Wait a minute, Bible isn't literal? So how do you know that homosexuality is literally an abomination?

Question

Wait a minute, I can't take the Bible literally? So, how do we know God really literally destroyed Sodom? How do we know that the Bible is to be taken literally when it says homosexuality is an abomination?

Christians are saying I can't take the Bible literally, and this must mean I am supposed to exercise some independence of thought. At what standard am I to use in taking some things literally and somethings as allegory?

It seems I am supposed to think for myself, and not take the Bible literally, how do I know what is literal and what is not?

Answer 1

That is the problem with the Bible. It is supposed to act as a set of guidelines for people to live by, but its writings can be interpreted in so many ways.... And that is part of the reason there are so many different religions that stemmed from Christianity.... because so many people chose (and still choose) to interpret it differently.

I don't think the Bible is the word of God Himself. Fact is, it was written by many different men. Men who claim to have spoken to God (like David Koresh thought he did...), but for all we know, these men were either dellusional, on drugs, or lied about speaking to God for the fame of getting a story in the most famous book on Earth. Most likely, these were men trying to do good for the world by adding their own perspective of good versus evil into our set of guidelines to follow. But even the best intentions can go awry. For example, Leviticus obviously thought it would be better for mankind if homosexuality was prohibited; however, that was just someone's intended good intention, most likely, and NOT the word of God. So really our only choice with the Bible is to take out of it what we find is good or helpful to us individually, and definitely to not take anything 100% to heart as "the correct word", because to do so would be to tell all other people that your opinion is correct and their opinion is wrong.

What the Bible SHOULD say on the very first page is that there are only TWO universal principles we must hold as permanent:

1. Thou shalt never cause unwanted physical harm to another person.
2. Thou shalt be tolerant of others.

That is all. All other stories in this book are to be interpreted and used as you wish to guide you down your individual path in life. There is no one correct interpretation, so be tolerant of the choices of others... so long as no one causes unwanted physical harm to others.

Answer 2

"Literal" and "allegorical" generally were not categories applied to the Biblical texts by their authors. They were applied much later by exegetes. When a text was blatantly incorrect, or inapplicable, or absurd, or incomprehensible, exegetes would look for an "allegorical" meaning. So it was really rather arbitrary what they took as "literal" and what they took as "allegorical." It had more to do with their predilections and biases than with any objective standard. And driving the whole process was the need for the Bible to be infallibly true. If its literal sense was obviously incorrect or absurd, then there "must" be an allegorical (or tropological, or anagogical) sense in which it can be true. It's all very fancy footwork. It gets around the fact that, for example, Israelite authors wrote glowing descriptions of the barbaric acts of their God which were horrific to the sensibilities of more humane people; so we ignore the fact that the authors intended to write *history,* and we wrest a different meaning from the text.

Nowadays the first question exegetes ask is: what did the author intend to convey? Having asked and begun to answer that, *then* we can ask ourselves: do we believe this? What does it tell us that's of value, and what do we have to reject? What criteria can we use? There is simply no easy, hard-and-fast solution to this problem. That's why liberal Christians nowadays are such theological pluralists and tolerate such a wide diversity of opinion. Ultimately, it is a matter of your conscience. That means that you have to struggle to discern the foundations of your own convictions.

For myself, that foundation is the freedom and dignity of the human person. That's the lens through which I view all attempts to express religious truth, and the ultimate criterion by which I judge those attempts.

Answer 3

Common sense goes a long way. Some things do harm, others don't. Some people don't know the difference so light is given on the subject. Whether you receive it or not is the choice of the individual. Reading the Bible without the Light of Spirit is just like reading any other book. Something may help you while others will confuse the mind. It isn't a book for carnal minds.

Answer 4

A christian would not say the bible isn't literal. The bible is literal. Homosexuality is a sin in the bible, yet if you don't believe in the bible, then you have no reason to believe homosexuality is a sin, and your question is irrelevent.

How do you know what is literal? Ask God to show you. Believe in him. You won't believe anything in the bible, to say nothing of believing that homosexuality is wrong, if you don't believe in God.

The fact that you are here tells me that your heart is in the right place, just listen to it. Take care.

Answer 5

the bible is supposed to be used as a tool to enlightenment just as all fables and myths. it is a parable,literally a series of stories designed to teach a truth to the person reading it. as 3 people can read the same story and get 3 different meanings its for your own personal truth. Madeline l'engle has written some beautiful books on this subject i recommend the genesis trilogy (3 books in 1) you cant take the bible literally there are hundreds of direct contradictions.i mean eating shellfish is an abomination and you're supposed to stone defiant children to death.

Answer 6

The Bible should be read literally. When you do this you will understand when there are metaphors, or symbolism. The main point is that you must realize you've broken God's moral laws and if you stand guilty before Him on judgment day, you will end up in Hell. Jesus died on a cross and rose again in order to provide a way for you to be forgiven. you must Repent, which means to ask for forgiveness and turn from your sins, then put your complete Trust in Jesus Christ. This is the only way to be forgiven and enter the kingdom of Heaven.

Answer 7

I'll read the verse (again) Genesis 2:24-25 says, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.” Hebrew 13:4 says, “Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.” All sexual sins (i.e. promiscuity, adultery, homosexuality, prostitution, etc.) are sins because they do not conform to the limit of sex being a marital activity. In 1 Corinthians 6:9, Paul wrote, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind. A few “Christians” have hurt the cause of morality by acting out violently and/or hatefully against homosexuals. When Matthew Shepherd was killed for being homosexual,* a Baptist congregation gathered outside the courthouse during his killers’ trial. They held up banners that stated how many days Shepherd had been in hell, and used some disgusting names to describe him. They seemed to be happy that he had been brutally murdered. Hate is not the answer to anything. Every one of us is sinful, yet every one of us is loved by God. Jesus did not celebrate the death of Matthew Shepherd, and neither should we. “Hate the sin, but love the sinner,” is how the saying goes, and that applies to homosexuals as well.
As it is written,

But whoso shall cause one of these little ones
that believe on me to stumble,
it is profitable for him
that a great millstone
should be hanged about his neck,
and that he should be sunk in the depth of the sea.
Where does he say it's not a sin?


2 Timothy 3:16 all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:



Hope this helps.

Answer 8

wait a minute...who is telling you that the Bible is NOT literal. I read in the Bible that ALL scriptures are GOD inspired and worthy of proof and testing. Not only does God call homosexuality an abominatinion in the OLD testament...but in the NEW testament in Corinthians...he says that they will have NO part in the kingdom of heaven.

Answer 9

Read, man. Read, read, read. Go to the theology section of your local bookstore/library, find books by authors writing about other faiths, and see what they have to say.

But I thought many Pxians thought you were to take the Bible literally. Have they changed their minds now?

Answer 10

I take most of the Bible literally. Some of it is in figurative form, but most is literal in my opinion.