I took you up on the advice you gave Joy, and I researched "abomination" in the Bible.quote:Originally posted by jetboy:
I'll tell you what I think. I think you have a child or close family member that is homosexual and you are trying to create on opening in the Christian faith for them. You might want to research 'abomination'!
Homophobic fundamentalists often quote two verses that seem to justify their hate of gay people. These two verses, both of which appear in the book of Leviticus, are:
"You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination." (Leviticus 18:22)
and . . .
"If a man lie with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them."(Leviticus 20:13)
Let's back up a bit in Leviticus, shall we?
"For everyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. He has cursed his father or his mother. His blood shall be upon him." (Leviticus 20:9)
Imagine what would happen today if we killed every child who was disrespectful to his parents. And you are still your mama and daddy's child even after you are grown. Fundamentalists explain this verse away, saying that it is part of the Old Levitical Holiness Code and is not meant to be taken literally. Really? Not to be taken literally? Sounds pretty literal to me. The above verse is just 3 verses before Leviticus 20:13, one of the favorite anti-gay scriptures which, of course, they do choose to apply literally.
Fundamentalists change their entire methodology of scriptural interpretation when it suits their purpose, even when dealing with verses that are a just couple of sentences away from each other.
"If a man lies with a woman during her sickness and uncovers her nakedness, he has discovered her flow, and she has uncovered the flow of her blood. Both of them shall be cut off from her people." (Leviticus 20:18)
Imagine what would happen today if we deported every man and woman who had ever had sex together while the woman was having her period. Fundamentalists decline the opportunity to take this verse literally, which is merely 5 verses after Leviticus 20:13. If I had a nickel for every time I have heard a guy say "if you can drive through mud, you can..." well - you've all heard the saying... Anyone who has uttered that should be cut off from the people. Sinners! Abominations!
"Your male and female slaves are to come from the nations around you; from them you may buy slaves. You may also buy some of the temporary residents living among you and members of their clans born in your country, and they will become your property." (Leviticus 25:44-45)
Did you ever wonder where racist, uneducated people got the idea that slaves were just property and not people? Directly from the above verse, which fundamentalists do not, of course, take literally. Or maybe they do. Jetboy, where do you buy your slaves?
"Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard." (Leviticus 19:27)
Bible-thumping fundamentalists never preach against the evils of shaving, as they do not take this verse literally for our day. Of course, they most certainly would do so if they had a personal bias against shaving, but apparently, they do not. Or, since I haven't seen our resident fundamentalists in person, maybe they do look like this:
"...do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. Do not wear material woven of two kinds of material." (Leviticus 19:19)
Farmers in this country almost always grow more than one kind of crop in their fields. In fact, they often must do so for ecological reasons. Fundamentalists do not apply this verse literally. If they were to preach against farmers, there would be an uproar, and rightfully so.
Fundamentalists also ignore the Biblical command to not wear clothes that have two different kinds of material. The shirts that many fundamentalists are often seen wearing are a cotton/polyester blend, the most common in the United States of America. They may be "Bible believing" Christians, but this is yet another verse that they don't believe should be applied to today. Seriously, God has spoken about the poly-wool blend socks.
Fundamentalists also like to use Leviticus 18:22 to justify their anti-gay prejudice. That verse says, "You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination." Perhaps you have heard some people refer to gay people as an "abomination." They get the idea directly from Leviticus 18:22. But did you know that the Bible calls other things an abomination as well?
* The Bible says that eating shrimp and lobster is an abomination:
"But all in the seas or in the rivers that do not have fins and scales, all that move in the water or any living thing which is in the water, they are an abomination to you." (Leviticus 11:10)
"They (shellfish) shall be an abomination to you; you shall not eat their flesh, but you shall regard their carcasses as an abomination." (Leviticus 11:11)
"Whatever in the water does not have fins or scales; that shall be an abomination to you." (Leviticus 11:12)
Stay away from Captain D's, Newbern's, anywhere with shrimp, lobster, catfish, and oysters. They are an abomination to you! And you put them in your mouth. For the love of Pete, no one is asking you to put a gay person in your mouth (well, no one on this thread) so what is the deal? Can't you take your hate and your holier-than thou attitude to Red Lobster or Joe's Crab Shack and leave the gay folks alone for a while?