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Lower than the Angels: A History of Sex and Christianity
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About This Book
A major new assessment of one of the most controversial topics in history Few matters produce more public interest and public anxiety than sex and religion. Much of the political contention and division in societies across the world centres on sexual topics, and one-third of the global population is Christian in background or outlook. The issue goes to the heart of present-day religion.The Bible observes that God made humanity 'for a little while lower than the angels'. If humans are that close to angels, where lies the difference? Is it human sexuality and what we do with it? In a single lifetime, Christianity or historically Christian societies have witnessed one of the most extraordinary about-turns in attitudes to sex and gender in human history. There have followed revolutions in the place of women in society, a new place for same-sex love amid the spectrum of human emotions, and a public exploration of gender and trans identity. For many the new situation has brought exciting liberation – for others, fury and fear.This book seeks to calm fears and encourage understanding through telling a three-thousand-year-long tale of Christians encountering sex, gender and the family, with noises off from their sacred texts. The message of Lower Than The Angels is simple, necessary and to pay attention to the sheer glorious complexity and contradictions in the history of Christianity. The reader can decide from the story told here whether there is a single Christian theology of sex, or many contending voices in a symphony that is not at all complete. Oxford's Emeritus Professor of the History of the Church introduces an epic of ordinary and extraordinary Christians trying to make sense of themselves and of humanity's deepest desires, fears and hopes.
Reviews
"MacCulloch['s] talent for breadth is matched by his impressive command of the details."
"One can only admire the ambition of this large-scale theory, even if one also has to doubt several of the component claims on which it rests ..."
"MacCulloch's perspective, to put it mildly, is Olympian."
"He writes, as always, with such liveliness and energy that the reader hardly notices the length of the book or the comprehensiveness of its field of reference ..."
"But when MacCulloch does take the time to hook into case studies of Christians bucking consensus, he provides moving stories of how believers can let their guard down and move through the world with humility."
"The most powerful argument of the book is about marriage ..."
"Lengthy and thorough ..."
"It would be an injustice to say this work is other than scholarly."
"Extraordinary, definitive ..."
"An absorbing history of Christianity from a revealing angle."
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