Human sexuality is complex and involves psychological, emotional, physical, and social factors that distinguish it from animal sexuality which is primarily driven by reproduction. Some key aspects that make human sexuality human include: it involves the whole person and finding fulfillment through relationships; freedom is situated and limited by others' freedoms; and sexuality requires moral discipline, commitment, responsibility, and safeguarding the other's dignity. For sexuality to be truly human, it must enable mutual self-realization and bring fulfillment to both partners through love. Dehumanizing sexuality involves egotism, exploitation, and failing to uphold others' humanity.

1. HUMAN SEXUALITY
16.7-16.14
Presented by:
Charisse Lourdes Sur-Pavia, ABMC, BSN

2. Introduction:
Human sexuality is an integral part of our
humanity. It is an element that factors in the
human psyche, be it seen from the
psychological, physiological, social, religious,
economic or nursing perspective. There are, of
course, many human emotions associated with
the subject of sexuality, but there is also as
much academic study given to this subject,
primarily because of its importance in human
life and its processes.

3. Human sexual behavior is different from the
sexual behavior of other animals, in that, it
seems to be governed by a variety and
interplay of different factors. That is, while
"lower" animals or species are driven by a
"force" to reproduce and therefore partake in
sexual behavior. Humans are not sexually active
just for the sake of reproduction, rather, there
are a variety of complex factors that lead
people to have sex.

4. • So what precisely makes human sexuality
human? Or, to put it more succinctly, what
distinguishes it from mere animalistic
tendencies to procreate and propagate a
species? And in what way does human
sexual behavior validate or nullify our
humanity?
• Florentino Timbreza’s “Bioethics and Moral
Decisions” tackles seven (7) salient points on
this subject, which we will discuss in this
paper.

5. In Chapter 16 of
Timbreza’s book is an
exposition on “the pain of
unrequited love”. Although
poetically phrased, the
subject is dissected in a
philosophical tone.

6. The Pain of
Unrequited
Love

7. He writes; “Human
loneliness cannot be solved by
sexual selfishness.”
Clearly, human
sexuality necessarily has a
social dimension, considering
that man is fundamentally a
social being. One thing that
distinguishes human sexuality
from mere animal sex is that it
involves the entirety of the
human person, in all his
aspects—psychological,
emotional, physical and
psychical. This is true in as
much as it involves his social
character—meaning that man
finds both his human and
sexual fulfillment in relation to
another human being, and in
finding this fulfillment, he
finds happiness.

8. However, since man
is, as we have mentioned,
wholly involved in a social
exchange, the element of
mutuality is necessary and
egotism, or self-centeredness
is an obstacle to his joyful
fulfillment.
Timbreza puts it thus;
“sexual love seeks its whole
fulfillment in the fulfillment in
the beloved, and to divide
that fulfillment would be to
diminish that love.”

9. AFFIRMATION OF
SITUATED
FREEDOM

10. Human sexuality, as we
have mentioned, entails the
involvement of the whole
man, then it also precludes
human freedom. In this
respect, Timbreza notes:
“One’s freedom of happiness is
not absolute, so sexual
freedom is also limited…. (it is)
limited and conditioned by
other people’s freedom of
sexuality.”

11. The key words here are freedom and
limitation, for in the social context, there cannot
be one without the other.
“My right to sex involves a corresponding
duty in others to respect it, in proportion to my
duty to respect their own right to sex.”
To elaborate further; man--being a member
of society, is regulated by state, law and culture
with regard to his freedom and duty, in clear
contrast to lower animal beings, which are not.
This is a defining aspect of human sexuality.

12. Moral Discipline

13. • Now that we have touched upon the subject of
state, this is now coupled with the moral
discipline. Timbreza writes: “One’s freedom of
sexuality should enable him to see that sex
implies moral discipline.”
• We must stress, however, that in as much as
man’s freedom to engage in sex with whomever
he wants, whenever he wants and however he
wants is limited by (as mentioned above) state
and culture, sexuality cannot be truly human if
man does not impose moral discipline upon
himself, for man is an autonomous being.

14. Another point worth
mentioning is that man is
gifted with an inherent
sense of propriety, and
must act according to such
if he is to be distinguished
from lower animals.
Otherwise, he is,
figuratively speaking, not a
man at all, and his exercise
of sexuality is not at all a
humane sexuality.

