Homosexuality wrong ?

Biblical perspectives.

Homosexuality wrong, and homosexuality is a sin, and not forgetting homosexuality in the Bible are all strong emotive phrases. Not many people are neutral on the subject.

Sex and sexuality are of course core in life. Without them species would simply die out. Many creatures are in fact hermaphrodite, carrying both sexes in one animal. For example, when snails copulate, each fertilizes the eggs of the other.

On the other hand, all mammals are either male or female, though it is not uncommon to see same-sex creatures like cows and dogs rutting with each other. With animals (other than humans) there can be no 'homosexuality wrong' or 'homosexuality is a sin'. Only humans recognise the rightness and wrongness of things.

Without a doubt, in the Christian world, virtually all Believers would say that God's first choice is a harmonious, faithful, heterosexual relationship. Such is the Christian's calling, but how many actually achieve it? Even in the Christian context it is doubtful that more than fifty percent of Christians realise such an ideal after conversion to Christ. It is simply is a very high calling that few of God's fallen creatures will ever reach.

Even more so, if we accept Jesus's word that simply looking at another person with lust in the heart is, spiritually speaking, just as wicked as adultery itself. Speaking candidly, and forcefully, he commanded us to 'pluck out the eye'. He was obviously not literally speaking, but we cannot avoid or dismiss the ernestness of His powerful words.

Beyond the Christian world, most would certainly agree to the harmonious and heterosexual connotations, but in a more honest moment, would acknowledge only lip-service to faithfulness. Sexual liasons outside of marriage are for many the norm in today's society.

"Even their women exchanged natural 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 indecent actus with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion."

- Romans 1:27.

There is little doubt what the apostle Paul would say in answer to the question, Is homosexuality Wrong?

• Faithful and natural (where 'natural' = heterosexual) out of marriage ("common-law" marriages),

• faithful and unnatural (where 'unnatural'= homosexual),

• faithful and heterosexual in marriage,

• faithful and homosexual in marriage (in a few societies)

• unfaithful and heterosexual,

• unfaithful and homosexual,

• male prostitution,

• female prostitution,

• rape of a female,

• rape of a male,

• rape of a child.

One could add others no doubt.

The heterosexual, unfaithful marriage

Within Christian marriage, even the clergy, the rate of divorce and adultery is rising. Most of these liasons are clandestine, and never reach the light of day, but increasingly even well known Christian ministers and writers are coming out into the open, telling their stories, the pain and sometimes the healing of the relationship.

"Words are things; and a small drop of ink

Falling like dew upon a thought, produces

That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think."

George Gordon, Lord Byron

Faithful and natural, outside of marriage.

In a survey in the Netherlands, over 100 Catholic priests have openly acknowledged that they are in a sexual relationship with a woman. Forbidden by Rome to marry, they have made a different choice. Is the faithful Priest-and-his-woman relationship, outside of marriage, more or less wrong than a faithful homosexual relationship?

Can such a priest comment on the question, Is Homosexuality Wrong?

The point?

Many of those shouting the loudest in the anti Homosexuality lobby, have in fact themselves indulged in extramarital affairs. Having themselves strayed from faithfulness in marriage, are they in any position to shout the odds at others who themselves are living in other-than-God's-best relationships? Jesus had far more stinging words for hypocrites than any others, yet always calling humanity to come on up to the higher place, made possible by living in fellowship with Him.

In our hierarchy of sexual relationships listed above, almost all will agree that the faithful, heterosexual relationship, within the bonds of marriage, is the safest, most ideal way, as declared in the Bible.

But which lies second on our list?

• The unfaithful heterosexual relationship, or

• the faithful homosexual liason?

Certainly, I would suggest, that no one who has been unfaithful to his/her partner, is qualified to make any pronouncements on whether homosexuality is wrong or not.

My candid opinion? Is homosexuality wrong? No, not wrong, but still second best.

"For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God ..."

- Romans 3: 23

and again, the words of Jesus,

"Let him who is without sin cast the first stone."

Can a woman rape a man?

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."

Aristotle (384-322 BC)

He shook his head, slowly at first, and then quite definitely. He picked up the condoms, and carefully dropped them into her bag, never taking his eyes from hers. Gently he kissed her. Scraping back his chair, Peter suddenly made to stand up, staggering once or twice and made his own way off to the loo. Two beers and more than half a bottle of wine was having its effect on him too. Nobody saw Janet drop three sleeping tablets into his coffee and give it a quick stir.

Excerpt from Book 2, A FAMILY AFFAIR

Is heterosexual rape more right than homosexuality wrong?