Why Human Sexuality is at the Center of Many Current Controversies
Wayne Grudem
A chart outlining how every distortion of human sexuality is an attack on the Trinitarian God and that only biblical sexuality retains the mysterious combination of equality, difference, and unity.
Please note: This chart contains many generalizations and is only meant to show tendencies. Most people and many religious systems hold mixed views and have inconsistencies in thinking. Moreover, conscience, social pressure, and the Bible often restrain people from adopting all aspects of non-biblical views. Therefore this chart certainly does not imply that every person of religious system within each column holds to everything in that column. But, there are troublesome patterns and similarities within the columns. And these suggest taht the current cultural struggles are not trivial but are about fundamentally different views of the world. I am grateful to Peter Jones and Dan Heimbach for providing me with some of the ideas that led to the creation of this chart.
This chart may be duplicated for teaching purposes without charge.
- Definitions
- God
- Man and Woman
- Marriage
- Children
- Family Responsibility
- Sex
- Natural Desires
- Religion
- Authority
- Sports
- Crime
- Property
- Education
|
The Effeminate Left |
No Difference: “All is one” |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
Egalitarianism: Removing or denying many differences between men and women |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Equality and Differences and Unity: Emphasizing both equality and difference between men and women |
|
The Domineering Right |
Male Dominance: Over-emphasizing the differences between men and women |
|
The Violent Right |
No equality: “Might makes right” |
|
The Effeminate Left |
God=Creation; God as Mother; Sophia worship; New Age Worship |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
Mutual submission in the Trinity |
|
The Complementarin Middle |
God as Trinity; Father, Son, Holy Spirit have equal value, Different roles |
|
The Domineering Right |
Arianism (Son and Holy Spirit not fully God) |
|
The Violent Right |
God as one person, not a Trinity, not three persons; Harsh, unloving warrior-God (Allah) |
Man and Woman
|
The Effeminate Left |
Emasculation of men; De-feminization of women |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
No gender-based role differences in marriage (No “Mars-Venus” differences) |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Husband, wife have equal value, Different roles |
|
The Domineering Right |
Men are better than women; Excessive competitiveness to show women as inferior |
|
The Violent Right |
Men as brutes; Women as objects; De-humanization of women |
|
The Effeminate Left |
Same-sex “marriages” approved |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
“Mutual submission” Often: husband as “wimp” wife as “usurper” |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Husband: loving, humble headship; Wife: intelligent, joyful submission to husband |
|
The Domineering Right |
Husband harsh, selfish, “dictator;” Wife as “doormat” |
|
The Violent Right |
Polygamy, harems; Female infanticide |
|
The Effeminate Left |
Children murdered; abortion supported by women who reject feminine roles |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
Children raised with too little discipline, little respect for authority |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Children loved, cared for valued; Children raised with discipline and love |
|
The Domineering Right |
Children raised with harsh discipline, little love or compassion |
|
The Violent Right |
Children murdered: Abortion supported by men who reject masculine responsibility for family |
|
The Effeminate Left |
No family – only “society” |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
All responsibilities shared equally between husband and wife, or divided according to gifts and interests |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Husband: responsible to lead, provide for, protect; Wife: responsible to help husband by managing household and nurturing children |
|
The Domineering Right |
Wives forbidden to have own job outside home, or to vote or own property, etc. |
|
The Violent Right |
Men have all power, women and children are to serve them |
|
The Effeminate Left |
Homosexuality; Lesbianism; Violent opposition to God’s plan for sex as only between man and woman |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
Men become un-masculine, unattractive to women; Women become un-feminine, unattractive to men; Ambivalence toward sex |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Monogamous, equally fulfilling intercourse as deepest expression of a great “mystery”: equality and differences and unity! |
|
The Domineering Right |
Pornography, Lust, Adultery; Excessive attention to sex |
|
The Violent Right |
Violence against women; Rape; Violent opposition to God's plan for sex as only within marriage |
|
The Effeminate Left |
Temptation; unlimited same-sex sexual activity |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
Moving “contrary to nature” (Rom 1:26) |
|
The Complementarin Middle |
Natural desires fulfilled Men and women have deep sense of acting as God made them to act |
|
The Domineering Right |
Moving in exaggeration and distortion of nature |
|
The Violent Right |
Temptation; unlimited unequal sexual activity |
|
The Effeminate Left |
Feminized religion in churches Pantheism |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
No governing or teaching roles in church reserved for men |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Some governing and teaching roles in church restricted to men |
|
The Domineering Right |
All ministry done by men; women’s rights squelched; Crusades |
|
The Violent Right |
Militant forms of Islam religion advanced by violence. |
|
The Effeminate Left |
Hatred of authority |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
|
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Authority exercised with in boundaries |
|
The Domineering Right |
|
|
The Violent Right |
Abuse of authority |
|
The Effeminate Left |
No competition; “Everybody wins” |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
Anti-competition |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Competition with fairness, rules; Winners honored, losers respected |
|
The Domineering Right |
Excessive competition; Losers humiliated |
|
The Violent Right |
Violent hard to opponents; World Wide Wrestling; Gladiators fight to death |
|
The Effeminate Left |
No respect for authority, rampant crime, especially by frustrated, angry men |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
Criminal seen as victim to be helped, not punished; punishment long delayed |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Punishment is speedy; fair aims at justice plus restoration of criminal |
|
The Domineering Right |
Repressive government, little freedom, debtors prisons |
|
The Violent Right |
Excessive punishment, de-humanization of criminals (cut off hand of thief), little crime, no freedom |
|
The Effeminate Left |
No private property; all possessions equalized |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
No one is allowed to be very rich; Large-scale dependence on welfare state and government |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Laws protect private property and care for poor; more work and skill earns more wealth; equal opportunity for all |
|
The Domineering Right |
Women cannot own property |
|
The Violent Right |
Slavery; de-humanization of the poor and weak; all property in hands of few |
|
The Effeminate Left |
All-male schools prohibited by law; prohibitions against educating boys and girls separately |
|
The Egalitarian Left |
Systemic pressure to make boys and girls do equally well in all subjects |
|
The Complementarian Middle |
Boys and girls both educated, but different preferences, abilities, and sense of calling respected |
|
The Domineering Right |
Boys given preferential treatment in schools |
|
The Violent Right |
Girls not allowed to be educated |
