An Open Letter to a University President regarding the Suspension of a Black Female Administrator Who Challenged a Comparison between Homosexual Practice and Being Black

May 6, 2008

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Plus see my response to a critic of my letter, along with the critic's change of heart here

Also my comments to a WorldNetDaily reporter here

In an outrageous act the President of the University of Toledo has suspended his Associate Vice President of Human Resources (with worse penalties to come if she doesn't grovel penitently before him) for daring, as a black woman and Christian, to question in print the absurd equation of self-affirmed homosexual attraction-and-practice with the benign condition of being of African descent. Although identifying herself in passing in the newspaper editorial as an employee of the university, she did not claim to be representing the official university stance on homosexual practice. Apparently President Jacobs thinks that he can control the public expression of religious and moral values of his employees, not only in the workplace environment (that would be bad enough) but also outside the workplace. Here I offer evidence from some scientific studies and philosophical arguments as to why Ms. Dixon is correct to reject a comparison between homosexuality and race. Of course, if I worked under Jacobs' totalitarian regime I would be suspended or fired for daring to make these arguments that President Jacobs does not have the ability to answer. You may write to Jacobs at UTPresident@utoledo.edu or  bill.logie@utoledo.edu to express your rational opinion.

When will Christians wake up to the seriousness of the threat to our civil liberties posed by the homosexualist agenda and vote accordingly? Jacobs can attempt such outrages only because he lives in a political culture that on a state, local, and increasingly national level is becoming bold in affirming homosexual practice and abridging the liberties of those who disagree. Just ask yourself whether it makes sense to vote for someone who thinks that you are a hateful, ignorant bigot and the moral equivalent of a racist because you believe that it is unloving to support the dishonoring of one's maleness or femaleness through same-sex intercourse. Ask yourself whether it makes sense to vote for someone who will work to pass legislation (and/or appoint judges) that can get you or your children fired, fined, incur massive court costs, denied educational opportunities or career advancement, denied adoption rights, and/or be forced to teach or be taught the homosexualist agenda.

 

Neglected References for a Forum on Homosexuality and the Church

at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary

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Out of a forum on “Homosexuality and the Church” at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary on Apr. 20, 2008 came a two-page bibliography of references that excluded every book defending the scriptural standard of a male-female prerequisite for sexual relations. It contained 13 books and articles, of which 11 works were devoted exclusively to the homosexualist agenda and two books consisted of articles on both sides of the debate but predominantly the homosexualist side. Not a single mention was made of any of my work. This list circulated privately to some people for further suggestions.  

The public revision that has gone out to the LPTS community, which can be viewed here, was allegedly “quite intentional [about] including diverse voices … so that we as a community might begin to dialogue together on this topic wherever we may be theologically and personally” (so the author of the list who emailed me after my initial posting). However, it added only two pieces defending the historic scriptural position (my first book and a book by Marty Soards), but then added also three more books on the homosexualist side (by John Boswell, Jack Rogers, and Letha Scanzoni/Virginia Mollenkott) and another piece by the Campolos that is mostly supportive of the homosexualist side. So the revision which is suppose to be “intentional [about] including diverse voices” now lists 14 works devoted exclusively to the homosexualist line, 3 that are predominantly supportive of that agenda, and only 2 that are exclusively devoted to uphold a two-sexes prerequisite. How can a list like this be “intentionally diverse” when 90% of what is contained therein exclusively or primarily supports only one side?

 

The Bible and Homosexual Practice: A Critique of Stacy Johnson's A Time to Embrace

Three Lectures Delivered at Princeton Theological Seminary (Mar. 4-5, 2008) on CD or through online download

Talk 1: "Did the Apostle Paul Reject Only Hedonistic and Exploitative Forms of Homosexual Practice?"

Talk 2: "Genesis and Jesus on a Male-Female Prerequisite for Sexual Bonds"

Talk 3: "What Nature Arguments and Science Have to Say about Homosexuality"

Each lecture runs about 1 hr. 15 min. plus an additional half hour of questions and answers

Available through Educational Media at Princeton Theological Seminary

Contact: media@ptsem.edu

 

Price:  There are two options available to purchase the recordings— 

CD Format

The cost of each recording/lecture is $5.00 in CD format.  Payment can be made by check made payable to “PTS” and mailed to Princeton Theological Seminary, P. O. Box 821, Princeton, NJ 08542-0803; or payment can be made by credit card online via PayPal.  The cost for the three lectures would be $15.00, plus a shipping and handling charge of $7.50 per order, within the U.S.  NJ residents would be subject to a 7% sales tax. 

