Christianity and sexual orientation explained

Christian denominations have a variety of beliefs about sexual orientation, including beliefs about same-sex sexual practices and asexuality. Denominations differ in the way they treat lesbian, bisexual, and gay people; variously, such people may be barred from membership, accepted as laity, or ordained as clergy, depending on the denomination. As asexuality is relatively new to public discourse, few Christian denominations discuss it.[1] [2] Asexuality may be considered the lack of a sexual orientation, or one of the four variations thereof, alongside heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality, and pansexuality.

Beliefs and mythology

See main article: Christianity and transgender people.

The history of Christianity and homosexuality has been much debated.[3] The Hebrew Bible and its traditional interpretations in Judaism and Christianity have historically affirmed and endorsed a patriarchal and heteronormative approach towards human sexuality,[4] [5] favouring exclusively penetrative vaginal intercourse between men and women within the boundaries of marriage over all other forms of human sexual activity,[4] [5] including autoeroticism, masturbation, oral sex, non-penetrative and non-heterosexual sexual intercourse (all of which have been labeled as "sodomy" at various times),[6] believing and teaching that such behaviors are forbidden because they're considered sinful,[4] [5] and further compared to or derived from the behavior of the alleged residents of Sodom and Gomorrah.[4] [7] [8] [9] [10] However, the status of LGBT people in early Christianity is debated.[3] [11] [12] [13] [14] Throughout the majority of Christian history, most Christian theologians and denominations have considered homosexual behavior as immoral or sinful.[15] [16]

Biblical

See main article: The Bible and homosexuality. Following the lead of Yale scholar John Boswell, it has been argued that a number of early Christians (such as Saints Sergius and Bacchus) entered into homosexual relationships,[17] and that certain Biblical figures had homosexual relationships, despite Biblical injunctions against sexual relationships between members of the same sex. Examples cited are Ruth and her mother-in-law Naomi, Daniel and the court official Ashpenaz, and, most famously, David and King Saul's son Jonathan.[18]

The story of David and Jonathan has been described as "biblical Judeo-Christianity's most influential justification of homoerotic love".[19] The relationship between David and Jonathan is mainly covered in the Old Testament First Book of Samuel, as part of the story of David's ascent to power. The mainstream view found in modern biblical exegesis argues that the relationship between the two is merely a close platonic friendship.[20] [21] However, a few have interpreted the love between David and Jonathan as romantic or sexual.[22] [23] [24] [25] Although David was married (to many women), he articulates a distinction between his relationship with Jonathan and the bonds he shares with women.

Another biblical hero, Noah, best known for his building an ark to save animals and worthy people from a divinely caused flood, later became a wine-maker. One day he drank too much wine, and fell asleep naked in his tent. When his son Ham entered the tent, he saw his father naked, and his son, Canaan was cursed with banishment and possibly slavery. In Jewish tradition, it is also suggested that Ham had anal sex with Noah or castrated him.[26]

Saints

While highly controversial, attempts have been made to hold up certain Christian saints as positive examples of homosexuality in Church history:

Sergius and Bacchus's close relationship has led some modern commentators to believe they were lovers. The most popular evidence for this view is that the oldest text of their martyrology, in the Greek language, describes them as "erastai", or lovers.[27] Historian John Boswell considered their relationship to be an example of an early Christian same-sex union, reflecting his contested view of tolerant early Christians attitudes toward homosexuality. The official stance of the Eastern Orthodox Church is that the ancient Eastern tradition of adelphopoiia, which was done to form a "brotherhood" in the name of God, and is traditionally associated with these two saints, had no sexual implications.

