It's OK to Be Gay: Straight Talk About Homosexuality for Gay People and Those Who Love Them

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Arrests in the Arab countries often involve groups of men at parties (sometimes described as gay “weddings”) and occasionally at hammams (bathhouses). Individuals or couples accused of having unlawful sex may be arrested for a variety of reasons, including some which initially are unrelated to homosexuality. There are also reported cases where people suspected of being gay have been arrested by police seeking to elicit bribes or turn the suspects into informers. For those caught, the effect on their lives is catastrophic but the law is not much of a deterrent and for those who are discreet about their sexuality the risk of arrest is small. Sexually transmitted infections treatment guidelines, 2021. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/std/treatment-guidelines/default.htm. Accessed Dec. 9, 2022. Being anti-gay based on what the bible says is being irrational. If 'GOD' rejects homosexuality, why wouldn't (couldn't) he write a less ambiguous text so he can save us the trouble? The bible is not a reliable book. It is full of contradictions, inconsistencies and mistakes.

A pro-gay position might be that this is a clear indication that King David had a gay relationship, and to pretend otherwise is naive. Pro-gay" against "anti-gay" is misleading, as is missing out the wider Biblical picture. Sex is so good and strong and powerful (just read the Song of Solomon): it's what puts life into a marriage, and lives into the world. But used outside of marriage it ultimately perpetuates confusion, difficulty and hurt, even though, naturally enough, something in it seems so 'right' for a while. The case became public when Al-Azhar University refused to readmit her either as a male student or a female student. There were also many who found the concept of gender dysphoria difficult to grasp and some characterised her as a gay man who was trying to game the system.A spate of books and videos and article and blogs would tell us that, indeed, that is not the gospel and that the good news of Jesus is that you can follow Him and enjoy a committed, homosexual relationship too. And some of the authors of these books, videos, articles, and blogs claim to be committed Christians themselves. How Do We Sort This Out? I believe the challenge the Vatican faces is to imagine the space that the church can occupy in this new reality, as it has had to do in the face of numerous social and political changes across centuries. But the imperative, as Francis suggests, is to serve justice and to seek justice for all people with mercy above all.

The importance of these rulings today is that they provide an Islamic dispensation for sex reassignment surgery – so long as the purpose of the surgery is to uncover the person’s “hidden” sex. On that basis, operations have been carried out in Sunni Muslim countries, including Saudi Arabia and Egypt. What if it’s a loving, committed relationship?” The idea behind this objection is that same-sex mating is just like marriage — except that it’s with the same sex. It isn’t. Research by Alan R. Bell and Martin S. Weinberg shows that “close-coupled” homosexuals don’t stop cruising, they just cruise less. Homosexual activist Andrew Sullivan say that heterosexuals should learn from the homosexual example to get over their hang-up about marital faithfulness. The committed homosexual relationship is a myth. Over time, you will figure out if you are gay, straight, neither, or both. You may experiment to see what makes you comfortable and happy. The process may take a while. Your decision may be hard for you and/or others close to you to accept. It is important to be honest with yourself and with others. What does “coming out” mean? There are several verses in the Bible which are similarly contested - there are however a much smaller number of seemingly clear statements. The most famous of them is probably from Leviticus: "You shall not lie with a man as with a woman; that is an abomination." You hate people like me.” Your friend should already know that you love her. If loving enough to tell the truth gently sounds like hatred to those who don’t want to hear it, you have done all you can; the Lord will understand.

LGBT and beyond

Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed wrote a crucial autobiography, The Koran and the Flesh/Le Coran et la chair (2012), Jerry Wright’s Homoeroticism in Classical Arabic Literature , and Helie and Hoodfar’s Sexuality in Muslim Contexts have expanded our historical understanding of the issue, while Joseph Massad’s Desiring Arabs (2007) took the whole discourse of homosexuality radically to task. Despite recent attempts to downplay this truth, male-female complementarity is part of God’s foundational design. It is clear from the pro-gay viewpoints that they will twist and turn every Bible verse they want to say what they want it to say, or otherwise just brush over it and say that we are apparently a more enlightened society in the 21st Century. The Bible is God's word and should be the only guide in a Christian's life. There are many resources out there for people who want to support their queer friends and family members. Sexual preference. This refers to specific qualities in people you are sexually attracted to. For example, tall, blonde, or muscular. There are no wrong preferences.

For the vast majority who identify as gay, lesbian or transgender the attitudes of family and society are a much bigger problem. The tree of homosexuality bears bad fruits. Sodomitical acts have not only external consequences like death, disease, and childlessness, but internal ones. Some of the internal consequences are psychological, like loneliness and compulsive behavior. Others are moral, for we cannot violate the human design yet expect things to go on as they were; “that road leads down and down.”And this is what we cannot miss: it is because the woman was taken out of the man that the very next verse says this: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Gen. 2:24). Some of these Catholics may argue that Pope Francis’s approach to LGBTI matters is a misinterpretation of Scripture (or the Bible). But is it? Is this not the reason you are mistaken, that you do not understand the Scriptures or the power of God?

Sometimes, it’s best to start by telling someone who you’re sure will be accepting, such as an open-minded family member or friend. If you’d like, you could ask them to be there with you when you tell others. All these sinful practices were certainly rejected, but biblical authors like Paul were certainly aware of long-term, male-male relationships.

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It is clear that the vast majority of those who have changed their views on what the Bible says about homosexuality and now believe in “gay Christianity” have done so based on either their own same-sex desires and attractions or their interaction with “gay Christians” (or with any gay or lesbian person who challenges their assumptions). Male homosexual behavior was expected in ancient Athens. Today, ritual male homosexuality plays an important role in some cultures in New Guinea. This argument is just as touchy as evolution. There is no real right or wrong answer, one can only interperet it as well as it can be and hope that it is the right one. Follow the obvious and fill in the rest. Non-governmental organisations working in Arab countries often face government restrictions, and those working for LGBT rights face the additional problem of social stigma. Some groups therefore approach the issue more obliquely, for example by focusing on sexual health and HIV prevention, or campaigning for “personal rights” in general.