Downloads

The cost per download is $1.99; for all 3 lectures $5.97.  Downloads are provided in wav, mp3, and wma56k (Windows dial-up) formats.  A “Read This First” is included which provides information about PTS downloads. Once media@pts.edu receives your request, Princeton Seminary will initiate an invoice through PayPal. PayPal will forward the invoice to you and request payment, which is made by credit card. PayPal will then notify Princeton Seminary of payment and Princeton Seminary will forward the links for the downloads to you at your email address.  

To download you must first contact media@pts.edu. This allows them to process requests and payments.

No Ordination Essentials “For All Time and All Persons”? Ten Reasons Why the Achtemeier Overture Is Extremist and Invalid

Feb. 24, 2008

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Do you believe that when presbyteries and sessions examine individual candidates for ordained office they should have a right to declare faith in Christ and abstinence from adultery nonessential requirements? If you are among the overwhelming majority of reasonable persons in the church who think otherwise, you disagree with Mark Achtemeier, a professor of theology at Dubuque Seminary, and the majority of voting members attending the Feb. 16 meeting of the John Knox Presbytery. For such would be the theologically insane effect of the overture that Achtemeier pushed for and the John Knox Presbytery passed, if the overture were interpreted according to its Rationale.

This article previously appeared in installments as a guess Viewpoint on www.presbyweb.com. 

General Assembly Court Scraps Scruples on G-6.0106b But Constitutional Amendments Still Needed

Feb. 18, 2008

On the Presbyterian Outlook website here and click "printer friendly version" (where there are fewer errors in formatting)

For properly formatted PDF version click here

 

The high court of the Presbyterian Church U.S.A., the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission (GAPJC), has rightly struck down attempts to "scruple" the "fidelity and chastity" portion of G-6.0106b in the Book of Order; namely prohibiting to candidates for church office sexual relations outside the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman. But the GAPJC failed to recognize the implications of its own logic, specifically, that the determination of essentials is not limited to ordaining bodies in the act of examining individual candidates for ordained office. Some essentials are already predetermined in the Book of Order and, moreover, presbyteries and sessions have a constitutional right to affirm as essentials standards whose essential status in the Constitution is unclear.

Was Jesus in a Sexual Relationship with the Beloved Disciple?

Feb. 10, 2008

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Some homosexualist readers of Scripture are so desperate to find anything supportive of homosexual bonds in the pages of Scripture that they even propose that Jesus was in a sexual relationship with the "disciple whom Jesus loved" mentioned in the Gospel of John. Here are seven arguments why this claim is false.

Pittsburgh Presbytery Forwards Overture Defining Some Clear Indicators of Ordination Essentials . . . and Other Overture Results of the Feb. 7 Meeting

Feb. 8, 2008

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Three Clear Indicators in the Book of Order regarding Ordination Essentials:

A Plea for Theological Sanity and Constitutional Honesty

A Presbyweb Viewpoint Article

Feb. 5, 2008

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If you can believe it, there are actually a lot of people in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), especially in the leadership, who think that standards in the Book of Order that are put in ordination vows (i.e. confessing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord) or explicitly singled out from amongst all other confessional standards to stress compliance (i.e. the requirement that ordained officers not have sexual relations outside of marriage between a man and a woman) or repeatedly mentioned in diverse contexts (i.e. the affirmation of women's ordination) are not necessarily being portrayed in the Book of Order as essentials. This is constitutional dishonesty and theological insanity.

How Bad Is Homosexual Practice According to Scripture and Does Scripture’s Indictment Apply to Committed Homosexual Unions?

January 2007; slightly modified December 2007

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Don’t ENDAnger Your Liberties in the Workplace

 Oct. 23, 2007

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Why the so-called "Employment Non-Discrimination Act" should be strongly opposed.

Debating Barry Lynn and Jimmy Creech on Barry Lynn's "Culture Shocks" Radio Show

Sept. 28, 2007

Go here to listen

(If this does not work go to http://www.cultureshocks.com/archives.html and scroll down to Sept. 28.)

