Can you be gay in the bible
Is being gay a sin?
Answer
In order to answer the question “Is being homosexual a sin?” we depend on to challenge some assumptions upon which the doubt is based. Within the past fifty years, the term gay, as applied to homosexuality, has exploded into mainstream culture, and we are told that “being gay” is as much outside one’s governance as “being short” or having blonde hair. So the question is worded in a loaded way and impossible to adequately answer in that shape. We need to interval this question up and deal with each piece separately. Rather than request, “Is being gay a sin?” we need to ask, “Is it sinful to have same-sex attractions?” And, “Is it sinful to engage in gay activities because of those attractions?”
Concerning the first ask, “Is it sinful to have same-sex attractions?” the answer is complicated. First, we should probably distinguish between (actively) sinning and (passively) being tempted:
Being temptedis not a sin. Jesus was tempted, but He never sinned (Matthew ; Hebrews ). Eve was tempted in the garden, and the forbidden fruit definitely appealed to her,
Has 'Homosexual' Always Been in the Bible?
Reprinted with permission from The Forge Online
The word “arsenokoitai” shows up in two different verses in the bible, but it was not translated to signify “homosexual” until
We got to remain down with Ed Oxford at his home in Long Beach, California and talk about this ask.
You include been part of a research team that is seeking to understand how the decision was made to put the synonyms homosexual in the bible. Is that true?
Ed: Yes. It first showed up in the RSV translation. So before figuring out why they decided to use that word in the RSV translation (which is outlined in my upcoming novel with Kathy Baldock, Forging a Sacred Weapon: How the Bible Became Anti-Gay) I wanted to notice how other cultures and translations treated the identical verses when they were translated during the Reformation years ago. So I started collecting old Bibles in French, German, Irish, Gaelic, Czechoslovakian, Polish… you name it. Now I’ve got most European major languages that I’ve calm over time. An
The Bible on Queer Behavior
One way to argue against these passages is to make what I call the “shellfish objection.” Keith Sharpe puts it this way: “Until Christian fundamentalists boycott shellfish restaurants, stop wearing poly-cotton T-shirts, and stone to death their wayward offspring, there is no obligation to hear to their diatribes about homosexuality organism a sin” (The Gay Gospels, 21).
In other words, if we can disregard rules like the ban on eating shellfish in Leviticus , then we should be allowed to disobey other prohibitions from the Old Testament. But this argument confuses the Old Testament’s temporary ceremonial laws with its lasting moral laws.
Here’s an analogy to assist understand this distinction.
I remember two rules my mom gave me when I was young: grip her hand when I cross the street and don’t drink what’s under the sink. Today, I have to follow only the latter rule, since the former is no longer needed to protect me. In fact, it would now execute me more impair than good.
Old Testament ritual/ceremonial laws were like mom’s handholding rule. The rea
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 queer 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 legal title “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 obstacle. The anc