"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." (NIV)
My question on this subject is: Was the biblical teaching that homosexuality is a sin actually about condemning same-sex love and if not is the justification of homosexual sexual intercourse, marriage etc as a form of love actually valid?
To examine this question I must first define the questionable terms being used lest there be some confusion:
Love:
In English "love" is a catch-all term which actually stands for a variety of different feelings, however, in many languages there are in fact completely different words which more correctly express the different forms of love. Greek, which is closest to both the bible (being one of it's original languages) and English (which it has heavily influenced), has at the very least four different words which segment the broad range of emotions encapsulated by our term "love". These words are:
- Agape: ἀγάπη selfless love of one person for another without sexual implications (especially love that is spiritual in nature). (Christian theology) the love of God or Christ for mankind. wordnik: agape
- Eros: ἔρως physical love; sexual desire; a type of love that seeks fulfillment without violation or something else, libido. wordnik: eros
- Philia: φιλία friendship, liking wordnik:philia
- Storge: στοργή the strong instinctive affection of animals for their young; hence, the attachment of parents for children, or of children for parents: parental or filial love. wordnik:storge
Sexual orientation to persons of the same sex; sexual activity with another of the same sex; the state of being sexually and romantically attracted primarily to person of the same sex. wordnik: homosexuality
Given these definitions by unbiased secular sources, it would seem that homosexuality is a type of "love" which falls within the category of Eros or erotic love being a physical lust or sexual desire because it is defined as a sexual orientation, sexual and romantic attraction. So does the biblical passage 1 John 4:7-8 really refer to this kind of love? Let's see. I'll insert the definition of Eros: sexual desire in blue where the confusing term "love" was:
"Dear friends, let us have sexual desire for one another, for sexual desire comes from God. Everyone who has sexual desire has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not have sexual desire does not know God, because God is sexual desire." (NIV)
Does this sound accurate to you? Does it sound like lust rather than love?
Lust: Intense or unrestrained sexual craving. Lust: wordnik.com
Doesn't this sound more like the hedonistic teaching of LeVeyan Satanism rather than Christianity or indeed any other non satanic religion?
Hedonism: the pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses. Hedonism: wordnik.com
Indeed is this not very similar to the argument that paedophiles and pederasts use to explain why they should be allowed to have sex with children and youths, ie because they "love" them The Paedophile Information Exchange and NAMBLA?
Is all "love", really love?
Lust: Intense or unrestrained sexual craving. Lust: wordnik.com
Doesn't this sound more like the hedonistic teaching of LeVeyan Satanism rather than Christianity or indeed any other non satanic religion?
Hedonism: the pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses. Hedonism: wordnik.com
Indeed is this not very similar to the argument that paedophiles and pederasts use to explain why they should be allowed to have sex with children and youths, ie because they "love" them The Paedophile Information Exchange and NAMBLA?
Is all "love", really love?
Now I will replace the word love with the definition of Agape: selfless love without sexual implications (the opposite of Eros) in red.
Dear friends, let us have selfless love without sexual implications for one another, for selfless love without sexual implications comes from God. Everyone who has selfless love without sexual implications has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not have selfless love without sexual implications does not know God, because God is selfless love without sexual implications." (NIV)Is this not the general message throughout the bible? Isn't this what Christ's ministry, message and death was all about? To determine this let's read a little more of the verse to get some context:
Original NIV:
This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 1 John 4:9-12Eros:
This is how God showed his sexual desire among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is sexual desire: not that we sexually desired God, but that he sexually desired us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so sexually desired us, we also ought to sexually desire one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we sexually desire one another, God lives in us and his sexual desire is made complete in us.Agape:
This is how God showed his selfless love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is selfless love: not that we selflessly loved God, but that he selflessly loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so selflessly loved us, we also ought to selflessly love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we selflessly love one another, God lives in us and his selfless love is made complete in us.
Which one sounds like a perversion of the message of spiritual salvation? Read the full chapter in its entire context here and decide for yourself which definition of "love" the bible is actually referring in this scripture. What does sexual desire have to do with the love that God had for he world when he sent his son to Earth?
To continue on with the examination of homosexuality and the bible:
In Leviticus 18, a chapter on Unlawful Sexual Relations, same-sex sexual intercourse between two men is listed as "detestable" according to verse 22, however the chapter does not single homosexual sexual intercourse out but rather lists it amongst other "unlawful" sexual activities including incest by birth and marriage, ritual sex abuse and murder of children (v.21), bestiality and sexual relations likely to cause conflict in the family, such as having both sisters or a mother and her daughter.
