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Evangelical Resources on Homosexuality

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Articles
  3. Websites
  4. Ministry Referrals
  5. Books
  6. Videos
  7. Audio
  8. Mailing Lists
  9. Conferences
  10. Biblical Passages Relating to Homosexuality
  11. Observations
  12. Conclusion

Introduction

Homosexuality one of the most complicated and difficult subjects faced by Evangelical Christians. For Evangelicals, the Biblical teaching on homosexuality is absolutely clear: Homosexuality behavior is a sin. When Evangelicals encounter individuals engaged in homosexuality, the immediate sin problem often becomes a barrier to further dialogue. Homosexuals themselves, embittered by the label "sinner" they feel Christians pejoratively apply, become belligerent and often aggressive in conversation. As a result, there has been a tremendous rift between the Evangelical community and homosexuals, creating a challenge to those who would build bridges for further dialogue.

Complicating matters, some individuals who claim the name of Christ have openly advocated hatred toward homosexuals, told them they are "going to hell," and have even encouraged criminal action against them. This is entirely contrary to Biblical teaching, and promoting hate against another human being is a sin. Homosexuals are still human beings created in the image of God, albeit fallen and in sin. Christians do not have the right to damn others to hell, only to warn those without Christ of the end of the road they are headed down. Evangelicals have repeatedly spoken against the hate, but the extreme cases are the ones that are reported in media, and are the ones homosexuals remember. The cycle of hate is a nearly insurmountable barrier to dialogue - one that can be broken down only by the love of Christ.

In addition, many homosexuals, still looking to fill spiritual longings within a Christian worldview, have used God's grace to interpret Christian liberty to include homosexuality. This antinomian understanding of grace unfortunately is only half of the gospel message, as it forgets the transforming work of the Holy Spirit in the believer's life, conforming him to the image of Christ, not to the image of the world. There is a serious danger that the new homosexually inclusive churches will slide far from Biblical orthodoxy and become cults unto themselves in the coming years.

Clearly, this is a complex issue, fraught with misunderstanding and misrepresentation on all sides. As Evangelical Christians, we are called to untangle this web in truth: a role that requires a great discernment, greater patience, and the greatest love possible - that of Jesus Christ. Homosexuals are very much like the lepers during Jesus Christ's ministry - shunned by the religious, but loved by Christ. Evangelicals have a unique opportunity, despite the challenges, to reach out to hurting and lonely people in need of His transforming grace.

As always, this page should be considered a work in progress. Much of the material here, though presented from a conservative perspective, is highly controversial. As such, I need to take a moment to emphasize that I hold myself to a higher standard of source material than a typical fundamentalist Christian (I am evangelical, not fundamentalist) and insist on the use of materials that are respectable in an academic setting. If you feel that anything I have posted here is unfair and inaccurate, or if you have comments, issues, or concerns, please email me directly: michaelh@ductape.net

Articles

This is by no means a comprehensive collection of resources available on homosexuality. Many more articles are faithfully blogged by Exodus Media Synopsis:

Exodus Media Synopsis
[ http://exodus.blogs.com/ ]

General Articles on Homosexuality

Articles on "Coming Out" of Homosexuality

Articles on Struggling against Sin

Articles on the Possibility of Change

Articles on Genetic Theories

Articles on Same-Sex Marriage

Articles relating to Homosexuality and AIDS

Articles on Biblical Reinterpretation

Articles on Homosexual Theology

Articles on Homophobia

"The term 'homophobia' is often used inaccurately to describe any person who objects to homosexual behavior on either moral, psychological or medical grounds. Technically, however, the terms actually denotes a person who has a phobia - or irrational fear - of homosexuality. Principled disagreement, therefore, cannot be labeled 'homophobia.' "

- NARTH Position Statement: Homophobia

Websites

Ministry Referrals

Books

This is by no means a comprehensive list; however it is a representative sample of the resources that are available. This topic has received a great deal of attention from Evangelical authors in recent years. Many more books are available through Regeneration Books:

Regeneration Books
Books and resources on Homosexuality and Christianity
[ http://www.regenbooks.org/ ]

Regeneration Books maintains a diverse inventory of books on homosexuality.

