WHY are so many religous people bigoted and cruel to Gay's and Lesbians?

Question

In our Judeo-Christian society, the documents collectively known as the Bible serve as the primary guide on most issues. It is interesting that many Christians take literally the references to homosexual acts, while interpreting other text with great flexibility. One person reported listening to a nationally-known woman speak in her campaign against homosexuality. She spent quite a bit of time quoting impressively from Leviticus. The listener accepted much of what the speaker said until he realized that, by Levitical standards, the crusader herself had broken many biblical laws – she spoke in church (1 Corinthians 14:34), she taught men (1 Timothy 2:12), she was wearing a dress made of cotton and polyester (Deuteronomy 22:11), and others of which he was probably unaware.

What does the Bible really say about homosexuality? Actually, very little. Most significantly, Jesus said nothing at all. Considering the relatively small amount of attention the Bible pays to the subject, we must ask ourselves why this is such a volatile issue. Other subjects about which the scriptures say a great deal (e.g. judgment, pride, hypocrisy) receive much less passionate attention. Before looking at specific passages, it is important to note that everyone understands the scriptures based on, and through, the light of what they have been taught. The Bible was not written in a cultural void, and many of its instructions and laws are simply classified as less relevant today (e.g. prohibition against eating pork).

Nowhere does the Bible actually address the idea of persons being lesbian or gay. The statements are, without exception, directed to certain homosexual acts. Early writers had no understanding of homosexuality as a psychosexual orientation. That truth is a relatively recent discovery. The biblical authors were referring to homosexual acts performed by persons they assumed were heterosexuals

Answer 1

These are people who want to believe the bible is correct & to 'literally" do what it says. Lot gave his daughters to STRANGERS! I mean this is really not a book to be taken literally & yet people do.
So when will the stoning for saying "Jehovah" commence?

Answer 2

Can I just say that I really applaud you for what you've written there. All too often questions and statements are thrown up here without any reasoning whatsoever - you clearly know what you are talking about and make a number of very valid points.

I am not a Christian, but I do believe in God. I have never read or studied the Bible in depth - I have always believed that it is, at best, a collection of accounts from various people and is undoubtedly open to interpretation.

Personally, I believe that if someone is considerate, kind, tolerant and respectful of all other living things, and does their best to live in peace and make the most of the life given to them, God doesn't care about sexuality, or religious preference, colour, race, creed.

If taken literally, people who are gay or lesbian are classed as sinners - does that put them in the same league as REAL sinners, people who commit terrible acts of evil, such as paedophiles, rapists, murderers etc? I don't think so!

Answer 3

The reason is fear of not understanding. People all over the world are conditioned by their beleifs and how they are brought up and taught by their family, peers, etc. Commen knowledge of sexual intercourse between men and men and women and women have been recorded earlier that the greeks and Romans, how ever, in our society theis days its taught that it is wrong. People think they are better that all the other creatures, however I think they are back sliding and will only realise it when it's too late. Funny how people cann't get along with eachother, being it race or sexual differences but animals have no such differention like this.

Answer 4

I fully agree with you, it's insane people still have this bigoted attitude to whatever strikes them as strange...
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To answerer Randy_ :
Well - I hate to Bust your Bubble - but I have to blow it clean out of the water - Corinthians 6:9 is a verse that no scholar is actually sure about. This verse is one where Paul wrote a long list of what we shouldn't do. Don't kill one another. Don't lie or cheat or steal. The list goes on to include fornication, idolatry, whoremongering, perjury, etc. He also includes "malokois" and "arsenokoitai."

What's a malokois? What's an arsenokoitai? Actually, those two Greek words have confused scholars to this very day.

Greek scholars say that in first century the Greek word malaokois probably meant "effeminate call boys." The New Revised Standard Version says "male prostitutes."

As for arsenokoitai, Greek scholars don't know exactly what it means.

In 1958, for the first time in history, a person translating that mysterious Greek word into English decided it meant homosexuals, even though there is, in fact, no such word in Greek or Hebrew.

In the past,people used Paul's writings to support slavery, segregation, and apartheid.Is it happening again?Is a word in Greek that has no clear definition being used to condemn gays?

Please try to understand YOUR bible and its history a little better before you quote it!
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Answer 5

The idea of someone "being" gay or not is irrelevant. According to the Bible, the sin is homosexual acts. Though we are no longer under Levitical Law, the prohibition "men should not lie with men as with women" is wedged between "don't have sex with your mother-in-law" and "don't have sex with animals." As long as those are wrong, gay sex is wrong.

And Paul definitely wrote against homosexual acts. Keep in mind that when he wrote his letters, homosexuality was far, far more socially acceptable than it is now. In Greek culture, it was sometimes considered a rite of passage for young men.

Answer 6

Opinions are like @$$holes - everyone has one, but we do not necessarily want to hear yours. Yes, you have a right to your opinion, but everyone else has an equal right...further, you do not have a right to oppress others merely due to your opinion. So, if members of the LGBT community are such an intensely noxious stimulus for you, I'm quite confident none of them will miss you or even notice your absence. In as far as whether or not they are "damned", fewer & fewer people every year are buying into your mythology. Face it, religion is something being moved by the wayside. As humans become more & more enlightened, boogey-man stories and "God's gonna get'cha for that" tale have less meaning and are rapidly loosing applicability. Regarding whether or not homosexual/bisexual behavior is "natural": another unfounded assertion by the fundamentalist/conservative cults. Reality is, as societal structures are more deeply understood, anthropologists, as well as biologists, are discovering that homosexual relationships occur quite naturally in a plethora of critters. If you do not believe me, Google it...and I do not mean to look this up on church/religious websites - use legitimate REAL websites.

Answer 7

A number of churches, including my own, are open to the gay community, and have been for some time. Many other churches are following suit. So for every church with anti-gay teachings, another one will emerge that views gay people as children of God. Don't believe the worn-out old stereotype that all Christians are homophobic, because it's simply not true.

Answer 8

How can a person reasonably navigate even the most basics of books intelligently when they have been corrupted by short sightedness?

The bible is notorious for raping ones own soul (dieing to self and soul murder). If "you" can't even honor your own creation and will allow men to rape you with religion, how can you preserve the dignity of those you are taught to believe are lower than you on the totem pole?

Evangelical Christians hate even themselves, there is no room left over to even consider respecting anyone else.

Answer 9

you are absolutely right. i completely agree with you. i am religious and a straight person, but i have nothing against homo or whatever else there are out there. the thing is, these people who call themselves christians don't realize that they are also putting themselves to the same level as the gossipers for critisizing and hating other people. they forget that these people are human beings too. they forget that they are not in the position to JUDGE, you know what i'm saying??
forget what these "religious" people think or say about you, because they just lost that religious title when they do something like that. that's just like other people who think they are better than criminals and spits on them and turn around and go to church, instead of praying for them. that's what God means when he said "love thy neighbors". or also when somebody sees a different race/gender example GAY coming to their church, instead of being happy because their church is growing or because somebody else loves God, they look at them from head to toe and start critisizing. There is no scripture in the bible saying anything about gay people can not come to church or God doesn't love GAY people...amen.

Answer 10

Now just be careful, do not lump all Christians in with the bigots. I am a Christian and do not feel that gays are any more of a sinner than I am. We all have our vices, and no ones is any worse than mine.

We all need to get along, and not worry so much about what our neighbor is doing, and worry more about ourselves.