Would somebody intelligent please give their opinion on homosexuality and the bible?

Question

Here's how I see it:

The Saints who wrote the bible still sinned.

So...why is it we accept everything they said as truth?

I mean, people say it's because they wrote what God told them to.

Which is partially true. But on the other hand, God can do anything, so he could've written it himself. But he didn't. I'm sure he had a reason for that...but that's besides the point. What I mean is, obviously they weren't perfect, so they wrote the bible in their own interpretation.

Now. Homosexuality is labeled as sinful by Paul.

Not by Jesus, but by Paul.

Nowhere in the bible does Jesus or God say anything against homosexuality.

Yes, it is unnatural, but not sinful.

Dying our hair is unnatural, in fact so is cutting it.

which says something else. Paul also said it was sinful for women to cut their hair.

So isn't it a little outdated for todays Christians to claim the bible says homosexuality is a sin?

I don't think it is sinful.

Answer 1

Well then unfortunately, you are wrong. The Bible consistently tells us that homosexual activity is a sin. Not just once, but over and over again - Genesis 19:1-13; Leviticus 18:22; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9.

However, the Bible does not describe homosexuality as a “greater” sin than any other. All sin is offensive to God...According to the Bible, God’s forgiveness is just as available to a homosexual as it is to an adulterer, idol worshipper, murderer, thief, etc

Answer 2

The bible was written 2000 and more years ago. Some of the stuff that is there is valid for today and some is just history and some is cultural and historical baggage. The bible doesn't actually have a lot to say about homosexuality.
Lots of biblical scholars think the reason God destroyed Sodom had nothing to do with it being Gayville - it was because they were a bunch of violent rapists. Some people also think the stuff in Leviticus is just Jewish religious custom, like not eating pork and not wearing mixed fabrics and making women go away when they are having their periods. Jesus didn't say anything about homosexuality and you would think he would have mentioned it if it was as important as the fundies think. Paul had a problem with it but then he was a Jew and a zealot and had personal issues. Also at that time a lot of Greeks and Romans had homosexual and bi-sexual practises, which Paul, being a Jew would have found abhorent and which also often involved the use of boys and young slaves. The Greeks and Romans didn't really think there was anything wrong with homosexuality as long as you were the guy on the top and not the guy on the bottom. Being a Jew and therefore a guy on the bottom, so to speak, Paul was probably thinking about the exploitive factor as well.

Personally I don't see anything wrong with gay people getting married. In fact, I think it's better than being promiscuous and if Paul had been able to get over his Jewish aversion to it, he probably would have recommended marriage to gays as well for the same reason he recommened it to heteros - so you have a steady supply of what you need and don't get yourself into all sorts of stupid and dangerous situations looking for it.

I don't think it unnatural either, anymore than being left-handed is unnatural. It's just the way some people are.

Answer 3

I can give you both my opinion and I can give you what the Bible says.

The Saints who wrote the bible still sinned.
This may be true but is irrelevant to the question.

So...why is it we accept everything they said as truth?
Because it is not what they said that makes it truthful it is because what they said was inspired by God.

I mean, people say it's because they wrote what God told them to.
No they did not write “what God told them”, they did not take dictation. They wrote in their words the WORD God wanted us to know.

Which is partially true. But on the other hand, God can do anything, so he could've written it himself. But he didn't. I'm sure he had a reason for that...but that's besides the point. What I mean is, obviously they weren't perfect, so they wrote the bible in their own interpretation.
He could have but He didn’t. He “caused” it to be written. And no it was not “their own interpretation”

Now. Homosexuality is labeled as sinful by Paul.
No, homosexual acts are defined by God as sinful and an abomination.

Not by Jesus, but by Paul.
No, Jesus never spoke “directly” about homosexual conduct. However, He did say He had come not to destroy the law but to fulfill it. He fulfilled the ceremonial law by His sinless life, death and resurection and left the moral law in place. There are many things Jesus did not address directly; however, since He did quote the OT frequently we must also abide.

Nowhere in the bible does Jesus or God say anything against homosexuality.
Not true! There are at least 13 Chapters that address homosexuality directly. Email me if you want the list with all the verses.

Yes, it is unnatural, but not sinful.
Yes, it is unnatural AND sinful: An abomination.