Recovering from Homosexuality

Homosexuality, Theology, and Biblical Interpretation

Books on Same-Sex Marriage

Academic Works on Homosexuality

Homosexuality and Public Life

Other Resources on Homosexuality

Videos

Audio

Mailing Lists

Conferences

Biblical Passages Relating to Homosexuality

Listed here are the major Biblical passages relating to homosexuality, as translated in the New English Translation (or NET). The NET Bible is unique in that it has detailed translator notes clarifying the issues involved in the translation - an important feature given how these passages are being re-interpreted today.

The NET Bible can be searched and downloaded online, free of charge:
[ http://www.netbible.org/ ]

Old Testament Passages

Genesis 19:4-5, NET Bible

19:4 Before they could lie down to sleep, all the men-both young and old, from every part of the city of Sodom-surrounded the house. 19:5 They shouted to Lot, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so we can have sex1 with them!"

1 tn The Hebrew verb ידע ("to know") is used here in the sense of "to lie with" or "to have sex with" (as in Gen 4:1). That this is indeed the meaning is clear from Lot's warning that they not do so wickedly, and his willingness to give them his daughters instead. Their sin is homosexuality, not mere inhospitality (as is sometimes asserted). See W. Roth, "What of Sodom and Gomorrah? Homosexual Acts in the Old Testament," Explor 1 (1974): 7-14.

Leviticus 18:22, NET Bible

18:22 You must not have sexual intercourse with a male as one has sexual intercourse with a woman;2 it is a detestable act3.

2 tn Heb "And with a male you shall not lay [as the] lyings of a woman" (see Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 123). The reference is to homosexual intercourse.
3 tn The Hebrew term תועבה (rendered "detestable act") refers to the repugnant practices of foreigners, whether from the viewpoint of other peoples toward the Hebrews (e.g., Gen 43:32; 46:34; Exod 8:26) or of the Lord toward other peoples (see esp. Lev 18:26-27, 29-30). It can also designate, as here, detestable acts that might be perpetrated by the native peoples (it is used again in reference to homosexuality in Lev 20:13; cf. also its use for unclean food, Deut 14:3; idol worship, Isa 41:24; remarriage of a former wife has been married in between, Deut 24:4; etc.).

Leviticus 20:13, NET Bible

20:13 If a man has sexual intercourse with a male as one has sexual intercourse with a woman,4 the two of them have committed an abomination. They must be put to death; their blood guilt is on themselves.

4 tn Heb "[as the] lyings of a woman." The reference is to homosexual intercourse.

New Testament Passages

Romans 1:18-19,21,24,26-27, NET Bible

1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of people who suppress the truth by their unrighteousness, 1:19 because what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.
...
1:21 For although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God or give him thanks, but they became futile in their thoughts and their senseless hearts were darkened.
...
1:24 Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity, to dishonor their bodies among themselves.
...
1:26 For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged the natural sexual relations for unnatural ones,5 1:27 and likewise the men also abandoned natural relations with women6 and were inflamed in their passions7 for one another. Men committed shameless acts with men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

5 tn Grk "for their females exchanged the natural function for that which is contrary to nature." The term χρησισ (crhsi) has the force of "sexual relations" here (L&N 23.65).
6 tn Grk "likewise so also the males abandoning the natural function of the female."
7 tn Grk "burned with intense desire" (L&N 25.16).

I Corinthians 6:9-10, NET Bible

6:9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners,8 practicing homosexuals,9 6:10 thieves, the greedy, drunkards, the verbally abusive, and swindlers will not inherit the kingdom of God. 6:11 Some of you once lived this way. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

