It is impossible to deny that Christians and Muslims have a common agenda here: both faiths have at their heart the living image of a community raised up by God's call to reveal to the world what God's purpose is for humanity.
Rowan WilliamsRead
Christian teaching about sex is not a set of isolated prohibitions; it is an integral part of what the Bible has to say about living in such a way that our lives communicate the character of God.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Christian teachings about sex are interconnected with the broader message of living a life that reflects God’s character.
Rowan Williams emphasizes that the Christian perspective on sexuality should not be viewed as merely a list of what is forbidden. Instead, it is part of a holistic approach to living that embodies and communicates the divine nature and character of God through our actions and choices, advocating for a view of sexuality that aligns with spiritual values and integrity.
Themes
SexChristianityBibleCharacterValues
In practice
Example use cases
In a church seminar discussing Christian ethics, this quote can be a poignant reminder of how we integrate our values into all aspects of life.
More from Rowan Williams
All quotes →As the gospels present it to us, the mission of Jesus of Nazareth is about the way in which the community of God's people - historically, the Jewish people who had first received the law and the covenant - is being re-created in relation to Jesus himself.
Rowan WilliamsRead
Keeping our eyes on journey's end is what we need - the place where we see at last the world that is greater than the world, the new creation that cannot be contained in present thought or social order or piety.
Rowan WilliamsRead
Our present ecological crisis, the biggest single practical threat to our human existence in the middle to long term, has, religious people would say, a great deal to do with our failure to think of the world as existing in relation to the mystery of God, not just as a huge warehouse of stuff to be used for our convenience.
Rowan WilliamsRead
Incidentally, one of the most worrying problems in the impact of Western modernity on traditional culture is that it quite rapidly communicates its own indifference or anxiety or even hostility about age and ageing.
Rowan WilliamsRead
Institutions develop because people put a lot of trust in them, they meet real needs, they represent important aspirations, whether it's monasteries, media, or banks, people begin by trusting these institutions, and gradually the suspicion develops that actually they're working for themselves, not for the community.
Rowan WilliamsRead
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