15. One’s
Inhumanity to
Another

16. • Which now leads us to the next point of contention,
humanity versus inhumanity. As Timbreza points out,
“there are forms of sex that stifle and wreck freedom.
Sex, in other words, can become an obstacle in an
individual’s desire to become fully human.”
• Looked at in another light, unless man acts upon
sex and sexuality in a human and humane manner,
then he fails to bring about the true fulfillment of his
own humanity.
• Therefore, whenever he dissects sex from that
affective part of his being, then it degrades not only
his partner’s humanity, but his own as well.
Whenever he fails to act in a caring and concerned
manner with respect to human dignity and moral
integrity, then he is performing an act of inhumanity.

17. It would be beneficial at this junction to digress
into the topic of sexual alienation. In alienating
his extrinsic sexual act from his inner being, he
is actually alienating himself from his own self,
and his practice of sex alienates him from being
fully human. He becomes a divided person;
fragmented. He loses the power that freedom
gives him because he becomes a slave to his
lower passions, no longer the master of
himself.

18. COMMITMENT AND
RESPONSIBILITY

19. • Thus far, we have viewed freedom in
sexuality in a negating manner, in a much as
it curtails certain actions. At this junction, we
will view it in a more positive light. We must
remember man’s freedom empowers him to
act, and in the sexual context, to act upon
commitment and responsibility.
• Timbreza writes; “In human sexuality,
freedom is seen as one’s openness to another.
One realizes that one is free for someone… in
a way, my freedom is a personal commitment
to my beloved.”

20. How is my freedom my personal commitment?
The answer lies in the gift of self. When I am
truly human, I am whole enough to give of
myself, am capable of opening myself up to
another and am precisely empowered to care
about the other, hence committing me to act in
a caring way towards that significant other.
This decentralizes me, from being self-centered
to being other-centered, prompting me to act
with responsibility towards the other’s
humanity, with commitment to upholding that
humanity in every way, even in being faithful.

21. SAFEGUARDING THE
OTHER’S VALUE

22. • The same holds for safeguarding the other’s
value. To be redundant about it, we must stress
that commitment doesn’t only mean valuing the
other, but it also means I am responsible and
take responsibility for upholding the other’s
value. Since two people in a relationship mirror
the infinite preciousness of each other’s
humanity, they share the mutuality of their self-
worth and act with mutual responsibility in
preserving this shared preciousness. Including,
needless to say, the preciousness of their shared
relationship. This shared upholding of their
dignity dignifies them both.
• As Timbreza puts it, quoting an old adage, “Ang
karangalan mo ay karangalan ko rin.”

23. RESPONSIBILITY TO
AND FOR ONE
ANOTHER

24. • Since we have already touched upon
responsibility to and for one another, we shall
expound upon a point Timbreza has on justice.
To quote: “There can be no love without justice,
and no justice without love.”
• Simply put, one who loves another, does not
act with injustice towards the other, for one acts
with love and concern for the other. If justice is
philosophically defined as giving to the other
what is due to him, then it simply means giving
to the beloved the love that is due to him. It
also means giving to the human person the
dignity that is due to his humanity, in short,
rendering to a beloved person the love and
dignity that is his.

25. In the sexual context, this goes to mean that
one who loves never abuses the sexuality of
the other. Never exploits it or destroys it, but
chooses to utilize the full power of his freedom
to build up the beauty of the other’s selfhood.

26. CONCLUSION:

27. At the beginning of this presentation, we
proposed to answer the questions, “What
precisely makes human sexuality human?”
Also, “What distinguishes it from mere
animalistic tendencies to procreate and
propagate a species?” And, “In what way does
human sexual behavior validate or nullify our
humanity?”

28. • And we have seen that as much as sexuality
can be humanizing, it can also be
dehumanizing. Timbreza states it very
succinctly: “It is humanizing if it enables me
to realize myself as much as it brings the
other to fulfillment. Both of us attain self-
realization and unitive self-fulfillment.”
• Sexuality becomes truly human when it: first,
involves the entirety of the human person,
second, it brings the person into the full
realization of his humanity and third, it
effects a mutual self-realization in another.

29. • This is what distinguishes it from mere animal
sex and it is this too that validates my being
truly human. The contrary nullifies my
humanity; that is to say, that I am being
nothing more than an animal when I act in
egotism, which, inevitably dehumanizes me
and dehumanizes others.
• In conclusion, love is the humanizing factor in
human sexuality, and we as creatures of love
are brought to fulfillment in and by it.

30. QUESTIONS?