Gay marriage is not a sin
What Does the Bible Say About Homosexuality?
What Does The Bible Utter About Homosexuality?
Introduction
For the last two decades, Pew Research Center has reported that one of the most enduring ethical issues across Christian traditions is sexual diversity. For many Christians, one of the most frequently first-asked questions on this topic is, “What does the Bible say about attraction to someone of the equal sex?”
Although its unlikely that the biblical authors had any notion of sexual orientation (for example, the term homosexual wasn't even coined until the after time 19th century) for many people of faith, the Bible is looked to for timeless guidance on what it means to honor God with our lives; and this most certainly includes our sexuality.
Before we can bounce into how it is that Christians can maintain the authority of the Bible and also affirm sexual diversity, it might be helpful if we started with a little but clear overview of some of the assumptions informing many Christian approaches to understanding the Bible.
What is the Bible?
For Christians to whom the Bible is God’s very written word, it is widely understood that God produced its contents through inspired
Stances of Faiths on LGBTQ+ Issues: Roman Catholic Church
BACKGROUND
The Roman Catholic Church is the largest Christian denomination in the world, with approximately 1.2 billion members across the globe. With its origins in the earliest days of Christianity, the Church traces its leadership––in the person of the Pope––to St. Peter, identified by Jesus as “the rock” on which the Church would be built.
The Catholic Church in the Combined States numbers over 70 million members, and is organized in 33 Provinces, each led by an archbishop. Each bishop answers directly to the Pope, not to an archbishop. Those Provinces are further divided into 195 dioceses, each led by a bishop. At the found of the organizational structure are local parishes, headed by a pastor, appointed by the local bishop. The Conference of Catholic Bishops in the Joined States meets semi-annually.
As part of a global nonprofit with its institutional center at the Vatican, the Catholic Church in America is shaped by worldwide societal and cultural trends. It is further shaped by leadership that is entirely male, with women excluded from the priesthood and thus from key leadership roles.
LGBTQ+ EQUALITY
ON S The Case Against Christians Attending a Gay Wedding
The case against Christians attending a male lover wedding is relatively straightforward. We can lay out the case in three premises and a conclusion.
The Argument
Premise 1: Same-sex attracted “marriage” is not marriage.
No matter what a government may sanction, the biblical definition of marriage (see Gen. 2:18–25, Mal. 2:13–15, Matt. 19:4–6; Eph. 5:22–33) involves a male and a girl. I won’t belabor the point, because I assume in this post that I’m speaking to those who approve with the Westminster Confession of Faith when it says, “Marriage is to be between one man and one woman” (WCF 24.1). Gay “marriage” is not only an offense to God—sanctioning a kind of sexual activity that the Bible condemns (Lev. 18:22; 20:13; Rom. 1:24–27; 1 Cor. 6:9–10; 1 Tim. 1:9–10)—gay “marriage” does not actually exist.
Premise 2: A gay wedding celebrates and solemnizes a lie.
Whether the service is done in a church or in a reception hall, whether it is meant to be a Christian service or a secular commitment ceremony, a gay wedding declares what is false to be true and calls evil good.
Premise 3: Attendance at a gay wedding bears public witness to t Same-sex marriage: What does the Bible really have to say?
As Australia faces a postal survey on same-sex marriage, we are seeing a steady stream of articles arguing the Yes or No case.
Many on the No side are prone to citing the Bible or appealing to "biblical values". But what does the Bible actually express about human sexuality and homosexuality in particular?
What follows represents a summary of critical biblical scholarship on the issue.
Critical biblical scholarship draws on a range academic disciplines including literary criticism, archaeology, history, philology, and social science to offer the most plausible, historically grounded interpretation of the Bible. It is not simply a matter of personal belief or citing official church doctrine.
Australian scholars are among leaders in the field when it comes to sexuality and the Bible. William Loader has written several books on the matter and this Anglican collection of essays is also excellent.
When it comes to homosexuality there are, at most, six passages of the Bible that are relevant. So what do these passages say?
