Homosexuality and the Bible

Given the ongoing debate about same-sex marriage, it is time I looked at the two Testaments to remind myself why belief is so hard for me to embrace. The issue is not just the substance of the rules but the incorrigible resistance of biblical injunctions to change. Centuries may come and go but some of these rules are indelibly etched in the moral framework of some faiths. However, as we shall see, it is true that if you want to move on from ancient prejudice there is some wriggle room in the interpretation of the Bible. The theology of homosexuality on a literal view of the words is simple it is ugly. The most notorious sections are the prohibitions in the third book of the bible, Leviticus, which contains the prohibition of a man lying with another as an abomination punishable by death (Leviticus :13). Before that, in Genesis, is the story of the destruction of the towns of Sodom and Gomorrah from which the term ''sodomy'' is derived. There is no mention of lesbianism, which may be presumed by logical extension to be embraced by the same or similar prohibitions. The Old Testament is such a venerable document that it is possible for Christians to ignore it, for St Paul taught that the creation of a new law renders the previous law invalid. However, St Paul's letters to the Romans also contain a prohibition on homosexuality (Romans 1:26-). Thus theologians have many Rosetta Stone Latin America Spanish plainly worded prohibitions to rely on if they want to condemn homosexuality. Advertisement: Story continues below However, there are other texts, which are, to say the least, ambiguous. These muddy the theological waters. In the Old Testament, the story of Jonathon, Son of King Saul, and David the slayer of Goliath is clearly homoerotic, ''Jonathan was deeply attracted to David, and Jonathan loved him as himself''. Saul, suspecting love was afoot, kept David out of the family home. Saul displayed the traditional antagonism to a son and his lover when his son Jonathon came out. Later it says Jonathon and David ''kissed each other, and wept with each other''. This story could be relied upon to provide either another interpretation or at least some ambiguity on the prohibition. Similarly one could argue that nowhere in the Gospels does Jesus condemn homosexuality. Perhaps Jesus was not concerned about it? This argument is not strong for Jesus does not mention a range of other sins so his pronouncements on sin could not be assumed to be exhaustive. Some change is afoot. One can use some of the biblical inconsistencies so that pragmatic believers can overcome the apparently clear prohibitions of the text. The existence of contradictory biblical positions makes textual pragmatism unavoidable.This textual pragmatism is explored by the Christian author, Walter Wink. Wink lists 14 examples of sexual mores in scripture that are no longer considered normative, or behaviour that ought to occur. Such examples include stoning adulterers, polygamy, prohibiting sexual intercourse during menstruation (although still observed by some Orthodox Jews) and the prohibition of divorce by Jesus (Mark 10:1-) (although still observed by Catholicism and others). Wink argues that Jesus was not only silent on homosexuality, but he was noted for embracing marginalised groups such as lepers.

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