The scripture makes no direct reference to love of any kind. It is referring exclusively to the activity of sexual intercourse which as our contemporary global society is increasingly aware is not the same as and often has little to do with "love" and much more to do with lust.
This is not to say that the bible specifically spoke against erotic love, in fact far from being the prudish, sex hating book that some anti-christs would have the general public believe, the bible does deal with this subject in a positive light on a number of occasions such as the entire book Song of Songs which is about the relationship between a husband and wife.
The bible does not state that agape (selfless love), philia (friendship, liking) or storge (parental or filial love) between two persons of the same sex or even the opposite sex is sinful or wrong. It clearly states that acting on eros towards a person of the same sex is detestable. This distinction between non-sexual love and erotic love, lust or sexual desire can be seen in the other passages which make reference to homosexual sexual intercourse such as:
The entire context of the verse ie Romans 1:18-32 in which other undesirable behaviours are mentioned has been linked for readers' convenience.
Now in Leviticus 18 and 20, homosexual sexual intercourse is referred to as "detestable" and in Romans 1:24-27 it is called "unnatural" but why is this? What is it about homosexual sexual intercourse which is so undesirable that is repetitively warned against in the bible and even referred to as an "error"?
I believe that in order to understand the reason why homosexual sexual intercourse is not acceptable within Christianity, we must go back to the beginning of the bible and the book of Genesis.
According to Genesis 2:20-25, Eve, the first woman was created from Adam, the first man. She was described by him as "bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh." as verse 24 states:
Procreation, lineage and birth-right are at the centre of the bible and as I mentioned in a previous post are what the Old Testament is all about in reference to Christianity.
God established his covenant with Abraham through the promise of numerous descendants.
Had Abraham been someone who exclusively practised homosexual sexual intercourse even in the confines of a loving monogamous homosexual marriage, he would not have had any descendants. That is a simple biological fact.
How would a covenant between himself and God have been established?
How would he have become the patriarch of three world religions?
The importance of descendants in the bible is made apparent by, for example the genealogy of Jesus as listed in Matthew 1 which starts from Abraham and continues through 42 generations to Jesus' stepfather Joseph. The pre-Abrahamic geneaology from Adam to Noah and then from Noah's son Shem to Abraham can be found in Genesis 5 and Genesis 11:10-26 this listing Jesus' ancestors right back to Adam.
One of Jesus' few listed female ancestors is Tamar the same woman whose story, also known as the Sin of Onan is the reason behind the Catholic Churches' rules against the use of contraceptives. In Genesis 38 the story of Judah reveals that his oldest son Er married a woman called Tamar but died before the couple could have any children. So Judah instructed his second son Onan to impregnate his sister-in-law and provide his brother with some descendants.
Other scriptures which explicitly mention homosexuality are 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 on Lawsuits Amongst believers:
In conclusion, the bible does not state that people who participate in homosexual sexual intercourse are the be all and end all of evil. Homosexual sexual intercourse is merely stated to be one of many sexual activities which should be avoided by people who refer to themselves as believers. People who persecute homosexuals in the name of Christianity might like to consider the following verses:
There is no "homophobia" in the bible unless one believes that the entire bible from the very first chapter was written with that express purpose because the bible has directional flow from the creation of humanity to the salvation of the same at the end of time. Does it therefore seem plausible that the ultimate motive was hatred towards homosexuals who were even less numerous then than they are now?
There is simply the fact that humans are supposed to procreate sexually as part of God's plan for populating the earth and homosexuality is the complete opposite of this as evidenced by the term "breeders"
Christianity is about a spiritual relationship with Jesus and God which often means denying the desires of humans' carnal nature. Ultimately what is the point in engaging exclusively in completely non productive sex other than carnal pleasure and is this sort of activity actually conducive with calling one's self a Christian?
The bible does not state that agape (selfless love), philia (friendship, liking) or storge (parental or filial love) between two persons of the same sex or even the opposite sex is sinful or wrong. It clearly states that acting on eros towards a person of the same sex is detestable. This distinction between non-sexual love and erotic love, lust or sexual desire can be seen in the other passages which make reference to homosexual sexual intercourse such as:
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity or the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things than the Creator - who is for ever praised. Amen. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. Romans 1:24-27
The entire context of the verse ie Romans 1:18-32 in which other undesirable behaviours are mentioned has been linked for readers' convenience.
Now in Leviticus 18 and 20, homosexual sexual intercourse is referred to as "detestable" and in Romans 1:24-27 it is called "unnatural" but why is this? What is it about homosexual sexual intercourse which is so undesirable that is repetitively warned against in the bible and even referred to as an "error"?