Go here for a follow-up letter to Barry Lynn

Transsexuality and Ordination

Aug. 2007

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Calvin on Unity and Sexual Immorality 

A Comment on a Presbyterian Coalition Document

Aug. 13, 2007

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Some even in the renewal movements of the PCUSA think that John Calvin would not have sanctioned departure from a Christian denomination that affirmed homosexual practice. Here's why I think that assumption is wrong.

 

PCUSA Moderator Goes Awry in Her Claims of a "Deeply Pernicious Heresy"

Aug. 10, 2007

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Rev. Joan Gray, current moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church U.S.A., declares that refusing membership to persons who are actively and unrepentantly engaged in homosexual relations have committed a "deeply pernicious heresy." She even goes so far as to charge that the apostle Paul himself would support her view. One little problem exists with her pronouncement of "heresy": The evidence from Scripture and even from the PCUSA's Constitution does not support her view. In fact, her declaration makes the apostle Paul a heretic.

CHURCH POLICY AS REGARDS HOMOSEXUAL PRACTICE: MEMBERSHIP AND ORDAINED MINISTRY

A 'lost' chapter of my first book

(written 1999; publicly released Aug. 2007)

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The following chapter was written for my first book The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and Hermeneutics (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2001) back in 1999. Because the powers-that-be at Abingdon Press were predominantly supportive of homosexual unions, they did not want me to become “too practical.” They disagreed strongly with the policy decisions that I took in this chapter and so refused to publish it. I did nothing with the chapter because I was headed for a tenure decision and knew that my stances on these policy issues would further jeopardize my tenure—a tenure already (and ironically) jeopardized by publishing a book on the Bible’s view on homosexual practice that supported the official stance of the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. (with which my seminary was and is affiliated). After being awarded tenure in 2002 I more or less forgot about the chapter. However, a recent editorial in Presbyweb.com by the moderator of the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. labeling as “A Deeply Pernicious Heresy” (Aug. 4, 2007) any attempt at withholding membership from persons who repetitively and unrepentantly engage in homosexual practice has served as a catalyst for me to release this chapter. It’s long overdue.

 

Letter to an Evangelical Leader on Exploring “Gay Rights”

Aug. 7, 2007

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In late June 2007 an evangelical leader contacted me with the questions about "what rights [I] believe that gay and lesbian people should have." The questions were asked in view of my opposition to so-called "hate crime sexual orientation" legislation. Here is the response that I sent on June 21, 2007.

 

Case Not Made:

A Response to Prof. John Thorp's "Making the Case" for Blessing Homosexual Unions in the Anglican Church of Canada

June 19, 2007   

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Also: A response to a critic of my argument against Prof. Thorp here.

 

 

A week or so before the 2007 General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada a paper by Prof. John Thorp, professor of philosophy at the University of Western Ontario, was sent to every delegate to the Synod, timed to push the case for blessing homosexual unions. Thorp's paper, which can be viewed at the Anglican Church of Canada website, is not well done but it might convince some of the uninformed. Here is my response.

Putting one's money where one's mouth is?
Jack Haberer's editorial supporting "Sexual Orientation Hate" crime legislation

May 30, 2007

(A Presbyweb.com Viewpoint article)

Click here
 

Let the “Sexual Orientation Hate” Bill Pass and Invite Your Own Oppression 

May 2, 2007

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Also: A letter to members of Congress: here

Also: An exchange will a homosexual man upset with this article: here

For an excellent legal analysis see the memorandum on this "hate crimes" bill by the Alliance Defense Fund here

Also: Questions and Answers about the Federal Hate Crime Bill here

 IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED: CONTACT CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT

"Jesus and the Centurion" by Veronés (1528-88).

Did Jesus Approve of a Homosexual Couple in the Story of the Centurion at Capernaum?

Apr. 24, 2007

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A rebuttal of the oft-repeated but historically baseless argument that Jesus approved of a homosexual relationship in the story of centurion at Capernaum. Contrast the baseless billboard message to the right:

Rowan Williams' Wrong Reading of Romans

(. . . and John 14:6)

Apr. 21, 2007

Click here for PDF version, here for HTML

An abridged version is now available in the May 4, 2007 edition of The Church of England Newspaper, pp. 22-23 under the title "Is Rowan Williams Wrong on the Meaning of Romans?" Go here to the "The Record" section and select the 04/05/07 edition for download. It's free.

