What does it say about homosexuality in the bible
Leviticus
“You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.”[1] It is not a surprise that this verse seems to say that gay male sex is forbidden in the eyes of God. The dominant view of western Christianity forbids gay relations. This verse is one of the clobber passages that people cite from the Bible to condemn homosexuality. This essay first looks at the various ways the verse is translated into the English Bible and then explores some of the strategies used to create an affirming interpretation of what this passage means for the LGBTQ community. More specifically, it presents the interpretation of K. Renato Lings in which Lev. refers to male-on-male incest.
While Lev. is used to condemn homosexuality, we must realize that the word “homosexuality” was only recently coined in the English language. So did this term exist in ancient Israel? Charles D. Myers, Jr. confirms that none of the prophets in the Hebrew Bible mention homosexuality.[2] He also contends that in ancient Israel same-sex relations were viewed as an ancient Near East issue. The anc
The Bible on Homosexual Behavior
One way to argue against these passages is to make what I contact the “shellfish objection.” Keith Sharpe puts it this way: “Until Christian fundamentalists boycott shellfish restaurants, cease wearing poly-cotton T-shirts, and stone to death their wayward offspring, there is no obligation to pay attention to their diatribes about homosexuality being a sin” (The Gay Gospels, 21).
In other words, if we can disregard rules fancy the ban on eating shellfish in Leviticus , then we should be allowed to disobey other prohibitions from the Antique Testament. But this argument confuses the Old Testament’s temporary ceremonial laws with its permanent moral laws.
Here’s an analogy to serve understand this distinction.
I recall two rules my mom gave me when I was young: hold her hand when I cross the street and don’t drink what’s under the sink. Today, I include to follow only the latter rule, since the former is no longer needed to protect me. In fact, it would now do me more harm than good.
Old Testament ritual/ceremonial laws were fancy mom’s handholding rule. The rea
What does the Bible say about homosexuality?
Answer
In some people’s minds, being homosexual is as much outside one’s control as the color of your skin and your height. On the other hand, the Bible clearly and consistently declares that homosexual exercise is a sin (Genesis –13; Leviticus ; ; Romans –27; 1 Corinthians ; 1 Timothy ). God created marriage and sexual relationships to be between one human and one woman: “At the inception the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’” (Matthew –5). Anything outside of God’s intent and plan is sin. The Bible teaches that Christians are to live for God, deny themselves, pluck up their cross, and follow Him (Matthew ), including with their sexuality. This disconnect between what the Bible says and what some people undergo leads to much controversy, debate, and even hostility.
When examining what the Bible says about homosexuality, it is significant to distinguish between homosexual behaviorand hom
BBC News
Confused how two groups of church-goers can possess such conflicting views about whether it's OK to be gay?
Both sides of the debate about homosexuality in the church, which threatens to split the worldwide Anglican church, keep their views sincerely and after much study. So how can their views be so contradictory?
The Bible makes very limited mentions of homosexuality - lesbianism isn't mentioned at all in the Elderly Testament - and as the examples below present, interpretations of the verses that do exist differ hugely.
Following each of the verses below is a brief illustration of what a hardline pro- and anti-gay position might be. (Most Christians grasp views somewhere in between these two stances.)
An illustration of the division can be seen by what either side might say about the friendship in the Old Testament between David and Jonathan. One verse reads: "I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother; dear and delightful you were to me; your love for me was wonderful, surpassing the love of women."
| PRO-GAY A pro-gay position might be that this is a clear i |