What does the Bible say about homosexuality?

Old Testament
The first mention in the Bible is in Genesis 19. The wicked men of Sodom attempted a homosexual rape of two messengers from God who had come to visit Lot. As a result of this and other widespread wickedness, God destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah in a storm of fire and brimstone.

The next mention is in Leviticus:

You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination. (NKJ, Leviticus 18:22)

Life was harsh in Old Testament times. The wanderings and struggle for survival of the Israelites did not permit prisons or rehabilitation. Anyone who deviated seriously from the norm was either stoned to death or exiled. Leviticus prescribed the death penalty for the crimes of murder, blasphemy, rape, kidnapping, idolatry, adultery (both parties), sex between a man and engaged woman (both parties), incest, sex between males, sex with animals, attacking or cursing one's father or mother, doing work on the Sabbath, and prostitution by a priest's daughter.

If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. (NKJ, Leviticus 20:13)

It must be emphasized that according to the New Testament we are no longer under the harsh Old Testament Law. The concern with punishment became secondary to Jesus' message of repentance and redemption. Punishment would more often be left to God in the life after death.

In Old Testament times homosexual activity was strongly associated with idolatrous cult prostitution as in 1 Kings 14:24, 15:12. (There was also cult prostitution by females.) In fact, the word "abomination", used in both mentions of homosexual acts in Leviticus, is a translation of the Hebrew word tow' ebah which, according to Strong's Greek/Hebrew Dictionary, means something morally disgusting, but also has a strong implication of idolatry. Thus, many Bible scholars believe the condemnation in Leviticus is more a condemnation of the idolatry than of the homosexual act itself. However, that interpretation is not certain.

New Testament
Jesus Himself never specifically mentioned homosexuality, but did condemn all forms of sexual immorality:

And [Jesus] said, "What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man." (NKJ, Mark 7:20-23)

According to Thayer's Greek Lexicon, the word translated here as "fornications" is the Greek word porneia which includes all forms of illicit sexual intercourse.

Paul, in one of his letters to the Corinthians, wrote the verses most often quoted on this subject:

Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (NIV, 1st Corinthians 6:9-11)

This verse has been translated in as many different ways as there are different versions of the Bible, so we need to go back to the original Greek to see what Paul is really saying. According to Thayer's Greek Lexicon, the word translated here as "male prostitute" is the Greek word malakos which literally means "soft to the touch." However, it was used metaphorically in a negative way to refer to a catamite (a boy kept for homosexual relations with a man) or to a male prostitute in general. The word translated here as "homosexual offender" is the Greek word arsenokoites which means a sodomite, a person who engages in any kind of unnatural sex, but especially homosexual intercourse. Some believe this use of arsenokoites referred only to the men who kept catamites, but that is not certain.

Paul makes two other condemnations of homosexual acts in Romans 1:25-27 and 1 Timothy 1:8-10. In this passage from Romans, again in the context of idolatry, Paul mentions women who "exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones", which can be inferred to apply to lesbian acts:

They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator-- who is forever praised. Amen. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. 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 acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. (NIV, Romans 1:25-27)

Conclusion
Some Bible scholars believe the Bible only condemns homosexual acts committed in the contexts of rape, prostitution or idolatry. This may be its strongest message, but both the Old and New Testaments generally oppose all sexual acts outside the marriage bond. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume the Bible's prohibitions against homosexual acts should be taken at face value and that even consensual homosexual acts would be against Bible teaching.

However, it is important to note that the Bible does not condemn homosexual people; the sin is in the act, not in one's sexual orientation. From 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (above) many Christians among the Corinthians had been sinners of various kinds, but those who renounce their sinful ways are fully accepted into the Christian community: "But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." Paul mentions drunkards in the same passage from 1st Corinthians and the situation for a homosexual is much like that for an alcoholic: Both should do their best to avoid indulging their tendencies. If they do, then there is no sin in their condition, and no reason to feel inferior in the eyes of God. To the contrary, God rejoices when someone turns away from sin and loves that person even more. In fact, Jesus said,

I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. (NIV, Luke 15:7)

A boy or girl who discovers homosexual feelings should realize that, like other interests and feelings, it may be only a passing phase that will fade away in time. Meanwhile, he or she should avoid becoming obsessed with the feelings or indulging in any kind of sexual activity. If the feelings persist consistently and exclusively into adulthood, see the next paragraph.

