory deprivation of physical
affectional pleasure, specifically, somesthetic (touch) and
vestibular (movement) sensory stimulation. Gentle touch and rocking
of the infant are powerful sensory stimuli for pleasure, comfort and
a sense of "basic trust" for the infant/child. When
these sensory stimuli are absent and, in addition, are replaced by
painful sensory stimulation, then the neurobiological foundations
for depressive, addictive and violent behaviors are established.
In brief, the emotional
pain of affectional deprivation (the failure of love in the
maternal-infant and parent-child relationships and in our sexual
relationships) seeks relieve through drugs, alcohol and violence -- in
the rage of our physical assaults against others; beatings, rape,
homicide or assaults against our own bodies where the final solution
is suicide -- one of the leading mental health problems of our
children and youth. Why should our children and youth be committing
suicide in such great numbers -- a 112% increase from 1980 to 1985 for
children aged 10 to 14 years? Does genital mutilation in
combination
with SAD facilitate suicidal and assaultive behaviors?
It is for these reasons that the pain of genital mutilation
is tolerated and supported and why the pleasure of genital stimulation is
forbidden -- with all the developmental neuropsychological and moral
consequences that such events have upon the individual and culture.
A further correlate to the
above relationships and why certain postnatal traumas are tolerated
(genital mutilations) is to be found in our cultural mores that
places a high moral value on pain, suffering, deprivation; and
immorality upon the physical pleasures of the body, particularly the
sexual pleasures of the body. It is for these reasons that the pain
of genital mutilations are tolerated and supported and why the
pleasure of genital stimulation is forbidden -- with all the
developmental neuropsycholgical and moral consequences that such
events have upon the individual and culture.
I will now review the real
reasons for circumcision as given by certain moral traditions and
the anti-pleasure ethic that is endemic to many religious
traditions that supports the pain-pleasure reciprocity principal and
provides the linkage to violent behaviors.
PHILOSOPHICAL/RELIGIOUS
BASES FOR GENITAL MUTILATIONS
It is well recognized that circumcision in the Jewish
religious tradition represents a covenant with God (see Gerald
Larue's article in this issue). It is less well recognized that the
p. 18, July/August 1989, The Truth
Seeker
| |
|
The
body is prior in order of generation to the soul, so the
irrational is prior to the rational. The proof is that anger and
wishing and desire are implanted in children from their very birth,
but reason and understanding are developed as they grow older.
Wherefore, the care of the body ought to precede that of the soul,
and the training of the appetitive part should follow; none the less
our care of it must be for the sake of the reason, and our care of
the body for the sake of the soul.
Aristotle, Politica
(384-322
B.C.E.) |
| |
p. 19, July/August 1989, The Truth
Seeker
diminution of sexual pleasure is another major reason for
circumcision in the Jewish religious tradition. This reason is
clearly stated by Moses Maimonides in the Guide of The
Perplexed (1190) which merits its full reproduction:
ON CIRCUMCISION
"As regards circumcision, I think that one of its objects is to
limit
sexual intercourse, and to weaken the organ of generation as far as
possible, and thus cause man to be moderate. Some people believe
that circumcision is to remove a defect in man's formation; but
every one can easily reply: How can products of nature be deficient
so as to require external completion, especially as the use of the
foreskin to that organ is evident. This commandment has not been
enjoined as a compliment to a deficient physical creation, but as a
means for perfecting man's moral shortcomings. The bodily injury
caused to that organ is exactly that which is desired; it does
not interrupt any vital function, nor does it destroy the power of
generation. Circumcision simply counteracts excessive lust; for
there is no doubt that circumcision weakens the power of sexual
excitement, and sometimes lessens the natural enjoyment; the
organ necessarily becomes weak when it loses blood and is deprived
of its cover from the beginning. Our Sages say distinctly: It is
hard for a woman, with whom an uncircumcised had sexual intercourse,
to separate from him. This is, as I believe, the best reason for the
commandment concerning circumcision."
