Open AccessSeksuele reinheid voor die huwelik in Korinte in die eerste eeu nC
Author(s) -
Priscilla Botha,
Fika J. Van Rensburg
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
verbum et ecclesia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.386
H-Index - 8
eISSN - 2074-7705
pISSN - 1609-9982
DOI - 10.4102/ve.v23i1.1199
Subject(s) - judaism , virginity test , gospel , christianity , theology , ethical code , religious studies , sexual ethics , sociology , history , philosophy , gender studies , law , political science , human sexuality
Sexual purity before marriage in Corinth in the first century BC A socio-historical overview on the ethical codes within Judaism, Hellenism, and early Christianity shows that very definite codes were in place. Sexual purity within Judaism was based on two aspects, namely a property code and an ethical code. Early Christianity inherited its sexual ethics from Judaism and has reinterpreted it in the light of the Gospel. The moral status of Corinth was to a great extent the outcome of its religious and social history. The Christian community existed within these circumstances, but experienced problems in coping with the moral situation of its time. The Jewish, Graeco-Roman and Christian communities existed alongside each other in the city of Corinth and each of these groups had a code of conduct for sexual purity. It would seem that the different ethical codes for sexual purity had much in common. Virginity was a prerequisite, especially for unmarried females