Texas Review of Law & Politics, Volume 19, Number 1, Fall 2014 Page: 70
216 p.View a full description of this periodical.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Texas Review of Law & Politics
If following the natural law creates conditions for individuals
to flourish both mentally and physically, then acts that diminish
the chances of one's flourishing are not part of the natural law.
Beyond the physical risks of homosexual behavior, the
behavior requires using body parts contrary to their design.
Specifically, the end or purpose of genitals is procreation and
the end or purpose of the lower digestive tract is the expulsion of
waste. Using these two body parts together is not only counter to
the purpose of each, but often destructive to their purposes.40
The pertinent question is whether or not a homosexual uses
his body in accordance with its function. Describing the natural
law, Timothy Hsiao writes:
[S] something is good by functioning as it should. A firefighter is
good by fighting fires, since that is what firefighters are
supposed to do. A vehicle is good by transporting people and
goods well, since that is how vehicles are supposed to function.
An orange tree is good by producing fruit, since that is how
orange trees are supposed to develop.... Good firefighters,
good cars, and good orange trees are all good in the sense that
they are fulfilling their respective ends.. .. The standard of
goodness for any being consists in what perfects it according to
the kind of thing it is.
Hsiao further writes:
Now our actions are executed by engaging bodily faculties.
When we breathe, we use our lungs. When we see, we use our
eyes. When we engage in sexual activities, we use our sexual
organs. These faculties have natural purposes that direct us to
the achievement of their end. Lungs are for breathing, eyes are
for seeing, and sex, as I will argue, is for procreation.42
Natural law presupposes that all things aim at some good.43
Does homosexuality aim at some good? Hsaio argues that
badness is "a type of privation"-it is a lack of fulfillment of the
act or object's purpose.44 Examples of this include medicine that
http://womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/lesbian-bisexual-
health.pdf [perma.cc/JC8K-4VUF].
40. See Girgis, supra note 33, at 254-55; see also SATINOVER, supra note 34, at 67-68.
41. Timothy Hsiao, A Defense of the Perverted Faculty Argument Against Homosexual Sex,
HEYTHROP J., 1, 1 (first published online Mar. 24, 2014),
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/heyj.12134/pdf [perma.cc/4NHG-TDQK].
42. Id. at 2.
43. ARISTOTLE, supra note 29, at 1094a.
44. Hsiao, supra note 41, at 1.70
Vol. 19
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Periodical.
University of Texas at Austin. School of Law. Texas Review of Law & Politics, Volume 19, Number 1, Fall 2014, periodical, Autumn 2014; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth638673/m1/84/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.