Is There a Future for Christian Sexual Ethics?

During its lifespan the church has struggled with questions concerning right and wrong. Sexuality has always been a fundamental part of its ethical teaching in theory and in practice. For centuries the church has told people what is permitted and prohibited in their sexual life. The Reformation in the 16th century brought a radical change: Martin Luther divided earthly and spiritual regime and stated that ethics belongs to earthly matters.

In Lutheran theology morality is considered to be the responsibility of an individual person. Thus moral decisions can be made using human reason without referring to religious dogma. Also sexual appetite belongs to the earthly regime and is one of the natural functions like eating.
However, Lutheran church, along with the majority of Christian churches, still insists that sexuality issues should be addressed according to religious conventions. Because of this churches have major problems in dealing with homosexuality and non-marital relationships, for example. In these issues their attachment to “Christian sexual ethics” seems to promote inequality and even support hate-speech.
In Protestant tradition religious dogmas are seen as unchanging, but ethics is subject to temporal and cultural changes. However, above-mentioned issues often contradict this and evoke arguments based on scripture and divine world-order. The value of such religious approaches in ethical research and discussion are very questionable and it must be asked if there is any future for them at all? Surely loving one’s neighbor is valuable, but its message is not convincing unless it is verified in practice.