Description

IN PRAISE OF WOMAN

Volume – Five

There is a wide variety of love: parental love, filial love, brotherly love, platonic love, friendly love, tender love, celibate love, conjugal love, homosexual love, heterosexual love, to name a few. However, man-woman love seems to be the most central to human existence. This volume is all about such heterosexual love because the experience of joy is by far more intense in heterosexual friendships than in others.

Elaborating the theme, the author enters one of the most controversial areas to announce that there is room for heterosexual love in consecrated celibacy. The impression that there is no scope for warm heterosexual love outside marriage is far from sound. No celibate needs to consider his intense desire for heterosexual love as an imperfection and be apologetic about it. The greater the desire, the nobler he is.

DrFelix Podimattam

is one of the best-known moral theologians in India and outside. Besides his full time job as a professor, he finds time to write books at an amazing rate. He has authored 85 books. Besides his Master’s degree in Political Science from the University of Mysore, he holds a Licentiate in Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome, and subsequently a Doctorate in Moral Theology from the Alphosian Academy, Rome, His post-doctoral studies were pursued in Washington, DC, U.S.A. At Present he is professor of moral theology at St. Francis Theological College, Kottayam, Kerala.

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 11 CHAPTER ONE.
PSYCHOLOGICAL REFLECTIONS
ON MAN-WOMAN FRIENDSHIP 17
1. The Phenomenon of Sexual Attraction
3. Falling in Love
4. Partner Selection in Man-Woman Love
5. Feelings and Love
CHAPTER TWO.
THEOLOGICAL REFLECTIONS
ON MAN-WOMAN FRIENDSHIP
1. Basis of Man-Woman Friendship
2. What is Man-Woman Friendship?
3. Excellence of Man-Woman Friendship
4. Characteristics of Man-Woman Friendship
5. Prerequisites for Man-Woman Friendship
6. Celibate Man-Woman Friendship
CHAPTER THREE.
SPIRITUAL REFLECTIONS ON MAN-WOMAN FRIENDSHIP
1. Spiritual Value of Man-Woman Friendship
2. Transcendent Dimension of Man-Woman Friendship 176
3. Sacramental Value of Man-Woman Friendship
4. Man-Woman Friendship as Remedy against Selfishness
5. Man-Woman Friendship as Powerful Aid to Prayer
6. Man-Woman Friendship as Incentive to Fraternal Charity
7. Man-Woman Friendship as Aid to Celibate Living
8. Apostolic Relevance of Man-Woman Friendship
9. Ascetical Aspects of Man-Woman Friendship
10. Man-Woman Friendship as Agape
CHAPTER FOUR.
PASTORAL REFLECTIONS ON MAN-WOMAN FRIENDSHIP
1. Friendship is not to Be Renounced
2. Every Friendship is Particular
3. Sexual Attraction is to Be Appreciated
4. Over-Protectiveness is to Be Eschewed5. Every So-Called
Scandal” is not to Be Avoided
6. Sexual Temptation is not to Be Feared
7. Anti-Feminism is to Be Shunned
8. Equality of Man and Woman is to Be Recognized
9. Man-Woman0. Man-Woman Partnership is to Be Fostered
11. Value of All Genuine
Complementary Love is to Be Acknowledged
Interdependence is to Be Cultivated