This book employs an experimental approach to critically re-examine the Catholic Church's traditional teachings on homosexuality, heterosexual marriage, and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersexual (LGBTQI) inclusivity in light of Pope Francis's inductive synodal theology and modern sociology. With the growing complexity of today's culture and the advancement of social science research, it argues that the empirical foundations of the traditional Church's doctrines on topical moral issues need to be scientifically re-assessed, so as to update them in view of Francis's synodality and sociological research on gender, sexuality, and same-sex union. Discussion pertaining to whether homosexuality is naturally disordered and whether heterosexuality is the only criterion for Christian marriage remain lingering empirical issues in the Church that require a sociological and inductive synodal analysis, rather than the traditional deductive philosophical and theological method that is largely based on natural law theory. This topical book is of appeal to scholars and students of sociology, theology, as well as religious, biblical, and gender studies.

Autorentext

Dr. Vivencio O. Ballano is Program Chairperson of the Master of Arts in Sociology, Graduate School Program, and Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), Manila. He received his Master's (Theology) and Doctorate (Sociology) from the Ateneo de Manila University. To date, he has published six peer-reviewed monographs with both Springer and Routledge, as well as several Scopus- and Web of Science-indexed journal articles and book chapters on the sociology of law, religion, media piracy, post-disaster management, clerical celibacy, clerical sexual abuse, digital education, and Catholic social teaching.