Christl Ruth Vonholdt (born 1954) is a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

physician for Child and Adolescent Medicine, former Director of the German Institute for Youth and Society (Deutsches Institut für Jugend und Gesellschaft), Christian

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

and is member of the Reichenberg Fellowship.

Life

Vonholdt studied medicine and received a doctorate at the

Hannover Medical School The Hannover Medical SchoolAlthough the English spelling of the city name is "Hanover", this form of the name, using the German spelling of the city name, is used as the English-language name of the school, for example . (german: Medizinische Ho ...

for a study on

varicose veins Varicose veins, also known as varicoses, are a medical condition in which superficial veins become enlarged and twisted. These veins typically develop in the legs, just under the skin. Varicose veins usually cause few symptoms. However, some indi ...

(''Rezidivhäufigkeit und Komplikationen nach operativer Therapie der primären Varikosis (Krampfadern)'' ). She is specialist (''Facharzt'') for child and youth medicineide
Fachärztin: Nichts ist stärker als Beziehung zur Mutter
, AdventEcho online (Advent-Verlag Lüneburg), Mai 29., 2009
original link
). On 18. Oktober 2004 she was invited to an official hearing of the

German Parliament The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...

by the

CDU/CSU CDU/CSU, unofficially the Union parties (german: Unionsparteien, ) or the Union, is a centre-right Christian-democratic political alliance of two political parties in Germany: the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Christian Soc ...

-parliamentary faction. She was questioned on the bill calling for the revision of German

civil partnership A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...

law 2009 she has been lecturer at the International congress on psychiatry and counseling in

Marburg Marburg ( or ) is a university town in the German federal state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district (''Landkreis''). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has a population of approximate ...

, Germany.

Views on Homosexuality

Vonholdt's views on homosexuality are controversial. They are based upon both theological and psychological arguments.

Theology

From a biblical standpoint, she, together with most Christians worldwide, holds homosexual practise (''praktizierte Homosexualität'') to be sinful.Christl Ruth Vonholdt: ''Eine Frage des Menschenbildes – Warum Homosexualität Sünde ist.'' In: Zeitzeichen 6 (2005), p. 33-34. She states that, from a theological perspective, it is only the unity of man and woman which is able to represent a complete human being and marriage is an icon of God, a reflection of God's image. Sexuality is the creative energy which enables us reach out beyond ourselves to the opposite sex. Homosexual intercourse has been called sin by Jews and Christians because it fails to be an icon of God. She believes the argument, that homosexuality is natural and therefore, not to be considered sin, has its roots in

Gnosticism Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people ...

. In regards to the religious viewpoint, Vonholdt has expressed her belief that God has created everyone with sexuality. It is the duty of man to then ''be oriented'' in the correct manner, which is toward the ''opposite sex''.

Psychology

From a psychological standpoint, she regards homosexuality to be a symptom for a deeper underlying dysfunction. She assumes that homosexuality can be caused by deep emotional suffering in early childhood. Based on this assumption she recommends therapy for

egodystonic In psychoanalysis, egosyntonic refers to the behaviors, values, and feelings that are in harmony with or acceptable to the needs and goals of the ego, or consistent with one's ideal self-image. Egodystonic (or ''ego alien'') is the opposite, re ...

homosexuals.
* http://www.dijg.de/132.html * http://www.dijg.de/608.html * http://www.dijg.de/133.30.html * http://www.dijg.de/fileadmin/dijg-uploads/pdf/bulletin_12_06_editorial.pdf She describes it, in the Catholic journal

Communio ''Communio'' is a federation of theological journals, founded in 1972 by Joseph Ratzinger, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Henri de Lubac, Walter Kasper, Marc Ouellet, Louis Bouyer, and others. ''Communio'', now published in fifteen editions (including ...

, as the "development of a mature heterosexual potential".C. Frank
"'Homoheiler' im Hörsaal"

Süddeutsche Zeitung The ''Süddeutsche Zeitung'' (; ), published in Munich, Bavaria, is one of the largest daily newspapers in Germany. The tone of SZ is mainly described as centre-left, liberal, social-liberal, progressive-liberal, and social-democrat. History ...

, April 29, 2009
English

Works

Books

* Christl Ruth Vonholdt: ''Rezidivhäufigkeit und Komplikationen nach operativer Therapie der primären Varikosis.'' Dissertation an der Medizinischen Hochschule Hannover, Hannover 1981 * Christl Ruth Vonholdt (Ed.): ''Striving for Gender Identity: Homosexuals and Christian Counseling. A workbook for the Church.'' Reichelsheim 1996, Reichenberg Fellowship * Christl Ruth Vonholdt,

Gerhard Besier Gerhard Besier (born 30 November 1947, in Wiesbaden) is a German Lutheran theologian, historian and politician best known for his work on church-state relations in the Third Reich and in the German Democratic Republic. Work Besier's publications ...

und Hermann Klenk: ''Christliche Hoffnung, Weltoffenheit, Gemeinsames Leben. Gelbe Mammuts auf dem Berg.'' Festschrift für Horst-Klaus Hofmann, Brunnen-Verlag, Gießen 1998, * Christl Ruth Vonholdt, Andreas Laun,

Norbert Geis Norbert Geis (born January 13, 1939 in Großwallstadt, Bavaria) is a German politician. He is a member of the Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU). Life Geis studied Philosophy, Theology and Law at the Universities of Freiburg and Würzburg. ...

et at. (Hrsg.): ''Homo-Ehe. Nein zum Ja-Wort aus christlicher Sicht.'' Zisterzienserkonvent Langwaden, 2001, * Christl Ruth Vonholdt rsg. ''Verwundete Weiblichkeit : homosexuell empfindende Frauen verstehen'' Brunnen-Verlag, 2005,

Articles

* Christl Ruth Vonholdt
''The Deconstruction Of Marriage and Family''
* Christl Ruth Vonholdt: ''Eine Frage des Menschenbildes – Warum Homosexualität Sünde ist.'' In: '' Zeitzeichen 6 (2005), p. 33-34 (German)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vonholdt, Christl Ruth German non-fiction writers 1954 births Living people German women writers