You can count me among the 999/1000 Latinists who agree that amor/amoris is most definitely about sex.

Once upon a time, I earned advanced degrees in Classics from fancy universities and worked in the Classical field, mostly teaching and dealing in rare books/paleography. I quit to get married and raise my children (insert feminist gasp of horror here). Unsurprisingly, as you touched on in an earlier post, I am much happier cleaning the kitchen and reading children’s books ad infinitum than I ever was in academia.

I first saw the meme with the gross book cover on it and thought the whole thing was a joke, even the title, but NOPE.

Then I read that it was the actual title and I choked on my coffee. My preschool aged daughter asked me if I was laughing or crying- it was a good question.

I really, really, really wish this was just a stupid error with some dumb cleric with no Latin training (none of those sitting around,now are there?) just google-translated a cute title but I just don’t believe it. It’s just doubly gross when paired with ‘laetitia’ which as Fr Hunwicke correctly assesses is a more physical ‘joy’…. like excitement and exuberance and it’s just GROSS GROSS GROSS and paints a terrible and disgusting image.

On balance, considering all of the usages, I’d say it’s probably not generally used to talk about homosexual sodomy- there are many and more frequently used words to talk about that (which I’ve always attributed to the ancient’s better grasp of natural law…) BUT….there is still enough double entendre there for it to be suspect and suggestive. Even if you totally discount the potential homosexual angle, amor/amoris definitely and frequently is used to talk about hetero- sex, sodomitical acts, and lust lust lust. It’s not even debatable. These people are a special kind of demonic.

I could go on and on and on about the linguistic angles and problems but I won’t…I have cleaning to do and babies to love. Thanks for reading a vent from an old Classics nerd.

More prayer, more penance.

Thanks for all you do. You are in our prayers.

In Christ,

A