 

A response to the Archbishop's claim that Paul's primary point in Romans 1-2 was to critique the self-righteous who judge others, a point that challenges the position of persons today who judge those engaging in homosexual relations. With due respect to the Archbishop, Paul never argued that believers should not judge sexual immorality committed by those inside the church. To the contrary . . . . He also truncates and misapplies the context of John 14:6 ("I am the Way and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through me") to suggest that we can go into interfaith dialogue with the view that salvation does not depend on explicit confession of Christ.

 

Dale Martin's Poststructuralist Persona and His Historical-Critical Real Self

An Exchange Between Robert Gagnon and Dale Martin over Martin's Critique of Gagnon in Sex and the Single Savior

Oct. 2006 (posted 3/6/07)

Click here

Click here for some responses

Click here for the beginnings of a more detailed response to Martin's book: Dale Martin and the Myth of Total Textual Indeterminacy

 

Dale Martin, professor of New Testament at Yale University and a self-identified "gay man," devotes six full pages of his recent book Sex and the Single Savior: Gender and Sexuality in Biblical Interpretation (Westminster John Knox, 2006; released Sept./Oct. 2006) to criticizing me as a poster boy of "foundationalism," which for him is a dirty word. What is my crime? My crime is thinking that some things written in Scripture are relatively clear and that, on the whole, a Christian is probably better off submitting to the core values of Scripture than deviating from them.

Produced here is the e-mail exchange that I had with Martin in Oct. 2006. A fuller critique is already in process (click here). Although (1) Martin claims that no certain meaning can be extrapolated from texts and indeed criticizes me strongly for thinking otherwise, and although (2) Martin knows me only through "text" (my books and this email correspondence), he (3) shows remarkable textual certitude about what he thinks I know and don't know and even what my motives are behind what I write. How is it possible that Martin can put on a persona of textual indeterminacy when he criticizes me but then, in that very critique, operate out of a conviction of complete textual certitude? Indeed, how can he even critique the "textual Gagnon" apart from some confidence that he can determine meaning from texts? Why even write books and articles as he does if texts are as ambiguous as he claims them to be? Read on.

How Bad Is Homosexual Practice According to Scripture and Does Scripture’s View Apply to Committed Homosexual Unions?

A response to R. Milton Winter’s Perspectives article:

“Presbyterians and Separatist Evangelicals”

 January 2007

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Answers to Emails on the Bible and Homosexuality I

10/15/06-

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6/15/07: Did Jesus Change the Law's Stance on Capital Sentencing?

5/8/07: Hate Mail from an Angry Left-of-Center Pastor with a "Wonderful" Pastoral Manner

4/26/07: A question about eternal security and sexual immorality

4/25/07: Do you think I would still go to heaven when I die if I am in a lesbian relationship?

4/8/07: Jack Rogers and Analogies

3/31/07: A person with homosexual desire asks: How does one decide which commands of God in Scripture to follow?

3/10/07: Where have I spoken about why women's ordination is a bad analogy for accepting homosexual practice?

3/10/07: Email from a father whose teenage son has "come out," on my "Two Views" book

2/2/07: Why Meeting Nice "Gay" and Lesbian Persons Should Not Lead to Approval of Homosexual Practice

1/18/07: Jesus, eunuchs, and the allegation of a 'gay Jesus'

10/17/03 (revisited 12/26/06): A heartfelt email from a woman with same-sex attractions

12/20/06: Where do I stand on registered homosexual partnerships?

12/04/06: Do I operate with a notion of mind/body dualism or "physicalism"?

12/04/06: How did I get so involved in the topic of homosexuality?

12/04/06: What's a Layperson to Do?

11/17-25/06: Correspondence with a student at Eastern University promoting a "noncontextual perspective and "trusting my own judgment"

11/22/06: Response to a person who thinks that my non-biblical arguments are not strong

11/14/06: Question about books or resources for counseling persons with same-sex attractions

11/14/06: Differences of opinion about the relevance of menstrual law and whether the Law is abrogated in Christ

11/2/06: Questions about Jack Rogers's claim that 1 Cor 6:9 does not speak against committed homosexual unions

10/27/06: Can one make a reasoned case against homosexual practice without citing Scripture?