[28] A difficulty with this assertion is that most hagiographies list these saints as natural brothers or twins.[29] [30]

Eunuchs

The extent and even the existence of religious castration among Christians, with members of the early church castrating themselves for religious purposes,[34] is subject to debate.[35] The early theologian Origen found scriptural justification for the practice in Matthew 19:12,.[36] where Jesus says, "For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can." (NRSV)

In describing Jesus as a spado and Paul of Tarsus as a castratus in his book De Monogamia, Tertullian, a 2nd-century Church Father, used Latin words that denoted eunuchs[37] to refer to virginity and continence.[38] [39]

The significance of the selection of the Ethiopian eunuch as being the first gentile convert has been discussed as representative of inclusion of a sexual minority in the context of the time.[40]

Specific sexual orientations

Homosexuality

Christianity has traditionally regarded male homosexual behavior to be an immoral practice, or sinful, and most major Christian movements continue to hold this view.[41] [42]

Some Christian movements have only denominations that have a conservative view, like the Catholic Church,[43] the Eastern Orthodox churches, the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-Day Saints, and the Seventh-day Adventist churches, although some of these movements have networks of LGBT people.[44] [45]

Some Christian movements have denominations that have liberal or conservative views, like the Anglican churches, Lutheran churches, Presbyterian churches, Methodist churches, Quaker churches, Mennonite churches, Baptist churches, and Pentecostal churches.[46] [47] [48]

The Metropolitan Community Church has been founded specifically to serve the Christian LGBT community. Its founder, Troy Perry, was the first minister to conduct a same-sex marriage in public, as well as filing the first lawsuit for legal recognition of same-sex marriages in the United States.[49]

Male homosexuality

Studies in the US show more LGBT individuals identify as Protestant than Catholic.[50] [51] [52]

Lesbianism

Lesbians face different social and cultural preconceptions than gay men. Their experience in Christianity is sometimes dissimilar to that of gay men, although lesbianism has also traditionally been considered a sin within the religion.[53]

In 1982, lesbian members of DignityUSA founded the Conference for Catholic Lesbians out of concern that DignityUSA was too oriented toward males.[54]

In 1986 the Evangelical and Ecumenical Women's Caucus (EEWC), then known as the Evangelical Women's Caucus International, passed a resolution stating: "Whereas homosexual people are children of God, and because of the biblical mandate of Jesus Christ that we are all created equal in God's sight, and in recognition of the presence of the lesbian minority in EWCI, EWCI takes a firm stand in favor of civil rights protection for homosexual persons."[55]

A survey of self-identified lesbian women found a "dissonance" between their religious and sexual identities. This dissonance correlated with being an evangelical Christian before coming out.[53]

Bisexuality

Very few churches have released statements about bisexuality, and research into the bisexual Christian community has been affected by the fact that bisexual Christians are often considered the same as lesbian and gay Christians.[56] However, in 1972, a Quaker group, the Committee of Friends on Bisexuality, issued the "Ithaca Statement on Bisexuality" supporting bisexuals.[57] The Statement, which may have been "the first public declaration of the bisexual movement" and "was certainly the first statement on bisexuality issued by an American religious assembly," appeared in the Quaker Friends Journal and The Advocate in 1972.[58] [59] [60] Today Quakers have varying opinions on LGBT people and rights, with some Quaker groups more accepting than others.[61]

Asexuality

Asexuality may be considered the lack of a sexual orientation, or one of the four variations thereof, alongside heterosexuality, homosexuality, and bisexuality.[62] [63] [64]

As asexuality is relatively new to public discourse, few Christian denominations discuss it and the Bible does not clearly state a view on it. However, some Christian publications have recently made statements on the subject. In the Christian magazine Vision, David Nantais, S.J. and Scott Opperman, S.J. wrote in 2002, "Question: What do you call a person who is asexual? Answer: Not a person. Asexual people do not exist. Sexuality is a gift from God and thus a fundamental part of our human identity. Those who repress their sexuality are not living as God created them to be: fully alive and well. As such, they're most likely unhappy people with which to live."[65] However, in contrast, Lisa Petriello wrote the article "Why We Christians Should Accept Asexuals", which was published in 2020 in Katy Christian Magazine.[66] In this article, she points out that there is nothing in the Bible condemning asexuality, and posits that both Jesus and Saint Paul were asexual. The fundamentalist Reformed Christian website GotQuestions.org also accepts asexuals, and states that a lack of sexual desire “most definitely is not wrong.”[67]