A homosexual Christian man or woman is presented with special challenges, and great strength is often achieved by learning to deal with great challenges. Perhaps God has some special mission in mind for that person that is best accomplished outside the restrictions imposed by marriage and family duties.

Avoiding Self-righteousness
Ironically, homosexuality also poses a special challenge for heterosexual Christians. We may let feelings of contempt or fear lead us into the sin of self-righteousness. Jesus was greatly offended by self-righteous religious people who thought they were better than those they considered "sinners."

Tax collectors were among the most despised people in Israel. As agents of the occupying Roman forces they often extorted excess taxes and were considered traitors to their people. That is why Jesus used a tax collector to illustrate the sin of self-righteousness:

Then he told this story to some who boasted of their virtue and scorned everyone else: "Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a proud, self-righteous Pharisee, and the other a cheating tax collector. The proud Pharisee 'prayed' this prayer: 'Thank God, I am not a sinner like everyone else, especially like that tax collector over there! For I never cheat, I don't commit adultery, I go without food twice a week, and I give to God a tenth of everything I earn.' "But the corrupt tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed, but beat upon his chest in sorrow, exclaiming, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner.' I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home forgiven! For the proud shall be humbled, but the humble shall be honored." (TLB, Luke 18:9-14)

Further, Jesus told us to eliminate the sins in our own lives rather than passing judgment or looking down on others. For if we judge other people harshly, we will, in turn, be judged harshly by God:

"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. (NIV, Matthew 7:1-2)

Christians have a responsibility to correct matters of wrongdoing among themselves (Matthew 18:15-17), but this should always be done fairly and with compassion. We are never to take upon ourselves the task of judgment that belongs to God alone (Hebrews 10:30, Romans 14:10-13, 1 Corinthians 4:5.) (Of course, society has a legitimate right and duty to take the necessary legal steps against those sexual offenders, homosexual or heterosexual, who use coercion or prey on children or the disabled.)

As Christians, we need to remember that we, too, are sinners in God's eyes, and that God loves all His children. We cannot afford to let our feelings about homosexuality blind us to Jesus' commandment to "Love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:36-39).

Church Doctrine
Here is a sampling of official church positions on homosexuality:

Baptist:

We affirm God's plan for marriage and sexual intimacy - one man, and one woman, for life. Homosexuality is not a "valid alternative lifestyle." The Bible condemns it as sin. It is not, however, unforgivable sin. The same redemption available to all sinners is available to homosexuals. They, too, may become new creations in Christ.
From Position Statements, Copyright (c) 1999 - 2001, Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention, http://sbc.net/default.asp?url=position-statements.html

Catholic:

Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered. They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.

The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.

Homosexual persons are called to chastity. By the virtues of self-mastery that teach them inner freedom, at times by the support of disinterested friendship, by prayer and sacramental grace, they can and should gradually and resolutely approach Christian perfection.
From Catechism of the Catholic Church, (c) 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc., http://www.nccbuscc.org/catechism/text/index.htm

Methodist:

Homosexual persons no less than heterosexual persons are individuals of sacred worth. All persons need the ministry and guidance of the church in their struggles for human fulfillment, as well as the spiritual and emotional care of a fellowship that enables reconciling relationships with God, with others, and with self. Although we do not condone the practice of homosexuality and consider this practice incompatible with Christian teaching, we affirm that God's grace is available to all. We implore families and churches not to reject or condemn their lesbian and gay members and friends. We commit ourselves to be in ministry for and with all persons.

Certain basic human rights and civil liberties are due all persons. We are committed to supporting those rights and liberties for homosexual persons. We see a clear issue of simple justice in protecting their rightful claims where they have shared material resources, pensions, guardian relationships, mutual powers of attorney, and other such lawful claims typically attendant to contractual relationships that involve shared contributions, responsibilities, and liabilities, and equal protection before the law. Moreover, we support efforts to stop violence and other forms of coercion against gays and lesbians. We also commit ourselves to social witness against the coercion and marginalization of former homosexuals.
From The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church--2000, ¶161G, 162H. Copyright 2000 by The United Methodist Publishing House, http://www.umc.org/abouttheumc/policy/

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