Family matters : the role of Christianity in the formation of the western family / by Anthony J. Guerra.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Guerra, Anthony J.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Families--Religious aspects--Christianity--History of doctrines.

Families.

Families--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Physical Description:

xxviii, 193 pages ; 23 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

St. Paul, Minn. : Paragon House, 2002.

Contents:

The Problem: The Contemporary Family xii

A Limited Option: Government and the Family xviii

An Enduring Hope: The Social Sciences on Religion and Family xxi

Chapter 1. The Thousand-Year Campaign: The Church Battles to Reform Marriage 1

Augustus: Failed Imperial Family Policy 3

Jesus and Paul on the Family 4

A. Jesus: A Unique View of Marriage 4

B. Paul: An Egalitarian View of Marital Relations 8

Democratizing Elitist Sexual Ideals: Celibacy and the Power to Change Society 11

The Church Begins to Transform Marital Norms and Expectations: The Indissolubility of Marriage 16

The Sacralization of Marriage: The New Status Quo of the Family 20

Chapter 2. The Recovery of Adam's Helpmate: The Rise of Companionate Marriage 25

Thomas Aquinas: Marriage as Friendship Between Equals 26

Erasmus: Woman as an Intellectual and Spiritual Partner to Man 27

The Reformation: Marriage More Pleasing to God than Celibacy 30

The Puritans: The Founding View of the American Family 31

A. The English Way 31

B. Puritans and the First American Families 33

1. Affirming the Importance of Marriage as a Spiritual and Carnal Union 34

2. The Bible and the Puritan Family 35

3. Covenant and Family: Marriage as Divinely Ordained 36

4. Husbands and Wives 38

5. The Puritan Legacy 42

The Great Awakenings: The Feminization of Religion and Family 43

Conclusion: The Shrinking Roles of Husbands and Fathers 47

Chapter 3. And What of the Children?: Christianity and the Status of the Child in Western Society 49

Early Christianity Opposes Infanticide and Child Abandonment 51

Medieval Christian Images of the Child: A Trust From God 61

Conflicting Child-Rearing Traditions in the Sixteenth through Eighteenth Centuries: Christian vs. Secular Models 66

The Sentimentalization of Children: Nineteenth and Twentieth Century Christianity 71

Chapter 4. Twentieth Century Christian Efforts to Save the Family 81

Roman Catholicism: Marriage and Familiy as Ministry 82

The Southern Baptist Convention: Providing Resources to Strengthen Families 94

Chapter 5. New Religious Movements and the Family 105

Mormonism: "From 'Puritan' Polygamy to Exemplary Monogamy" 106

The Unification Church: From Co-Ed Monasticism to a World of Blessed Families 114

The Promise Keepers: Coaching Men to be Champion Husbands 124

Conclusion: Religion and Family in the Twenty-First Century 133.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 169-179) and index.

ISBN:

1557788103

OCLC:

47990006