Bible verses that are against homosexuality
What the New Testament Says about Homosexuality
The Fourth R Volume May-June
Mainline Christian denominations in this land are bitterly divided over the question of homosexuality. For this reason it is important to question what light, if any, the New Testament sheds on this controversial issue. Most people apparently presume that the New Testament expresses strong opposition to homosexuality, but this simply is not the case. The six propositions that follow, considered cumulatively, direct to the conclusion that the New Testament does not provide any manage guidance for understanding and making judgments about homosexuality in the modern nature.
Proposition 1: Strictly speaking, the New Testament says nothing at all about homosexuality.
There is not a single Greek word or phrase in the entire New Testament that should be translated into English as “homosexual” or “homosexuality.” In fact, the very notion of “homosexuality”—like that of “heterosexuality,” “bisexuality,” and even “sexual orientation”—is essentially a modern concept that would simply have been unintelligible to
The Church of England issued pastoral guidance from the House of Bishops to its clergy on January 23, following the legal introduction of heterosexual civil partnerships in While the guidance concerns heterosexual civil partners, the document has, controversially, been used by the church to reiterate its position on sexual relationships outside of heterosexual marriage. It states that “sexual relationships outside heterosexual marriage are regarded as falling short of God’s purpose for human beings”.
This is squarely in line with the church’s official position on homosexuality, which is that it is “incompatible with scripture”. We have seen recent attempts by liberal members to get the church to take a more inclusive approach towards gender and sexuality, but these have been rebuffed by conservatives. In October , four bishops from the diocese of Oxford published guidance designed “to suggest local clergy and congregations in order to encourage LGBTQ+ people and their families, and to grasp from the insights of LGTBQ+ people about creature church together”.
Several months later, mor
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 lgbtq+ 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 route 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 term “homosexuality” was only recently coined in the English language. So did this term live in ancient Israel? Charles D. Myers, Jr. confirms that none of the prophets in the Hebrew Bible refer homosexuality.[2] He also contends that in ancient Israel gay 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 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 listen to their diatribes about homosexuality being a sin” (The Gay Gospels, 21).
In other words, if we can disregard rules like the prohibit on eating shellfish in Leviticus , then we should be allowed to disobey other prohibitions from the Old Testament. But this argument confuses the Former Testament’s temporary ceremonial laws with its permanent moral laws.
Here’s an analogy to help understand this distinction.
I remember two rules my mom gave me when I was young: hold her hand when I cross the avenue and don’t drink what’s under the sink. Today, I hold to follow only the latter rule, since the former is no longer needed to guard me. In fact, it would now do me more hurt than good.
Old Testament ritual/ceremonial laws were like mom’s handholding control. The rea