Homosexuality and bisexuality

Why are conservative Protestants
opposed to gay rights, while liberals
favor equal rights for all?

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Difference of opinion:

The Southern Baptist Convention, (along with other denominations within the conservative wing of Protestantism) and the United Church of Christ, (along with other liberal faith groups), all consider themselves to be Christians. They all use the contents of the Bible as a main foundation for their beliefs. Why have they reached such different conclusions concerning:

Understanding the different beliefs:

One approach to understanding this difference of opinion is to consider how each wing of Protestantism develops their religious beliefs. Whether expressed by Christian individualsor denominations, their convictions are mostly based on a blend of four factors. In the case of homosexuality, this involves:

It is important to realize that conservative and liberal Christians place different emphasis on the four factors. Generally speaking:

Typical conservative Protestant beliefs about homosexuality:

Conservative Christians generally believe that the Bible authors were inspired by God to write text that is inerrant -- free of error. They often quote the Bible's seven passages -- often called "clobber passages" which have traditionally been used to condemn homosexuality. They have generally concluded that the Bible clearly and consistently condemns all homosexual behavior, no matter what the nature of the relationship is:

"For most of us who seriously honor Scripture these verses still stand as the capital New Testament text that unequivocally prohibits homosexual behavior. More prohibitively, this text has been taken to mean that even a same-sex inclination is reprehensible, so that a type of humanity known as 'homosexual' has steadily become the object of contempt and discrimination." ₂

Their conclusion is obvious: homosexuality is consistently condemned throughout the Bible. Further, they interpret 1 Corinthians 6 as showing that homosexuals can be cured and converted to heterosexuality by first being saved.

They generally believe that the proper approach of a Christian to a homosexual is to convince him to be converted to heterosexuality either through reparative therapy or by becoming saved.

Typical liberal Protestant beliefs about homosexuality:

Liberal Christians generally reject the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. They acknowledge that the Bible consists mainly of material promoting the authors' evolving beliefs. To that is added text imported from nearby Pagan cultures, some religious propaganda, and some material -- like the execution of rape victims, religious minorities, and homosexuals; forced divorce of inter-faith couples; genocides; etc. -- which they view as definitely against the will of God.

Rather than concentrating on the seven "clobber" passages, they derive their beliefs from biblical themes of love, caring for other humans, inclusiveness, and justice. When they do study the "clobber" passages they often interpret them very differently and conclude that the Bible is silent on loving, committed consensual same-sex relationships. Typical interpretations are:

Their conclusion is obvious: The Bible condemns same-sex abuse -- rape, desecrating holy places, prostitution, child molestation, bestiality and sexual activity against one's basic nature. It is silent on consensual same-sex activity by persons with a homosexual or bisexual relationship within a loving committed relationship.

They generally believe that the proper approach of a Christian to homosexuality is to:

Opinion expressed by John S. Spong:

Waterfront Media publishes a regular Email newsletter in which retired bishop John S. Spong answers questions submitted by the public. ₃ "SXL" wondered about the growth of conservative Protestant denominations and was "rather appalled that their 'love' for humanity does not include homosexuals" and other groups The asked Spong's opinion about the future of these groups in the U.S. ₄

J.S. Spong suggested that religious fundamentalism is a mechanism to generate security and stability in its members who live in a culture that is in rapid change. Unfortunately it requires that some group be demonized. Currently, the group selected are persons with a homosexual orientation. He writes, in part:

"I think that we have in recent years entered a 'New Dark Age' in the Western world. It is marked by the rise of religious systems that seek to build security by encouraging prejudice against a designated victim. Both evangelical fundamentalism and the kind of ultra-conservative Roman Catholicism that is at present installed in the Vatican are publicly defined by their visceral and uninformed hostility toward homosexual persons. What the heretic was in the Middle Ages, the black in the days of slavery and segregation, and the Jew in Nazi Germany, the homosexual has become in the religious hysteria of our day. This kind of behavior is always a response to fear and to a rapidly changing world. Security-providing religion, which always requires a victim, is like a drug that carries us over the rough places of life. It is certainly not the wave of the Christian future....Beyond that I think we ought to recognize that truth and unity cannot ever be built on identifying a victim that creates the illusion of unity because there is a common enemy. When these institutions say that God hates the same things that the worshiper hates, everyone should be very suspicious."

"Dark Ages do not last forever. Ten years from now this phase of our religious history will surely be over. The contemporary scientific and medical data that suggests that homosexuality is a perfectly normal but minority aspect of our humanity, that it is a given and not a chosen aspect of life, will have challenged these prejudices so deeply as to make them seem not only quaint but ignorant. Remember that less than one hundred years ago we were still persecuting left-handed people as evil, deviant and unnatural. In the meantime I share your enormous embarrassment that the Christian church is today the major voice in the Western World in the persecution of those members of our society whose only 'sin' is that they were born with a sexual orientation different from the majority. ₅ Someday we will be terribly ashamed of the Christian leaders in our generation." ₄

If Bishop Spong is correct, then fundamentalists will have to move on, leaving homosexuals to demonize another group -- perhaps Muslims, or Witches, other Neopagans, or some other religious group.

A book to help the general public understand homosexuality:

"Ordination Standards:  Biblical, Theological, and Scientific Perspectives," iUniverse, Inc., (2005), 588 pages. Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store.

The Ordination Standards Task Force of North Como Presbyterian Church in Roseville, MN, has produced a most impressive book on homosexuality. Its main theme is whether candidates who are in loving committed same-sex relationships should be allowed to be ordained in the Presbyterian Church, (USA). It also covers many other topics associated with sexual orientation, including reparative therapy, suicide among gay and lesbian youth, homosexuality in the natural world, etc. Unlike almost all other books which take either a liberal or conservative approach, this book attempts to explain all viewpoints objectively. An amazing accomplishment.