8 tn This term is sometimes rendered "effeminate," although in contemporary English usage such a translation could be taken to refer to demeanor rather than behavior. BAGD 488 s.v. μαλακοσ 2 has "of pers. soft, effeminate, esp. of catamites, men and boys who allow themselves to be misused homosexually." L&N 88.281 states, "the passive male partner in homosexual intercourse-'homosexual.' ...As in Greek, a number of other languages also have entirely distinct terms for the active and passive roles in homosexual intercourse." See also the discussion in G. D. Fee, First Corinthians (NICNT), 243-44. A number of modern translations have adopted the phrase "male prostitutes" for μαλακοιν in 1 Cor 6:9 (NIV, NRSV, NLT) but this could be misunderstood by the modern reader to mean "males who sell their services to women," while the term in question appears, at least in context, to relate to homosexual activity between males. Furthermore, it is far from certain that prostitution as commonly understood (the selling of sexual favors) is specified here, as opposed to a consensual relationship. Thus the translation "passive homosexual partners" has been used here.
9 tn On this term BAGD 109 s.v. αρσενοκοιντησ states, "a male who practices homosexuality, pederast, sodomite 1 Cor 6:9; 1 Ti 1:10; Pol 5:3. Cf. Ro 1:27. DSBailey, Homosexuality and the Western Christian Tradition, '55." L&N 88.280 states, "a male partner in homosexual intercourse-'homosexual.'...It is possible that αρσενοκοιντησ in certain contexts refers to the active male partner in homosexual intercourse in contrast with μαλακοσ, the passive male partner." Since there is a distinction in contemporary usage between sexual orientation and actual behavior, the qualification "practicing" was supplied in the translation, following the emphasis in BAGD.

Notice vs.11 here: Some of the members of the Corinthian church had themselves been homosexuals in the past. Two things to note: While the wicked will not inherit of the kingdom of God, some people had come out of their wickedness and now follow Christ. Every human has sinned, and without the transforming power of Jesus Christ we cannot inherit the kingdom of God. But there is also an implicit assumption - it is, in fact, possible to change - a change empowered by the Spirit of God.

1 Corinthians 6:16-20, as translated in Eugene Peterson's "The Message"

There's more to sex than mere skin to skin. Sex is as much spiritual mystery as physical fact. As written in the Scripture, "The two become one." Since we want to become spiritually one with the Master, we must not pursue the kind of sex that avoids commitment and intimacy, leaving us more lonely than ever - the kind of sex that can never "become one." There is a sense in which sexual sins are different from all others. In sexual sin we violate the sacredness of our own bodies, these bodies that were made for God-given and God-modeled love, for "becoming one" with another. Don't you see that you cannot live however you please, squandering what God paid such a high price for? The physical part of you is not some property belonging to the spiritual part of you. God owns the whole works.

This particular passage does not distinctly refer to homosexuality, but the issues raised here directly apply with it. I chose to quote this from "The Message" because wording is powerful and makes its point clearly.

I Timothy 1:9-11, NET Bible

1:9 realizing that law is not intended for a righteous person, but for lawless and rebellious people, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 1:10 sexually immoral, practicing homosexuals,10 kidnappers, liars, perjurers--in fact, for any who live contrary to sound teaching. 1:11 This accords with the glorious gospel of the blessed God that was entrusted to me.

10 tn On this term BAGD 109 s.v. αρσενοκοιντησ states, "a male who practices homosexuality, pederast, sodomite 1 Cor 6:9; 1 Ti 1:10; Pol 5:3. Cf. Ro 1:27. DSBailey, Homosexuality and the Western Christian Tradition, '55." L&N 88.280 states, "a male partner in homosexual intercourse-'homosexual.'...It is possible that αρσενοκοιντησ in certain contexts refers to the active male partner in homosexual intercourse in contrast with μαλακοσ, the passive male partner" (cf. 1 Cor 6:9). Since there is a distinction in contemporary usage between sexual orientation and actual behavior, the qualification "practicing" was supplied in the translation, following the emphasis in BAGD.

In this passage, Paul makes it clear that the law makes clear the sinfulness of sinners, specifically mentioning homosexuality. It is clear from vs.10 that Paul sees homosexuality as contrary to sound teaching, and contrary to the gospel of God.

Observations

These observations will be expanded as time permits.

Conclusion

Maintaining a dialogue with a homosexual can be a long, challenging process, but there is hope. Not only is it possible to change - despite the rhetoric to the contrary - many in fact do change, but more importantly, many are transformed by God's grace. God made humans male and female, and the most satisfying relationship - sexually, emotionally, and spiritually - is between a loving man and a loving woman. The momentum is on the side of the Evangelical, because God's goodness is manifested in His design, while fighting Him is empty and drains life of meaning and purpose. Patience and love can reach the homosexual. Never lose hope and never stop praying.