Snyder Than You

usgroovykids:

* Of 32,000 verses in the Bible, only five directly mention homosexuality.
* The Qur’an only directly mentions homosexuality once.
* Leviticus, the book of the Bible which stipulates death for homosexuality, requires the same punishment for adultery, pre-marital sex, disobedient children and blasphemy.
* The Biblical Jesus does not condemn homosexuality.
* The destruction of the Biblical city of Sodom was due to their mistreatment of strangers.
* The Bible never condemns same sex marriage.
* The Biblical David and Jonathan had a formal same-sex union.
* ‘Traditional marriage’ in the Bible includes polygamy.
* No known sacred text forbids same sex marriage.
* Very few sacred texts even mention homosexuality.
* Hindu and other far eastern sacred texts do not condemn homosexuality.
* Homosexuality is not unnatural, it is practised by hundreds of species of animals.

• Five out of 32,000 is a ridiculously low percentage, obviously, but also sees very highly skewed. Perhaps only five verses directly say “homosexual” or similar, but that’s really splitting hairs. (I assume that’s what you mean, because I know there’s much more to the issue than just five lines.) Like I’d tell any Christian quoting verses or any human being reading and writing on any material, youhave to include the context. This is besides the fact that “verses” are arbitrary additions by medieval or later translators of the Biblical texts to make it easier to read, study, and follow as a group.
• Leviticus: You forgot women wearing mens clothes, among other things.
• Concerning Sodom, you are referring to a looser interpretation of Jesus’ reference to the destruction of Sodom, which may be true, but slightly skewed. If you read the actual Biblical account, which any human Jew of the era would take as truth (never mind that Jesus is supposed to be the same as God and thus would have been present or done the destruction himself). In the account, the people of the town came to Lot’s door demanding he hand over his visitors (both males according to the account) so they can rape them (“have sexual relations with” according to Genesis 19:4), even declining to “settle” for Lot’s daughters (which, Lot’s offer is messed up in itself, but that’s another story).
• I’d like to see the source material for David & Jonathan’s “same-sex union”. I mean, homosexuality is only mentioned five times, after all.
• Only one major instance (that I recall) in the Bible includes polygamy: Jacob (the schemer), Rachel, & Leah. The New Testament does only mention that a church elder or other leadership should be a man of “but one wife.”
• They may not forbid same sex marriage explicitly, but I think that forbidding same sex intimacy would also forbid marriage. Again, though, that’s Leviticus… and, you know, Paul, who wrote a large share of the canonical New Testament and is the basis for much of modern Christian theology and teaching. Now, Paul and his writings, of course, are another major source of debate.

Do note that I am not explicating my own viewpoints on the matter of homoseuality in modern US, nor do I condone hatred of any people for any reason. (Except maybe to hate the idiots of Westboro Baptist Church.)