Anon - I see now where you are going. However, I do not think that this applies here. Heterosexual attraction is a good and it is natural; it is in order with creation. You are correct, here. It is not a disorder or sin unless one submits to lustful thoughts. This would then be a disorder, but a relative one. If the thoughts were about someone other than one’s spouse it would be a sin. If the thoughts were about one’s spouse, but the spouse was reduced in the thoughts to an object of pleasure there would also be a disorder, sin.

Same sex attraction and pedophilia are different than heterosexual attraction by their very nature. The pre-consent attractions of the former are in themselves disordered. Any consent to the disordered thoughts add sin to the original disorder.

Using the term disorder is not a value judgment on the person it is an analytical discription of the situation. Same sex attraction is not in accord with the order of creation so whether it is acted upon or not it still reflects a fundamental disorder.

However, the person with the disorder can still be virtuous and heroic by refusing to consent to the disorder and offering the suffering associated with the disorder for the sake of the Church. Nevertheless, the person still has a disorder that should be treated.

Julian - You are right, the 10% figure is greatly inflated. “According to Statistics Canada , 1.3% of men and 0.7% of women considered themselves to be homosexual. http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/040615/d040615b.htm) Recent studies in many different countries show that the prevalence of homosexuality is less than 3% of the population : In a US study, the prevalence of homosexuality was estimated to be 2.1% of men and 1.5% of women. (Gilman SE. Am J Public Health. 2001; 91: 933-9.) Another US study estimated the prevalence of the adult lesbian population to be 1.87% (Aaron DJ et al. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2003; 57 :207-9.) In a recent British survey, 2.8% of men were classified as homosexuals (Mercer CH et al. AIDS. 2004; 18: 1453-8). In a recent Dutch study 2.8% of men and 1.4% women had had same-sex partners. (Sandfort TG et al. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2001; 58 :85-91.) In a New Zealand study, 2.8% of young adults were classified as homosexual or bisexual. (Fergusson DM et al. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1999; 56 : 876-80).” With respect to Christian inability to address or treat it, I do not think that is necessarily the case. Courage is an apostolate with an 80% success rate in helping people overcome same sex attraction. The Catholic Medical Association has published a paper Homosexuality and Hope which does a very good job of identifying the problems and solutions. I hesitate to say this in such a short space but in general the push to distort masculinity and femininity in the name of equality is a fundamental part of the problem. Another problem is that the media distorts the true scope of the problem. I agree that same sex attraction is much greater than it ever has been but it is still below 3%.

Just as an example, consider the sin of pre-marital sex. Now, having premarital sex (the act) is quite different than thinking about the act. Thinking about it is not the same as acting upon it, right?

The action is the sin, right? So following this logic, having a tendency towards acts that are “disordered” should not mean that the person “has a disorder” any more than having a tendency towards committing a sin or a crime makes a person a sinner or a criminal.

I think this distinction is important and quite clear. Perhaps my understanding of the Church’s position is not clear enough.

It has nothing to do with a medical disorder - I am only using the syntax the Church uses here.

Where does this struggle come from and why is it so prevelant in our culture now? Do we treat like a disorder like alcoholism or is all together different?

“Gift” in its nuptial sense is hetero and not homo - The orientation is towards the other. This is revealed everywhere in the sacramental and in creation. Gift is the fabric of our being. Certainly God wouldn’t contradict himself in the supposed one in ten who deal with this SSA and yet Christians still seem to be at a loss on how to address or treat it.
-julian

I am not sure that it is completely different. I suppose it depends upon the context. I agree that the secular medical community does not consider it a disorder but since we are not confined here to their lexicon I do not think I am out of line using the term as a noun or a verb. I think we can use the two terms interchangeably because it is both a disorder and disorded whether the medical community will admit this or not.

-julian

So, that would mean that “…those who suffer from same sex attraction disorder…” should be changed to “…those who engage in sexually disordered activities…”