Medieval polemic treated Muslim sexuality as a symptom of a deeper spiritual laxity

Evidence

Within this general theme a variety of different emphases is met. In this context sex has its place only as the chief among several symptoms of an underlying laxity. Peter the Venerable spoke of Islamic institutions as “‘prudentes secundum carnem’ - judicious in a fleshly way, we might almost say - as if to speak so were to make a significant concession to Islamic feeling. — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 855

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Christian horror at Muslim divorce masked an unspoken fear of polyandry; Christian polemicists portrayed medieval Muslim sexuality as wholly unregulated; Medieval Christians explained Islamic licentiousness through Arab climate and temperament (+4 more)