10/16/06: Requests for clarifications on my positions regarding Gen 2, the meaning of unnatural, and the relevance of Dutch gay marriage

10/16/06: Questions about genetic influence and moral relevance

The Haggard Episode and the Case for “Gay Marriage”:

Why the Two Have No Connection

Nov. 6, 2006

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For responses to the article and my comments go here.

Answers to an AP Reporter's Questions about the Church's Debate of Homosexual Unions

Nov. 7, 2006

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A reasonably concise (under 1500-word) explanation of why the issue of homosexual practice is such a problem for most mainline denominations. I wince at the number of substantive arguments that I had to leave out in order to pare down to this length. But if you want something short from me on this issue, I recommend this.

Can One Be a "Gay Evangelical"?

My answer to a New York Times reporter and how she reported it

Dec. 16, 2006

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Also: A letter from a homosexual man angry that the Times quoted me--and my response      HTML

On 11/29/06, Neela Banerjee, religion reporter for The New York Times, emailed me to ask my views on “gay evangelicals” and about whether I thought "such a term can be honestly used." On the same day I emailed my response. Two quotes were taken from my response and put in her article in the Times on Tuesday, Dec. 12, entitled “Gay and Evangelical, Seeking Paths of Acceptance” (front page, continued on p. 18; temporarily available on the web here). She was pleasant in her email. However, her handling of my response merits some comment and qualification.

Jack Rogers's Flawed Use of Analogical Reasoning in Jesus, the Bible, and Homosexuality

Nov. 2, 2006

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A critique of Jack Rogers's deeply flawed attempt at comparing today's opposition to homosexual practice with yesterday's oppression of African Americans and women.

 

"What Happened at the 217th General Assembly? The Import of the New 'Authoritative Interpretation' of G-6.0108" 

Presentation given at the New Wineskins Initiative Convocation

July 20, 2006

For Audio click http://www.robgagnon.net/RGagnon.wma

"I Am of the Middle": The Subgroup of the "Middle" and Its Accommodation to Sexual Immorality

A Response to Mark Achtemeier

July 12, 2006

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Dr. Mark Achtemeier, professor of theology at Dubuque Seminary, contends that identification with renewal groups in the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. may be a case of conducting church by "subgroups" comparable to the situation at Corinth that Paul rebukes in 1 Corinthians 1-4 ("I am of Paul, Apollos, Cephas, or Christ"). Unfortunately, Dr. Achtemeier does not consider that his stance on accommodating homosexual practice on the part of officers of the PCUSA may be comparable to the Corinthians' toleration of consensual adult incest in their midst--in which case the repudiation of factionalism in 1 Cor 1-4 does not apply. Nor does he consider that he himself has become a member of a de facto subgroup within the PCUSA: the subgroup of the so-called middle that does not represent the majority of Presbyterians. Nor does he acknowledge that the PCUSA is already a subgroup whose status in relation to Scripture, the historic church faith, and world Christianity he has helped marginalize by his own work in the PUP Task Force and accommodation to sexual immorality among officers of the church.

 Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk of the PCUSA

The Stated Clerk of the PCUSA Gets It Wrong:

A Look at His Advisory Opinion on the Task Force's “Authoritative Interpretation”

July 8, 2006

A Presbyweb.com Viewpoint

For a pdf version click here     

 

In his newly released “Advisory Opinion #18: Discernment in Examining Bodies - G-6.0108,” the Stated Clerk of the PCUSA, Clifton Kirkpatrick, offers no clear guidance that the amended “authoritative interpretation” of the PUP Task Force, passed by the 2006 General Assembly, would still disallow the ordination of persons engaged in self-affirmed homosexual activity. Indeed, most of what he says in his advisory opinion leans in the direction of suggesting that ordaining homosexually active persons is not necessarily an act of constitutional noncompliance. In this respect Advisory Opinion #18, though well-meaning, is badly botched.

