DARE TO ASK: A debate: The Bible and gays

By PHILLIP MILANO, The Times-Union

Question

Why do fundamentalist Christians cite the Old Testament for their views on homosexuality when it is not part of the Ten Commandments? If they follow this part of the Old Testament, how about all the other stuff in there, such as dietary restrictions?

Claire, 23, secular humanist, Los Angeles

Replies

Because it doesn't fit their larger world view of "man-and-woman" morality. The New Testament is pretty silent on the issue.

Jacob, 30, Catholic male, Sherman, Texas

Fundamentalist Christians (I am one) can be mean-spirited regarding homosexuality. We do need to make some changes. But it's erroneous to think homosexuality is only addressed in the Old Testament. The King James Version states that the "effeminate" will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. As a Christian who has befriended some wonderful gay people, this saddens me. But I didn't write the book, nor can I change it.

Friendly Inquirer, Christian, Jacksonville

Experts say

Melissa Fryrear, gender issues analyst for the conservative Colorado Springs-based Focus on the Family, distinguishes between the Old Testament's ceremonial laws, abolished in the New Testament, and its moral laws, reinforced in the New Testament.

"Differentiating between these two types of laws answers the question," she said. "Also, disobedience to ceremonial laws resulted in uncleanliness, as in Leviticus 11:24, while disobedience to moral law resulted in death, as in Leviticus 20. So there's more gravity there."

Fryrear, who turned away from life as a lesbian in 1992 after "a lot of soul-searching," stressed that Focus on the Family mainly tries "to affirm the permissible and most healthy expression of human sex: a male and female in a lifetime commitment in marriage."

While some biblical scholars say Jesus' silence on the matter means he did not feel it a major issue, "Jesus also did not address incest, but we would not conclude that his silence ... means that we are no longer bound to the Old Testament prohibitions in this area," Fryrear said.

Other scholars argue homosexuality isn't a big biblical deal. Debra Haffner, past president of the progressive Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, points out in a 1997 paper that the topic is only brought up in Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13, and Romans 1:26 and 1:27.

"The fact that only four verses explicitly address this issue implies that this subject was of relatively little importance to the authors," she writes.

Anyway, there are 17 verses alone in Leviticus on how to make a grain offering, she reminds, and plenty more condemnations on things such as eating fat and touching a menstruating woman's bedding.

Care to ratchet up the debate? Some Bible passages acknowledge sexual contact and love between men, she notes: Genesis 24:2, 2 Samuel 1:26, 1 Samuel 18:1 and 1 Samuel 19:1

Phillip Milano, author of I Can't Believe You Asked That! (Perigee), moderates cross-cultural dialogue at Y? The National Forum on People's Differences. Visit www.yforum.com to submit questions and answers, or mail to Phillip Milano, c/o The Florida Times-Union, P.O. Box 1949, Jacksonville, FL 32231. Include contact information.