Genesis 19 and Leviticus
The story of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19 is successfully known.
Same-Sex Attraction
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acknowledges that same-sex attraction is a sensitive issue that requires kindness, caring and understanding. The “Same-Sex Attraction” section of ChurchofJesusChrist.org reinforces the reality that, in the words of one Latter-day Saint scripture, God “loveth his children” (1 Nephi 11:17), and seeks to help everyone better understand same-sex attraction from a gospel perspective.
The Church does not grab a position on the cause of same-sex attraction. In 2006, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, “The Church does not possess a position on the causes of any of these susceptibilities or inclinations, including those related to same-gender attraction.”
Feelings of homosexual attraction are not a sin. President M. Russell Ballard said: “Let us be clear: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that ‘the experience of gay attraction is a complex reality for many people. The attraction itself is not a sin, but acting on it is. Even though individuals accomplish not choose to own such attractions, they undertake choose how to respond to them. With cherish and understanding, the Church reaches out to all God’s children, incl
The Case Against Christians Attending a Gay Wedding
The case against Christians attending a male lover wedding is relatively straightforward. We can lay out the case in three premises and a conclusion.
The Argument
Premise 1: Same-sex attracted “marriage” is not marriage.
No matter what a government may sanction, the biblical definition of marriage (see Gen. 2:18–25, Mal. 2:13–15, Matt. 19:4–6; Eph. 5:22–33) involves a male and a girl. I won’t belabor the point, because I assume in this post that I’m speaking to those who approve with the Westminster Confession of Faith when it says, “Marriage is to be between one man and one woman” (WCF 24.1). Gay “marriage” is not only an offense to God—sanctioning a kind of sexual activity that the Bible condemns (Lev. 18:22; 20:13; Rom. 1:24–27; 1 Cor. 6:9–10; 1 Tim. 1:9–10)—gay “marriage” does not actually exist.
Premise 2: A gay wedding celebrates and solemnizes a lie.
Whether the service is done in a church or in a reception hall, whether it is meant to be a Christian service or a secular commitment ceremony, a gay wedding declares what is false to be true and calls evil good.
Premise 3: Attendance at a gay wedding bears public witness to t As Australia faces a postal survey on same-sex marriage, we are seeing a steady stream of articles arguing the Yes or No case. Many on the No side are prone to citing the Bible or appealing to "biblical values". But what does the Bible actually express about human sexuality and homosexuality in particular? What follows represents a summary of critical biblical scholarship on the issue. Critical biblical scholarship draws on a range academic disciplines including literary criticism, archaeology, history, philology, and social science to offer the most plausible, historically grounded interpretation of the Bible. It is not simply a matter of personal belief or citing official church doctrine. Australian scholars are among leaders in the field when it comes to sexuality and the Bible. William Loader has written several books on the matter and this Anglican collection of essays is also excellent. When it comes to homosexuality there are, at most, six passages of the Bible that are relevant. So what do these passages say? The story of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19 is successfully known. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acknowledges that same-sex attraction is a sensitive issue that requires kindness, caring and understanding. The “Same-Sex Attraction” section of ChurchofJesusChrist.org reinforces the reality that, in the words of one Latter-day Saint scripture, God “loveth his children” (1 Nephi 11:17), and seeks to help everyone better understand same-sex attraction from a gospel perspective. The Church does not grab a position on the cause of same-sex attraction. In 2006, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, “The Church does not possess a position on the causes of any of these susceptibilities or inclinations, including those related to same-gender attraction.” Feelings of homosexual attraction are not a sin. President M. Russell Ballard said: “Let us be clear: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that ‘the experience of gay attraction is a complex reality for many people. The attraction itself is not a sin, but acting on it is. Even though individuals accomplish not choose to own such attractions, they undertake choose how to respond to them. With cherish and understanding, the Church reaches out to all God’s children, inclSame-sex marriage: What does the Bible really have to say?
Genesis 19 and Leviticus
Same-Sex Attraction