Anecdotes and Trivia will be a series of posts that will look at strange, bizarre and unusual tidbits that occured throughout the history of sex. I will be scouring the archives in search of nuggets that should hopefully delight and amuse us all.
As Europe descended into the chaos of the Dark Ages during the 7thCentury the Catholic Church was often preoccupied with challenges of the day. In a world where marauding barbarian hordes were everywhere and civilization was collapsing all around you it was comforting to know that the Catholic Church was on the job ensuring that homosexuality never got out of hand. Around 650 A.D. the Cummean Penitential was issued to parish priests to be used a guidebook in doling out penances to guilty parishioners during confessionals. Homosexual sins were treated as follows:
Kissing – Offenders under 20 years of age:
- Simple kissing – 6 special fasts
- Licentious kissing without emission – 8 special fasts
- Kissing with emission or embrace – 10 special fasts
Kissing – Offenders over 20 years of age:
- No special distinction made. The guilty party was to live in continence, eat separately (on bread and water) to be excluded from church; the length of which was presumably at the discretion of the confessor.
Mutual Masturbation – Offenders over 20 years of age:
- 20-40 days penance for first offense
- 100 days penance for second offense
- If habitual the persons concerned are to be separated and do penance for a year.
Interfemoral Connection – Insertion of the penis between the thighs of the passive partner:
- 100 days penance for the first offense
- 1 year penance for second offense
Fellatio – Oral intercourse
- 4 years penance for first offense
- 7 years penance for second offense
Sodomy – Anal intercourse
- 7 years penance for any offense
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