See also

References

Sources

Notes and References

  1. News: SE . Smith. Asexuality always existed, you just didn't notice it . The Guardian. 21 August 2012 . March 11, 2013.
  2. Web site: Ace Week. Ace Week.
  3. Book: Frontain . Raymond-Jean . 2003 . Introduction . https://books.google.com/books?id=7nVq0BLfVT4C&pg=PA1 . Frontain . Raymond-Jean . Reclaiming the Sacred: The Bible in Gay and Lesbian Culture . . . 2nd . 1–24 . 9781560233558 . 2002068889.
  4. Book: Mbuwayesango . Dora R. . 2016 . 2015 . Part III: The Bible and Bodies – Sex and Sexuality in Biblical Narrative . Fewell . Danna N. . Danna Nolan Fewell . The Oxford Handbook of Biblical Narrative . . . 456–465 . 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199967728.013.39 . 9780199967728 . 2015033360 . 146505567.
  5. Leeming . David A. . David Adams Leeming . June 2003 . Religion and Sexuality: The Perversion of a Natural Marriage . Carey . Lindsay B. . . . 42 . 2 . 101–109 . 10.1023/A:1023621612061 . 1573-6571 . 27511667 . 38974409.
  6. Book: Sauer, Michelle M. . 2015 . The Unexpected Actuality: "Deviance" and Transgression . https://books.google.com/books?id=U8mBCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA74 . Gender in Medieval Culture . . . 74–78 . 10.5040/9781474210683.ch-003 . 978-1-4411-2160-8.
  7. Gnuse . Robert K. . May 2015 . Seven Gay Texts: Biblical Passages Used to Condemn Homosexuality . . SAGE Publications on behalf of Biblical Theology Bulletin Inc. . 45 . 2 . 68–87 . 10.1177/0146107915577097 . 1945-7596 . 170127256.
  8. Web site: Bishop Soto tells NACDLGM: 'Homosexuality is Sinful' . Gilbert . Kathleen . September 29, 2008 . Catholic Online . https://web.archive.org/web/20080930122028/http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=29699 . 30 September 2008.
  9. Web site: What are Religious Texts Really Saying about Gay and Transgender Rights? . Robinson . Gene . Krehely . Jeff . Steenland . Sally . December 8, 2010 . Center for American Progress . March 30, 2021.
  10. Web site: The Story of Sodom and Gomorrah was NOT About Homosexuality . Modisane . Cameron . November 15, 2014 . News24 . March 30, 2021.
  11. Book: Doerfler . Maria E. . 2016 . 2014 . Coming Apart at the Seams: Cross-dressing, Masculinity, and the Social Body in Late Antiquity . https://books.google.com/books?id=7fsoDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA37 . Upson-Saia . Kristi . Daniel-Hughes . Carly . Batten . Alicia J. . Dressing Judeans and Christians in Antiquity . . . 1st . 37–51 . 10.4324/9781315578125-9 . 9780367879334 . 2014000554 . 921583924 . 165559811.
  12. Book: Hunter . David G. . 2015 . Celibacy Was "Queer": Rethinking Early Christianity . https://books.google.com/books?id=VgDSBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA13 . Talvacchia . Kathleen T. . Pettinger . Michael F. . Larrimore . Mark . Queer Christianities: Lived Religion in Transgressive Forms . . . 13–24 . 9781479851812 . j.ctt13x0q0q.6 . 2014025201 . 152944605.
  13. Web site: Frost. Natasha. 2018-03-02. A Modern Controversy Over Ancient Homosexuality. 2021-04-24. Atlas Obscura. en.
  14. Web site: McClain. Lisa. A thousand years ago, the Catholic Church paid little attention to homosexuality. 2021-04-24. The Conversation. en.
  15. Gnuse . Robert K. . May 2015 . Seven Gay Texts: Biblical Passages Used to Condemn Homosexuality . . SAGE Publications on behalf of Biblical Theology Bulletin Inc. . 45 . 2 . 68–87 . 10.1177/0146107915577097 . 1945-7596 . 170127256.
  16. Book: Koenig. Harold G.. Dykman. Jackson. Religion and Spirituality in Psychiatry. 2012. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge. 9780521889520. 43. the overwhelming majority of Christian churches have maintained their positions that homosexual behavior is sinful.
