The Anglican Church is struggling with the issue of gay priests. Opportunistic reading of biblical texts allows those who simply do not like gay people to claim a Christian mandate from God in their quest against gay people. But does a more detailed reading of biblical texts really support their anti-gay contentions?
Ian Johnson, Out Now
June 23, 2008
The place of gays and lesbians in churches around the world has been one of tenuous welcome for a number of years.
To be gay and Christian has become somewhat acceptable but, for gay priests at the very least, to be openly gay has been generally impossible within most churches, including the Anglican church.
To be gay is permissible in many churches only when coupled with a commitment to celibacy.
This has led to the establishment of more inclusive Christian congregations such as the MCC Metropolitan Community Church. The MCC has been set up predominantly as a gay and gay friendly church.
Since the ordination of an openly gay bishop, Gene Robinson in the United States in 2003, the Anglican church has struggled to come to grips with the role of openly gay clergy.
At the moment in Jerusalem, a breakaway group of Anglican clergy is convening to formulate policies that rely primarily upon anti-gay passages of the bible.
Anti-gay or anti-modernity?
But how much stock can be placed in such anti-gay passages?
The old testament book in the bible, Leviticus, is a part of the bible that is often quoted to substantiate anti-gay arguments within the church.
"Man shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination." (Leviticus 18:22)
That seems fairly straight forward (no pun intended), however other passages of that same book are not usually quoted by people relying on Leviticus to say that God hates gay people.
For example:
Leviticus 11:9 - 12 says that eating shellfish is an abomination against God.
"Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard." (Leviticus 19:27)
"...do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. Do not wear material woven of two kinds of material." (Leviticus 19:19)
All these actions are an abomination against God -- according to Leviticus.
Seafood boycotts?
The problem is that if you are going to rely on part of Leviticus, you really have to stand by it all. So if you use Leviticus to justify prejudice against gays and lesbians you need to be sure you do not shave your face, nor ever wear fabrics made of poly-cotton fabric blends, and you would also need to be sure to never eat prawns, oysters or any other type of shellfish.
But of course whilst we do not know whether the anti-gay Anglican priests currently meeting in Jerusalem ever eat shellfish, we can know that most of them do shave their face -- and, if Leviticus is to believed, are therefore an abomination against God.
Do I think they, or myself, are an abomination because their behaviour contravenes these particular passages of the old testament in the bible? Of course not.
What I believe is that some Christian fundamentals such as the Ten Commandments are well worth following.
Ultimately, Christians ought to respect, above all else, the word of Jesus Christ - who reportedly did not say anything at all against gay people.
Phrases from Jesus -- 'Love thy fellow man' and 'Treat others as you would wish them to treat you' -- resonate more strongly than ever today.
Here's hoping that the Anglican bishops currently meeting in Jerusalem manage to put these words of Christ at the forefront of their thinking as they deliberate this week.
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