New article in print:

A 5-page entry on "Homosexuality" in New Dictionary of Christian Apologetics (eds. C. Campbell-Jack, G. McGrath, and C. Evans; Intervarsity Press, 2006), 327-32

 

I was asked for this entry to explore the apologetic basis for a two-sex prerequisite for sexual unions, with only minimal reference to Scripture in order to make my contribution effective in dialogue with unbelievers. I structured the entry as follows:

I. A nature argument for structural prerequisites

A. The problem of confusing generic love with sexual intimacy

B. Foundational linkage between heterosexuality and monogamy

C. Analogical linkage between homosexuality and incest

D. The point of these linkages

E. The nature argument in story form: Genesis 1-2

F. The core problem: sexual narcissism and/or sexual self-deception

II. A consideration of counterarguments

A. Doesn't homosexual orientation validate homosexual behavior?

B. Isn't long-term commitment a solution to the primary problem?

C. Isn't the sex of the partners secondary to self-constructed sexuality?

D. Isn't an other-sex prerequisite a superficial obsession with 'plumbing'?

E. Doesn't speaking of two halves of a sexual whole mean that single people are less than whole?

Material Related to the 217th General Assembly

     The main article:

     The General Assembly Breaks Trust with Its Own Denomination:       HTML     PDF

     Other articles:

     Formal Protest to Assembly's Approval of PUP Task Force Rec. 5:    HTML     PDF

     Defending the Plain Meaning of the Sexuality Mandate in G-6.0106b: HTML    PDF

Does Jack Rogers's New Book "Explode the Myths" about the Bible and Homosexuality and "Heal the Church?"

Installment 1:   HTML    PDF

Installment 2:   HTML    PDF

Installment 3:   HTML    PDF

Installment 4:   HTML    PDF

Response to Rogers's Response, Part 1:  HTML    PDF

 

The subtitle of Jack Rogers's new book, Jesus, the Bible and Homosexuality is Explode the Myths, Heal the Church. The question is: Does the book accomplish either goal?

In Installment 1 I show how Rogers, in a tendentious manner, makes very meager and highly selective use of biblical scholarship to achieve his desired ends. In particular, Rogers consistently avoids remarks from scholars who, though sharing his affirmation of homosexual unions, disagree with his central conclusion that “the Bible does not condemn all homosexual relationships.”

In Installment 2 I demonstrate two things. First, Rogers doesn't realize that one of his two main arguments for establishing that the Bible doesn’t oppose all homosexual practice, the misogyny argument, actually contradicts this central contention. Secondly, the examples that Rogers gives in his book for demonstrating the importance of knowing the historical context actually demonstrate that Rogers himself doesn’t know well the historical context. Here I focus on his orientation argument, his idolatrous sexuality argument, and, most of all, his misogyny argument.

In Installment 3 I show how Rogers lies about my work to cover up for the deficiencies in his own argument. Here I focus on perhaps the biggest lie that has ever been said about my work; namely, Rogers's twice-repeated contention that I "simply assert, with no supporting evidence," that the Bible in general and the Pauline corpus in  particular express strong opposition to all forms of homosexual activity, including those of a committed sort. I use Rogers's lie as an opportunity to lay out from previous work some of the significant "supporting evidence" for my assertion as regards Romans 1:24-27, 1 Corinthians 6:9, and 1 Timothy 1:10; that is, to lay out my rebuttal to the "exploitation argument" used by Rogers. I raise questions about how Rogers and, by implication, the official publishing house of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Westminster John Knox, can "heal the church," much less "explode the myths," by lying about the work of scholars with whom they disagree and attempting to cover up the failings of their position.

In Installment 4 I show how Rogers lies about my views on same-sex attractions when he attributes to me the absurd belief  that "homosexuality is a willful choice" and "that all people who are homosexual" can change into full heterosexuals. This is another instance where Rogers bears false witness about my work in order to cover up deficiencies in his own work, here as regards science matters. I use the opportunity to say something about the science side of the homosexuality issue. In the midst of this discussion don't miss the gem about Jesus' reference to "born eunuchs."

 

Letha Dawson Scanzoni

               David G. Myers

 

Why the Disagreement over the Biblical Witness on Homosexual Practice?

A Response to David G. Myers and Letha Dawson Scanzoni, What God Has Joined Together?

112 pages, Feb. 5, 2006

In: Reformed Review 59.1 (Autumn 2005): 19-130 (online)

 

This is my best and most updated "short" treatment--relative, that is, to a 500-page book--on the subject of the Bible and homosexuality. This 112-page article appears in the online journal Reformed Review, a publication of Western Seminary (affiliated with the Reformed Church in America). Click here to get to the article. Readers who wish to have an individual paper copy sent to them should contact Beth Smith at Western Theological Seminary at beth.smith@westernsem.edu. There is a modest cost for printing and shipping. For churches or others wishing to print off multiple copies for distribution, contact Prof. Robert Van Voorst at Western Seminary, Bob.VanVoorst@westernsem.edu. Permission will likely be granted for free, as long as proper credit to Reformed Review is given. There is no table of contents for the article at the Reformed Review website. To print a table of contents for the article click here. I will be writing a response shortly to Myers' response.