  17. Book: Boswell, John . The Marriage of Likeness: Same-Sex Unions in Pre-Modern Europe . Fontana . 1996 . 9780006863267 . April 20, 2021.
  18. Web site: Same-Sex Relationships in the Bible: Conservative and Liberal Viewpoints. www.religioustolerance.org.
  19. Haggerty, p.380
  20. DeYoung, p. 290
  21. Martti Nissinen, Kirsi Stjerna, Homoeroticism in the Biblical World, p. 56
  22. Boswell, John. Same-sex Unions in Premodern Europe. New York: Vintage, 1994. (pp. 135-137)
  23. Halperin, David M. One Hundred Years of Homosexuality. New York: Routledge, 1990. (p. 83)
  24. When Heroes Love:. The Ambiguity of Eros in the Stories of Gilgamesh and David (New York & Chichester, Columbia University Press, 2005), pp. 165-231
  25. Homosexuality and Liminality in the Gilgamesh and Samuel (Amsterdam, Hakkert, 2007), pp. 28-63
  26. Conner & Sparks p. 250, "Noah"
  27. Boswell, p. 154
  28. Book: Jordan, Mark D. . The silence of Sodom: homosexuality in modern Catholicism . University of Chicago Press . Chicago . 2000 . 978-0-226-41041-8 . on the nature of "brotherly love", p.174
  29. http://ocafs.oca.org/FeastSaintsViewer.asp?SID=4&ID=1&FSID=101859 Holy Wonderworking Unmercenary Physicians Cosmas and Damian at Rome
  30. Web site: Lives of the Saints. All. troparia. kontakia · All lives of. saints. www.oca.org.
  31. Web site: Subjects of the Visual Arts: St. Sebastian . . 2007-08-01 . 2002 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070901002221/http://www.glbtq.com/arts/subjects_st_sebastian.html . 2007-09-01 .
  32. Book: Kaye, Richard A. . Losing His Religion: Saint Sebastian as Contemporary Gay Martyr . Outlooks: Lesbian and Gay Sexualities and Visual Cultures. Peter Horne and Reina Lewis, Eds. . 1996 . 86. 105 . 10.4324/9780203432433_chapter_five. 978-0-203-29128-3 .
  33. News: Arrows of desire: How did St Sebastian become an enduring, homo-erotic icon? - Features, Art . The Independent . 2008-02-10 . 2009-07-16.
  34. 10.1163/157007297X00291 . Caner . Daniel . The Practice and Prohibition of Self-Castration in Early Christianity . Vigiliae Christianae . 51 . 4 . 1997 . 1583869 . 396–415 .
  35. 10.1177/0142064X05057772 . Hester . David . Eunuchs and the Postgender Jesus: Matthew 19:12 and Transgressive Sexualities . Journal for the Study of the New Testament . 28 . 1 . 13–40 . 2005 . 145724743 .
  36. [Frend, W. H. C.]
  37. Web site: Words . Archives.nd.edu . 2014-04-24.
  38. Book: Moxnes, Halvor . Putting Jesus in his place . Westminster John Knox Press . 2004 . 85 . 978-0-664-22310-6 . Especially in De Monogamia it seems clear that Tertullian takes spado to mean a "virgin", but by using the word spado he employed a term that was in common use to refer to castrated men.
  39. Accordingly, Tertullian's text, "ipso domino spadonibus aperiente regna caelorum ut et ipso spadone, quem spectans et apostolus, propterea et ipse castratus, continentiam mavult" (De monogamia, 3) has been translated as "seeing that the Lord Himself opens 'the kingdoms of the heavens' to 'eunuchs', as being Himself, withal, a virgin; to whom looking, the apostle also--himself too for this reason abstinent--gives the preference to continence" (Roberts-Donaldson translation).
  40. Book: Rogers, Jack. Jesus, the Bible, and Homosexuality, Revised and Expanded Edition: Explode the Myths, Heal the Church. 14 April 2009. Westminster John Knox Press. Google Books. 9781611640502.
  41. John C. Dwyer, Human Sexuality: A Christian View, Rowman & Littlefield, USA, 1987, p. 62
  42. David Jeffers, Understanding Evangelicals, Xulon Press, USA, 2006, p. 54
  43. http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p3s2c2a6.htm#2357 Catechism of the Catholic Church, § 2357
  44. Jeanne H. Ballantine, Keith A. Roberts, Our Social World: Introduction to Sociology, 3rd Media Edition, SAGE, USA, 2011, p. 427
  45. Adrian Thatcher, The Oxford Handbook of Theology, Sexuality, and Gender, Oxford University Press, UK, 2015, p. 363
