https://doi.org/10.25167/sth.5918
In contemporary Catholic moral theology, there is a growing shift from the traditional approach known as “sexual ethics,” which focuses on attitudes and behaviors regarding human sexuality, toward an ethics of relationships. This newer approach places questions of sexuality within the broader context of human relationships and understands sexuality as a tool for communication with others. This transition is increasingly evident in recent moral-theological publications and has also been articulated in the teachings of Pope Francis. The statements not form a systematic or comprehensive approach, but they provide an important impulse for the development of a Catholic ethics of relationships. This text discusses three key aspects in understanding the ethics of relationships as presented in Pope Francis’s teachings. The first concerns a positive understanding of sexuality, linked to God’s creative work and seen as part of human maturation processes. The second element is a realistic view of the theology of the body. Finally, the Pope’s inspiration and contribution to the development of a relational ethics, particularly through his apostolic exhortation Amoris laetitia, lies in the departure from a normative framework toward a concept grounded in personalism. Thanks to Pope Francis’s teachings, Catholic relational ethics has not only received new impulses and inspirations, but also confirmation of the validity of this approach to human sexuality from the Church’s Magisterium.
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