Readers will find treatments here of every major issue in the debate, including discussion and analysis of:

• The different hermeneutical scales or interpretive grids used by proponents and opponents of homosexual practice (pp. 19-25).
• The difficulty in neutralizing Scripture for a pro-homosex agenda (pp. 25-30).
• The nature argument (pp. 30-46).
• The relevant biblical texts and the arguments used to limit their relevance for today's debate: Old Testament (pp. 46-54) and the New Testament (pp. 54-85), including Jesus (pp. 56-62) and Paul (pp. 62-85).
• The three main "new knowledge" arguments for dismissing the biblical witness against homosexual practice: the exploitation argument (pp. 65-76), the orientation argument (pp. 77-79), and the misogyny argument (pp. 80-82).
• Whether homosexual practice is the diet and circumcision issue of today (the Gentile inclusion analogy; pp. 86-90).
• The alleged analogies to slavery, women's roles, divorce/ remarriage and other changes to marriage over the centuries (pp. 90-97) vs. analogies to incest, polysexuality, and pedosexuality (pp. 98-101).
• Manipulative rhetoric in the church debates about homosexuality (pp. 103-114).
• The science side of the debate (pp. 114-30),  including the question of the moral relevance of congenital influences and claims to an unchanging orientation (pp. 116-19), the question of whether culture can affect the incidence of homosexuality (pp. 120-25), and the question of whether "gay marriage" is good for society (pp. 125-30).

I use the book by Myers and Scanzoni as a stage from which to assess these issues and show how Myers and Scanzoni have not done their homework well in grappling with them. In fact, Myers and Scanzoni have, for the most part, ignored the wealth of counterarguments that can be arrayed against their positions by simply not engaging what I and others have written on the subject of homosexual practice.

David Myers is a prominent professor of social psychology who has an office and appointment (though neither teaching duties nor salary) at Hope College (a college affiliated with the Reformed Church in America) and has written a number of standard textbooks on psychology (including the biggest selling textbook on psychology in the country?), as well as a number of general interest books. See his website at http://www.davidmyers.org or click here. Letha Dawson Scanzoni has written such books as All We're Meant to Be: Biblical Feminism for Today (with N. Hardesty) and Is the Homosexual My Neighbor? (with V. R. Mollenkott).

Announcing a new published article:

"Scriptural Perspectives on Homosexuality and Sexual Identity" in Journal of Psychology and Christianity 24:4 (Winter 2005): 293-303.

I quote here from the introductory paragraph of my article and the conclusion:

Introduction

"The purpose of this article is to address specific themes from Scripture and theology that might be helpful for Christian psychologists who work with men and women who experience same-sex attractions. I shall begin by first discussing the relationship of Christian identity to biologically based orientations: does the latter necessarily determine the shape of the former? Then I shall look at the implications of this exploration for whether there is justification, or indeed necessity, for Christians who experience same-sex attractions to construct an identity distinct from such attractions. Finally, I shall suggest three additional scriptural principles for Christian psychologists."

[Outline of intervening material]

Christian Identity versus Biological Orientation

     The Antinomy between God and the Biological Self

     Jesus and the Metaphor of Death to Self

     St. Paul and the Metaphor of Death to Self

     The Psychology of the Four "Laws"

     Why Not Continue in Sin?