Dying our hair is unnatural, in fact so is cutting it.
But neither of those are sins nor abominations according to God’s Word. It is unnatural for birds not to fly yet we have penguins and Ostridges.


which says something else. Paul also said it was sinful for women to cut their hair.
1 Cor 11:6 6 For if a woman be not covered, let her hair also be cut off. But if [it be] shameful to a woman to have her hair cut off or to be shaved, let her be covered.” Paul does not say it is sinful for women to cut their hair. He says their hair should be covered when attending church.

So isn't it a little outdated for todays Christians to claim the bible says homosexuality is a sin?
Absolutely not the Bible was given to all men for all seasons. It can never be outdated.

I don't think it is sinful.
That is the beauty of Truth, it is true whether anyone believes it or not.

Answer 4

If you are going to rely on a 4000 year old book, with a 1900 year old appendix for your morality - then homosexuality is just plain wrong.

I do not care how you spin it, the bible says it is wrong, nowhere does Jesus correct this. So if the bible is the word of God then God says homosexuality is an abomination.



Now, if you realise that the bible is nothing more than a 4000 year old book, with a 1900 year old appendix, written by rather uptight men 4000 and 1900 years ago, according to their personal moralities of the time.

Then there is no sin, only ethics. The primary starting point for all successful ethical positions is: Does this harm any individual, or society as a whole? I do not see how being gay causes any harm - except in the minds of some current rather uptight people, so to me it is ethical.

Answer 5

The Bible also tolerates, if not outright condones, slavery.
However, most humans are born with a sense of right and wrong, and I'd have to guess that even before the abolitionist movement began, people knew it was wrong (using that handy moral compass we're born with).
So, my take on it is that this moral compass came from somewhere, possibly God, and if God gave us a sense of right and wrong we should use it to determine which parts of the Bible were inspired by God and which parts were added by men for their own purposes. I know that is seen by most in organized religion as a cop-out, but that's what works for me. In the end, the Bible makes it clear that everyone sins, and Jesus makes it clear that we need to worry about our own self and not judge others. So, whether or not it's a sin in the eyes of God is really irrelevant. If you're gay and your moral compass tells you it's okay, then so be it. If you abide by the whole Christ taking the hit for your sins thing, then you're gold. And if you don't believe in the Christ thing (and it turns out to be true), well I'm sure there's a whole slew of other sins that will condemn you to eternal hellfire, so what does it matter?

Answer 6

I've heard a few different interpretations of that issue from the Bible... some claim that the passage from the Soddom & Gomorrah story is referring more to homosexual rape (send them out!!!), not just normal homosexual day-to-day-life... Responses: "Christians pick out anti-homosexual verses in the bible to say that homosexuality is sinful. But they fail to pick out verses that tell them to not eat pork and stone children." And don't forget, according to the same passages about what is and isn't an "abomination"... most of us should go to hell because we've worked on Sunday... or worn polyester blends... "Why act like they need to be praise? I know some gays that are complete jackasses and bi's that are complete sluts" Really? What does that have to do with anything? Are you implying that there are no straight jackasses or sluts?

Answer 7

The reason the Bible says homosexual acts are sinful is that the Christian Church has always taught that homosexual acts are sinful. The Christian Church received all of its teaching directly from its founder, Jesus Christ. The Church also received a divine guarantee of the truth of its teaching. Jesus told the leaders of His Church, "whatsoever you bind upon earth is bound in heaven"; "he who hears you hears Me"; "the Holy Spirit will guide you to all truth". Therefore, the binding teaching that homosexual acts are immoral is bound in heaven, approved by God Himself, and unchangeable. This would be just as true even if the subject was never mentioned in the Bible. The Church is the foundation of truth, without which the truth cannot stand. The Bible tells us this.

Answer 8

Homosexuality is a sin according to Romans chapter 1 in the Bible.

Answer 9

They draw from a passage in Leviticus that calls homosexuality an "abomination" and calls for the death of all participants. Unfortunately, the the Bible also calls shellfish by the same term.

But none of these issues are useful in today's society.

How do you prove that the Bible or any other religious text is an act of a deity? Is it something that you have evidence for?

Why follow a system of religion when other types of moral behavior like tolerance, respect for freedom, and self-determinism are better at approaching issues like homosexuality?

Answer 10

All true. But you forget that Christians today have a strong tendency to pick and choose which things are God's rules and which things can simply be ignored.

Women cut their hair. Christians divorce and re marry. Jesus himself said that was against God's rules. It makes them adulterers. They do all sorts of things that their God forbids, yet it all seems to be OK. Unless you are homosexual, of course. That one is the big no-no. I'm inclined to believe they pick that one sin because they find it personally repulsive in some way, not because Jesus ever mentioned it.