Liberated Christians
PO Box 55045, Phoenix Az 85078-5045
Promoting Intimacy and Other-Centered Sexuality
COPYRIGHTED 1997 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - MAY BE REPRINTED OR QUOTED
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Note: Liberated Christians is a primarily about heterosexual relationships.
While we are supportive of all sexual orientations, the leaders do not have the
resources to assist them in their special issues. Thus, our Fellowship groups are
not appropriate for gays/lesbians. However, individually Dave (an extreme heterosexual
- Kinsey Scale= 0) has done extensive biblical research and has been active supporting
biblical homosexuality for many years. However, there is no "official"
stand as an organization on homosexuality other than general support.
Summary of The New Testament and Homosexuality
by Robin Scroggs, professor of New Testament, Union Theological Seminary, a happily
married heterosexual who has been acclaimed in many Christian publications for his
serious research about what the New Testament really says about homosexuality.
Scroggs reason for his research was a discussion of homosexuality by ministers.
"I sat amazed as I heard the Bible being invoked in ways that were wholly inappropriate
to any canons of biblical scholarship. Perhaps something snapped in me...for better
or worse I decided somebody needed to provide resources that would give both clarity
and honesty." He says he has no personal interest but sees the tragic results
of false biblical scholarship and the tragic rejections of homosexuals in the name
of Christian righteousness or even love. It is about time someone spoke honestly
about the issue, not just from emotional homophobic assumptions of what the New
Testament really says.
Conclusions: 1) The NT church was not very concerned about homosexuality as a problem,
All three instances referring to homosexuality are from preformed traditions, either
Greek or Jewish. No single NT author considers the issue important enough to write
his own sentence about it! The argument "against nature" is the most common
form of attack on pederasty in the Greco-Roman texts. Pederasty involved forced
male rape even by heterosexuals and slave boy prostitutes. It says nothing about
today's loving homosexual relationships. Even in Romans 1, where Paul integrates
the illustration of homosexuality into his larger theological arguments, there is
no advance beyond idolatry and pagan vices of 1 Cor 6:9.
2) Female homosexuality gets even less attention appearing only in Romans 1, and
here with less emphasis than male homosexuality. This is doubtlessly because little
was said in the Greco-Roman world about lesbianism, and because in OT law no penalties
attached to such female practices. This again suggest pederasty was the vice, not
homosexuality in general. In Romans 1 Paul's language "about male homosexuality,
must have had, could only have had, pederasty in mind."
3) The two vice lists attack very specific forms of pederasty, not homosexuality
in general.
Scroggs concludes: "The basic model of today's Christian homosexual community
is so different from the model attacked by the New Testament that the criterion
of reasonable similarity of context is not met. The conclusion I have to draw seems
inevitable: Biblical judgements against homosexuality are not relevant to today's
debate.. should in no way be a weapon to justify refusal of ordination, not because
the Bible is not authoritative, but simply because it does not address the issues
involved". He concludes with more discussion that pederasty was the issue of
the biblical texts, not today's homosexual relationships. This is just a sample
of one sincere Christian scholar who like many reach the same conclusions regarding
biblical truth, not just traditional Church dogma.
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