     God's Grace as the Primary Incentive for Configuring Identity

Implications for Homosexual Orientation and Identity

     The Necessity of Distinguishing Homosexual Orientation from Identity in Christ

     Jesus on Creation

     Paul on Creation

     The Core Problem with Same-Sex Attraction

Scriptural Principles for Clinical Practice

     1. Affirming the Integrity of the Sex of a Person with Same-Sex Attraction

     2. Taking Care Not to Short-Circuit the Work of God

     3. Coupling a Heightened Ethical Demand with a Loving Outreach to Violators

Conclusion

"Scripture is quite insistent about believers making a distinction between whatever intense biological 'orientations' they experience and the identity that has been constructed for them 'in Christ.' The cross provides Christians with the ultimate paradigm of self-denial, not of self-gratification and self-preservation. Yet the stimulus for a rigorous life of discipleship is an overwhelming, joyous sense of the abundance of God's grace through Christ, not a desire for pain. Further, Scripture clearly teaches that same-sex intercourse is a great affront to God's deliberate creation of male and female as complementary sexual counterparts. From a theological standpoint, homosexual attraction is narcissistic and/or self-deceiving in its attempt to achieve structural supplementation of one's God-given sex by merging with persons of the same sex. As such, the experience of exclusive same-sex attractions cannot trump the commands of God and should not lead to a homosexual identity. Finally, three scriptural principles for clinical services from a Christian perspective were put forward that seek to integrate truth and compassion."

Other articles in the same issue, which is a Special Issue devoted to the subject of Sexual Identity:

Stanton L. Jones (Prof. of Psychology, Wheaton College) and Alex W. Kwee, "Scientific Research, Homosexuality, and the Church's Moral Debate: An Update," 304-16.

[An excellent update of scientific research since the publication of Stanton Jones and Mark Yarhouse, Homosexuality: The Use of Scientific Research in the Church's Moral Debate [InterVarsity Press, 2000], mostly on the origination of homosexuality but also on psychological distress and Spitzer's study on reorientation.]

Heather Looy (Assoc. Prof. of Psychology, The King's University College in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada), "Gender and Sexual Identity: A Critical Exploration of Gender Inversion Theories of Sexual Orientation," 317-31.

Warren Throckmorton (Assoc. Prof. of Psychology, Grove City College) and Gary Welton (Prof. of Psychology, Grove City College), "Counseling Practices as They Relate to Ratings of Helpfulness by Consumers of Sexual Reorientation Therapy," 332-42.

Heather L. Brooke, "'Gays, Ex-Gays, Ex-Ex-Gays: Examining Key Religious, Ethical, and Diversity Issues': A Follow-up Interview with Douglas Haldeman, Ariel Shidlo, Warren Throckmorton, and Mark Yarhouse," 343-51.

Mark A. Yarhouse (Prof. of Psychology, Regent University), et al., "Project Inner Compass: Young Adults Experiencing Sexual Identity Confusion," 352-60.

H. Newton Malony (Prof. of Psychology, Fuller Theological Seminary), "Pastoral Counseling  and Sexual Identity," 361-7.

Lisa Graham McMinn (Assoc. Prof. of Sociology, Wheaton College), "Sexual Identity Concerns for Christian Young Adults: Practical Considerations for Being a Supportive Presence and Compassionate Companion," 368-77.

For those interested in ordering a copy of the journal for $10 (includes shipping and handling) go to http://www.caps.net/jpc.html. The journal is published by the Christian Association for Psychological Studies.

 

Announcing Two Newly Published Articles:

"Sexuality," in Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible (ed. K. J. Vanhoozer, et al.; London: SPCK; Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005), 739a-48b.

"The Old Testament and Homosexuality: A Critical Review of the Case Made by Phyllis Bird," Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 117:3 (2005): 367-94.

My entry on "Sexuality" in Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible is an 18-column discussion broken down into three main sections:

1. Jesus and Scripture on Sexuality

     a. Making the Creation Model of Marriage Normative and Prescriptive

       b. Closing Loopholes and Inconsistencies in the Law of Moses

       c. Intensifying Sexual Ethics

       d. Making Sexual Ethics a Life-and-Death Concern

       e. Reaching Out in Love to Violators

       f. The Value of Sexual Intimacy in Marriage

       g. The Penultimate Value of Sex

2. Jesus and Scripture on Homosexuality

       a. Jesus' View

       b. Paul's View

       c. Genesis and Rationale

       d. The Rest of Scripture

3. The Hermeneutics of the Gentile Inclusion Analogy

To purchase the book for 34% off the list price of $50, go here. To see a full description of the dictionary and a list of endorsements go to Baker Academic at http://www.bakeracademic.com

My 27-page article on "Old Testament and Homosexuality" appears in one of the world's premier scholarly journals on Old Testament studies, Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft. It is a critical analysis and refutation of one of the best pro-homosex treatments of the subject: Phyllis Bird, "The Bible in Christian Ethical Deliberation concerning Homosexuality: Old Testamen