Does the bible talk about gays

“You shall not stretch with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.”[1] It is not a surprise that this verse seems to say that lgbtq+ male sex is forbidden in the eyes of God. The dominant view of western Christianity forbids same-sex 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 perception of what this channel 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 remain 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 challenge. The ancient Near East tradition included pederasty and relations between an older man and a lad, which was

What does the Bible speak about homosexuality?

Answer

In some people’s minds, being homosexual is as much outside one’s control as the tint of your skin and your height. On the other hand, the Bible clearly and consistently declares that homosexual activity is a sin (Genesis –13; Leviticus ; ; Romans –27; 1 Corinthians ; 1 Timothy ). God created marriage and sexual relationships to be between one man and one woman: “At the launch the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will go away 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 design is sin. The Bible teaches that Christians are to reside for God, deny themselves, pick up their cross, and follow Him (Matthew ), including with their sexuality. This disconnect between what the Bible says and what some people feel leads to much controversy, debate, and even hostility.


When examining what the Bible says about homosexuality, it is important to distinguish between homosexual behaviorand homosexual inclinationsor attractions. It is the difference between active sin and the passive cond

The Bible on Homosexual Behavior

One way to argue against these passages is to make what I dial the “shellfish objection.” Keith Sharpe puts it this way: “Until Christian fundamentalists boycott shellfish restaurants, halt wearing poly-cotton T-shirts, and stone to death their wayward offspring, there is no obligation to monitor 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 assist understand this distinction.

I think of 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 hold 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 love mom’s handholding rule. The reason they forbade the Israelites from using certain fabrics or foods, or interacting with bodily flui

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 inquire what light, if any, the New Testament sheds on this controversial issue. Most people apparently suppose that the New Testament expresses strong opposition to homosexuality, but this simply is not the case. The six propositions that follow, considered cumulatively, head to the conclusion that the New Testament does not provide any guide 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 Novel Testament writers. The pos “homosexuality” came into employ only in the latter part of the ni

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