(Part III, Chapter 49,
emphasis added)
Elsewhere
in the Jewish religious tradition clear warnings are given
concerning the dangers of sexual pleasure. The following quotations
are taken from the Code of Jewish Law:
Chapter 150
The Sin of Discharging Semen in Vain
1: It is forbidden to discharge semen in vain. This is a graver
sin
than any other mentioned in the Torah. Those who practice
masturbation and cause the issue of semen in vain, not only do they
commit a grave sin, but they are under a ban, concerning whom it is
said (Isaiah 1:15) "Your hands are full of blood," and it
is equivalent to killing a person. See what Rashi wrote concerning
Er and Onan in the Sidrah of Vayeshev (Genesis 37), that both
Er and Onan died for the commission of this sin. Occasionally, as a
punishment for this sin, children die when young, God forbid, or
grow up to be delinquent, while the sinner himself is reduced to
poverty."
Chapter 151
Laws of Chastity
17. Semen
is the vitality of man's body and the light of his eyes, and when it
issues in abundance, the body weakens and life is shortened. He who
indulges in having intercourse, ages quickly, his strength ebbs, his
eyes grow dim, his breath becomes foul, the hair of his head,
eyelashes and brows fall out, the hair of his beard, armpits and
feet increase, his teeth fall out, and many other aches besides
these befall him. Great physicians said that one out of a thousand
dies from other diseases, while nine hundred and ninety-nine die
from sexual indulgence. Therefore, a man should exercise
self-restraint.
The Roman Catholic Church is equally affirmative on the moral dangers
of masturbation whose only purpose is sexual pleasure. In the
Vatican's "Declaration on Sexual Ethics", published by the
Sacred Congregation For The Doctrine Of The Faith
(December 29, 1975), formerly the Holy Office of The Inquisition,
the following is stated:
On Masturbation
9. The traditional Catholic doctrine that masturbation
constitutes a grave
moral disorder is often called into doubt or expressly denied today.
It is said that psychology and sociology show that it is a normal
phenomenon of sexual development, especially among the young.... This
opinion is contradictory to the teaching and pastoral practice of
the Catholic Church. Whatever the force of certain arguments of a
biological and philosophical nature, which have sometimes been used
by theologians, in fact both the Magisterium of the Church -- in the
course of a constant tradition -- and the moral sense of the faithful
have declared without hesitation that masturbation is an
intrinsically and seriously disordered act.
Elsewhere, the Roman Catholic Church affirms the moral value of pain and
suffering in The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola
(the founder of the Society of Jesus):
"The third kind of penance is to chastise the body,
that is to inflict sensible
pain on it. This is done by wearing hair shirts, cords, or iron
chains on the body, or by scourging or wounding oneself, and by
other kinds of austerities" (1541).
Many other examples could be cited, the most significant of which is the
Crucifixion itself. God the Father's Divine Plan of Incarnation for
his Son: "So the Word was made flesh;" (John 1:14); and "I
did not come of my own will; It was He who sent me" (John 8:42)
was a plan for the mutilation, torture and murder of His
only-begotten Son on the cross (euphemistically called
"sacrificed") -- for the ulterior motive of human salvation!
The ultimate psychopathology of this event is equating this
mutilation, torture and murder with LOVE! Clearly, Christian Love is
as much an expression of pain and suffering as pleasure. It is
this fusion of pain and suffering with love that forms one of the
roots of sado-masochism which is so prevalent in monotheistic and
patristic cultures.
Given the violence that
this Father inflicted upon the Son He loved (and others), is it so
surprising to find so much violence of other Fathers inflicted upon
their sons (and daughters)? If "Man"is made "Unto the
Image and Likeness of God", then the violence of "Man"
becomes more understandable. Remember, it is this same God the
Father that demanded the torture of helpless male newborns through
the ritual mutilating of their genitals, called circumcision -- a
practice that continues today in many monotheistic cultures.
Why was pain and violence
and not pleasure and peace selected as the primary path for
establishing the "bond" between God and Man and for human
salvation? In all His Wisdom, Power and "Love" could He
not have found a different solution to the enigma of human
"salvation"? The answers to these questions lie elsewhere.
