One of the most practical barriers to talking about sex is vocabulary. Many couples have only two sets of words available: slang that feels crude and disrespectful, and medical terms that feel cold and awkward. Neither fits the tenderness of a sacramental marriage. This lesson helps you find a shared language that is honest, respectful, and your own.
Why words matter
Words shape how we see things. When intimacy is described only in crude terms, it can begin to feel like something used rather than something given. When it is described only in clinical terms, it can feel like a procedure. The Church teaches that sexuality is realized in a truly human way only as an integral part of the love by which a man and a woman commit themselves totally to one another (CCC 2361, Familiaris Consortio 11). Saint John Paul II spoke of the marital act as a language of the body. It deserves words that match that dignity.
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Sources
- CCC 2361 Catechism of the Catholic Church, Sexuality as part of total self-giving
- CCC 2521-2522 Catechism of the Catholic Church, Modesty
- Familiaris Consortio 11 Familiaris Consortio (John Paul II, 1981), Man, the image of the God who is love
- TOB 1979-1984, Man and Woman He Created Them Theology of the Body, General Audiences of John Paul II
- Ephesians 4:29 Words that build up