I believe that in order to understand the reason why homosexual sexual intercourse is not acceptable within Christianity, we must go back to the beginning of the bible and the book of Genesis.
According to Genesis 2:20-25, Eve, the first woman was created from Adam, the first man. She was described by him as "bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh." as verse 24 states:
"That is why man leaves his father and mother and is unified to his wife, and they become one flesh." NIVWhen the bible states that a heterosexual couples become one flesh, it is referring not only to becoming a single entity as part of a couple but also refers to the sexual reproductions of humans. Genesis 1:27-28:
"So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them an said to them, 'Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground." NIVThe instruction to "be fruitful and increase in number" was therefore the very first commandment and was given to humans even before they were banished from the Garden of Eden at a time when according to the bible and Christian beliefs, God was still walking the Earth and talking to humans face to face in person. God repeated this commandment after the flood when he told Noah:
"As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it." Genesis 9:7 NIVThis repetition of the command to procreate occurred just before the Rainbow Covenant between God, Noah and every living creature on the earth. It would therefore seem apparent that since homosexual sexual intercourse is completely non-productive and can never be productive without the extensive research and interference of science, that homosexuality is considered "detestable" because it disregards the first and most basic commandment. To procreate.
Procreation, lineage and birth-right are at the centre of the bible and as I mentioned in a previous post are what the Old Testament is all about in reference to Christianity.
God established his covenant with Abraham through the promise of numerous descendants.
"As for me, this is my covenant with you: you will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram: your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you fruitful; I will make nations of you and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you." Genesis 17:3-7
Had Abraham been someone who exclusively practised homosexual sexual intercourse even in the confines of a loving monogamous homosexual marriage, he would not have had any descendants. That is a simple biological fact.
How would a covenant between himself and God have been established?
How would he have become the patriarch of three world religions?
The importance of descendants in the bible is made apparent by, for example the genealogy of Jesus as listed in Matthew 1 which starts from Abraham and continues through 42 generations to Jesus' stepfather Joseph. The pre-Abrahamic geneaology from Adam to Noah and then from Noah's son Shem to Abraham can be found in Genesis 5 and Genesis 11:10-26 this listing Jesus' ancestors right back to Adam.
One of Jesus' few listed female ancestors is Tamar the same woman whose story, also known as the Sin of Onan is the reason behind the Catholic Churches' rules against the use of contraceptives. In Genesis 38 the story of Judah reveals that his oldest son Er married a woman called Tamar but died before the couple could have any children. So Judah instructed his second son Onan to impregnate his sister-in-law and provide his brother with some descendants.
"But Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death also." NIVSo Onan was killed for purposefully disobeying the instruction to provide his brother's widow with some offspring. In the end Tamar had to impersonate a prostitute and have sex with her father-in-law to get the children she was owed. One of her son's descendants was Jesus. Again had either Judah or Tamar been engaging in exclusively homosexual sexual intercourse, they would not have had any descendants and Jesus (whose mother Mary was a relative of Joseph) would not have been born.
Other scriptures which explicitly mention homosexuality are 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 on Lawsuits Amongst believers:
Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.Read in context here.
In conclusion, the bible does not state that people who participate in homosexual sexual intercourse are the be all and end all of evil. Homosexual sexual intercourse is merely stated to be one of many sexual activities which should be avoided by people who refer to themselves as believers. People who persecute homosexuals in the name of Christianity might like to consider the following verses:
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?" Matthew 7:1-3 NIV
There is no "homophobia" in the bible unless one believes that the entire bible from the very first chapter was written with that express purpose because the bible has directional flow from the creation of humanity to the salvation of the same at the end of time. Does it therefore seem plausible that the ultimate motive was hatred towards homosexuals who were even less numerous then than they are now?
There is simply the fact that humans are supposed to procreate sexually as part of God's plan for populating the earth and homosexuality is the complete opposite of this as evidenced by the term "breeders"
"Breeder is a slang term (either joking or derogatory) used to describe heterosexuals, primarily by homosexuals. It is drawn from the fact that homosexual sexual activity does not normally lead to reproduction, whereas heterosexual sex can, with implicit mocking by connotation of animal husbandry, the original usage of the word. LGBT Project Wiki"It is clear from the bible that the choice to participate in homosexual sexual intercourse is the problem and not the people who through no fault or choice of their own suffer homosexual urges. This is evident because every chapter or verse listed refers to the action of homosexual intercourse.
Christianity is about a spiritual relationship with Jesus and God which often means denying the desires of humans' carnal nature. Ultimately what is the point in engaging exclusively in completely non productive sex other than carnal pleasure and is this sort of activity actually conducive with calling one's self a Christian?
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