  46. Jeffrey S. Siker, Homosexuality and Religion: An Encyclopedia, Greenwood Publishing Group, USA, 2007, p. 112
  47. William Henard, Adam Greenway, Evangelicals Engaging Emergent, B&H Publishing Group, USA, 2009, p. 20
  48. Erwin Fahlbusch, Geoffrey William Bromiley, The Encyclopedia of Christianity, Volume 4, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, USA, 2005, p. 937
  49. Web site: History of MCC – Metropolitan Community Churches. www.mccchurch.org. en-US. 2018-07-16.
  50. Web site: LGBT Identification, by Religious Affiliation . PRRI American Values Atlas 2019 . April 20, 2021.
  51. Web site: Religious Composition by Self-Reported Sexual Identity . 2014 . PEW Research Center . April 20, 2021.
  52. Web site: Religious Affiliation . 2013 . PEW Research Center . April 20, 2021.
  53. Mahaffy. Kimberly A.. 1996. Cognitive Dissonance and Its Resolution: A Study of Lesbian Christians. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. 35. 4. 392–402. 10.2307/1386414. 1386414.
  54. Hogan, Steve and Lee Hudson (1998). Completely Queer: The Gay and Lesbian Encyclopedia,. pg. 478. New York, Henry Holt and Company. .
  55. Book: Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America: Women and religion: methods of study and reflection. Rosemary Skinner. Keller. Rosemary Radford. Ruether. Marie. Cantlon. 1 January 2006. Indiana University Press. Google Books. 9780253346865.
  56. Toft. Alex. 2014-08-15. Re-imagining bisexuality and Christianity: The negotiation of Christianity in the lives of bisexual women and men. Sexualities. en. 17. 5–6. 546–564. 10.1177/1363460714526128. 144119995. 1363-4607.
  57. Web site: June 1972: The Ithaca Statement - BiMedia. 10 February 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20151015231948/http://bimedia.org/1984/june-1972-the-ithaca-statement/. 15 October 2015.
  58. Book: Donaldson, Stephen . 1995 . The Bisexual Movement's Beginnings in the 70s: A Personal Retrospective . 31–45 . Tucker . Naomi . Bisexual Politics: Theories, Queries, & Visions . New York . Harrington Park Press . 978-1-56023-869-0 .
  59. News: PAST Out: What is the history of the bisexual movement? . 2008-03-18 . Highleyman . Liz . 2003-07-11 . LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth . 13 . 8 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080531051440/http://www.camprehoboth.com/issue07_11_03/pastout.htm . 2008-05-31 .
  60. Martin. Robert. Quakers 'come out' at conference. The Advocate. 1972-08-02. 91. 8.
  61. Web site: Stances of Faiths on LGBTQ Issues: Religious Society of Friends - Human Rights Campaign. Human Rights. Campaign.
  62. Bogaert . Anthony F. . 2004 . Asexuality: prevalence and associated factors in a national probability sample . . 41 . 3 . 279–87 . 10.1080/00224490409552235 . 15497056 . 41057104.
  63. Melby . Todd . November 2005 . Asexuality gets more attention, but is it a sexual orientation? . Contemporary Sexuality . 39 . 11 . 1, 4–5 . 1094-5725 . https://web.archive.org/web/20060211090359/http://www.aasect.org/NEWS/CS%20Nov%202005.pdf . 2006-02-11 . 20 November 2011 . American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists.
  64. Book: Sex and Society . Marshall Cavendish . 2010 . 978-0-7614-7906-2 . Marshall Cavendish . 2 . 82–83 . Asexuality . 27 July 2013.
  65. Web site: Eight myths about religious life - VISION Vocation Network for Catholic Religious Life & Priesthood - English. 2013-10-25. https://web.archive.org/web/20190212070652/https://vocationnetwork.org/articles/show/49. 2019-02-12.
  66. Web site: Why We Christians Should Accept Asexuals. Lisa. Petriello. December 15, 2020.
  67. Web site: What does the Bible say about asexuality? . 2023-12-12 . GotQuestions.org . en.

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