Comments on: Penance for Sex

By: MLP XVI: Even more atheism « The Ironism

MLP XVI: Even more atheism « The Ironism — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 23:18:04 +0000

[...] had some naughty sex?! What?! Hax [...]

By: Maria

Maria — Sun, 25 May 2008 21:05:29 +0000

truly sad. quite hypocritical them thinking they are so “pure” when they sat around and thought up all this stuff

By: cipher

cipher — Sat, 24 May 2008 11:42:21 +0000

And Catholics today will tell you that they never had the kinds of problems with sex that Protestants did!

By: Jen

Jen — Sat, 24 May 2008 02:07:20 +0000

Of course, in all fairness, back in the Middle Ages the clerics were having as much sex as the rest of the people, if not more, because they had the money. Popes back then were awesome. Sergius III was the the most awesome.

The basic message I am getting from this is that women shouldn’t have orgasms. That doesn’t seem to have changed at all, except for maybe that Christian sex toy store.

By: hoverFrog

hoverFrog — Fri, 23 May 2008 22:08:15 +0000

1533 was the year that Henry VIII married Anne Boleyn, six months before the annulment of his first marriage, and the year that the English Reformation really took off as an excuse to rob the churches of their wealth and beat up the Papists. Mainly to rob them, I think. Henry did have several wars that needed funding.

Perhaps the high number of homosexual monks in the dissolved monasteries had something to do with the change in law. Perhaps it was simply a way to exert the divine authority of kings. It’s horribly unfair no matter what the excuse.

One question though, are the sentences concurrent or consecutive? It makes a big difference.

By: Vincent

Vincent — Fri, 23 May 2008 20:51:25 +0000

I took a course in college called “Mariage and Sexuality in Medieval Europe.”
I read several of those lists, determining the proper penance for various forms of sexual activity. Some of them I’d never heard of. I remember having to ask the professor in class to explain what some of them were.
hehehe
good times

By: » Friday Favorites - Women's Health Research News blog from IdeasForWomen.com

Fri, 23 May 2008 20:30:29 +0000

[...] And yes, this might offend somebody – “back in the Middle Ages, sex was frowned upon. ‘Carnal relations’, even with one’s wife, were considered filthy.” There was even Penance for Sex. [...]

By: BMcP

BMcP — Fri, 23 May 2008 19:31:25 +0000

Dorsal sex (woman on top) 3 Years
Semenem in ore — oral sex Up to 15 years

I am soooo in trouble.. :0

By: Siamang

Siamang — Fri, 23 May 2008 18:54:48 +0000

If these folks were making the rules today, all procreation would be in-vitro from sperm acquired via hypodermic needle!

By: Greta Christina

Greta Christina — Fri, 23 May 2008 18:47:39 +0000

The “woman on top” one jumped out at me too, Richard. What a weird thing to have so high on the list. I mean, if your problem is forms of sex that can’t result in conception, “woman on top” intercourse should be at the bottom of the list (or maybe second to bottom, just above rear entry). It may not be the optimal position for conception, but at least it’s possible.

And female masturbation (women who use sex toys) should be lower on the list than male masturbation, since it doesn’t “waste” seed that could otherwise be used for conception.

But of course, as you pointed out, the conception thing is largely a red herring.