It should be recognized
that the roots of the morality of pain and suffering and the
immorality of physical sensual/sexual pleasure antedate the
Crucifixion and the rise of monotheism. These basic concepts existed
in parallel civilizations where, for example, the ancient Greek
philosophers provided a clear metaphysical theory of good and evil
that was directly related to a moral theology of pain and pleasure.
Greek Metaphysical Dualism
provided the following equations:
MATTER=Body , Evil, Wickedness, Darkness,
Chaos=FEMALE;
FORM=Soul, Goodness, Godlike, Lightness, Order=MALE.
p. 20, July/August 1989, The Truth
Seeker
MATTER=Body , Evil, Wickedness, Darkness,
Chaos=FEMALE;
FORM=Soul, Goodness, Godlike, Lightness,
Order=MALE.
It was Pythagoras (c.582-c.507 B.C.) who provided the sex gender
equivalents of
maleness with goodness; and femaleness with evil:
There
is a good principle which has created order, light and man;
and a bad principle which has created chaos, darkness and woman.
[Quoted in Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex
(1953).]
Given
this formulation is it so surprising to find the following in
Ecclesiasticus (25:33): "From the woman came the
beginning of sin, and by her we all die." And in Paul, 1
Corinthians (7:1): "Now concerning the things whereof you
wrote me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman." Many
other examples could be mentioned that are too numerous to cite
which reflect this absurd and most erroneous dualistic moral theory
of human nature, gender and behavior.
Moses
Maimonides has perhaps provided the clearest exposition of these
metaphysical/moral/gender relationships in The Guide Of The
Perplexed (When the word "matter" occurs think
"female," when the word "form" occurs think
"male"):
All bodies
subject to generation and corruption are attained by corruption only
because of their matter; with regard to form and with respect to the
latter's essence, they are not attained by corruption, but are
permanent . . . Similarly every living being dies and becomes ill solely
because of its matter and not because of its form. All man's act of
disobedience and sin are consequent upon his matter and not upon his
form, whereas all his virtues are consequent upon his
form . . . consequently it was necessary that man's very noble form,
which as we have explained, is the image of God and His
likeness,
should be bound to earthy, turbid and dark matter, which calls down
upon man every imperfection and corruption. He granted it -- I mean
the human form -- power, dominion, rule, and control over matter, in
order that it subjugate it, quell its impulses, and bring it back to
the best and most harmonious state that is possible.
(Part III, Chapter 8, pp.
430-432)
Ecclesiasticus (25:33): "From the woman came the beginning of
sin, and by her we all die." ... in Paul, 1 Corinthians (7:1):
"Now concerning the things whereof you wrote me: It is good for a
man not to touch a woman."
Perhaps it is now more clear how philosophical and theological moral
dualism has conspired
against the human body, particularly the female body and the
sensual/sexual pleasures that they represent. This moral dualism of
Western Civilization is one of the great roots of violence against
the human body and the female body in particular. And these moral
traditions are not confined to the cultures of Western Civilization
which subordinate female to male; assures the continuing inequality
of woman to man and the violence of man against woman and her
children. (Reich 1971).
This
fundamentalist/orthodox morality of Western Civilization requires
that the sensual/sexual pleasures of the body must be extremely
limited if not destroyed to achieve "salvation of the soul"
(re, the "virtues" of celibacy, virginity and chastity).
What better place to begin than with the mutilation and destruction
of the genitals which are designed to experience
p. 21, July/August 1989, The Truth
Seeker
sensual pleasure and share sexual love?
It is not without reason
that the monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) have
carried their religions on the edge of the sword -- the same sword
that cuts the genitals of children (male and female); and which
mutilates their souls.
It is clear to this writer
that before genital mutilations of our children can cease; before
male violence against woman can end; and before human violence can
be eliminated that a moral revolution must take place. Pain must be
declared immoral and pleasure must be declared morally necessary if
we are to become moral persons. In the words of Walt Whitman:
"IF
ANYTHING IS SACRED THE HUMAN BODY IS SACRED"
In summary, the
dualistic/theistic moral foundations of Western Civilization must be
transformed if human equality, compassion, justice and love are to
be realized; and if the human species is to survive.
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