What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality?

As a Christian, the topic of whether or not monogamous, committed homosexual relationships are sinful or not is a rather debated topic. As such, I'm reading up on all the arguments for and against, trying to get a better picture about what the Bible says and where truth lies.

Out of the various books I picked up on the topic, I started with a more familiar argument (aka the one most predominantly in the Church). DeYoung's argument is that Homosexuality (as in the act itself, not desires/attraction alone) is indisputably sinful and that those who experience same-sex attraction are called to be celibate, or have hope that one day they'll be able to experience a blessed, traditional marriage between one man and one woman.

DeYoung is straight forward and doesn't waver from his convictions, but he at least tries to be sympathetic. It's for that last part that this book got as high a rating as it did. DeYoung encourages people to be loving and sympathetic with the hardships the gay community faces (especially as Christians), even while condemning the act. He acknowledges that there's pain and suffering involved as people struggle with desires and their identity, which I appreciate.

But let's talk about some negative points:

Most of his arguments are interpretive, and are familiar. He uses the big arguments from Leviticus, Sodom & Gomorrah, and some teachings of Paul. If you've grown up in the Church, you're familiar with all of them. Unfortunately, while he addresses some arguments against these points, he doesn't get all of them. He still uses Sodom as an example, even though there are strong arguments that that city's extreme case makes it a poor choice to condemn a loving & committed relationship. He also doesn't address concerns that verses in Leviticus may have been poorly translated. Just because they've been accepted for thousands of years (one of his main sticking points) doesn't mean it was right or that mistakes weren't made.

His discussions of marriage and arguing that the main purpose of it is for procreation aren't exactly convincing either (as a single woman, there's only so many times you can read "woman was made to complete man" without getting a little uncomfortable when that is something about the Faith you're also struggling with).

If you're torn on the issues above (in other words, these are things you already knew but are questioning), this book isn't much help. His arguments are all very one-sided, and while I fully acknowledge and agree that scripture is 100% Truth and the Word of God as he does, I also acknowledge that human interpretations can be full of bias, and that without cultural context it can be a little difficult to say "this is what this passage means absolutely."

Some of his examples aren't always the greatest, either. I know at one point he was talking about cases of "reformed" gay men and lesbians who left their same-sex attraction behind and embraced heterosexuality later in life. I know he meant it as a hopeful "You won't always be stuck alone and celibate", but my only thought was "Those examples were probably bisexual." However, he did at least address that isn't the norm (and reaffirming my belief they were probably bisexual).

But, the book isn't all bad. Most of the better portions are in the second half. He discusses the questions of "What do we do with this?" and acknowledges that this is a topic that has a long history. In particular, I'm glad that he noted that loving, committed same-sex relationships have been around for a long time and are in the historical records (he still believes them to be sinful, but he acknowledged that they are there).

The second half of the book also does a good job of comparing this particular sexual sin to the rest of humanity's sinful failings. He doesn't shy away from the sin of divorce without justification, or promiscuity in general, or even just the simple struggle of a husband feeling sexual attraction for someone who isn't his wife. He put them all in the same equal basket, acknowledging that everyone struggles with sin of some sort, and that homosexual lust is no different from heterosexual lust. It's whether or not you act on it that matters.

Because if homosexuality is indisputably sinful, then learning how to maintain celibacy or control your desires the same way a drunkard would have to control his desire for alcohol becomes important. It's still a debated topic, but at least he's fair & consistent with how he treats sins against God.

Overall though, the book is a bit too simple and doesn't dive into some of these questions with as much depth as I would like, however as a "This is the main argument against homosexuality from the Christian Church" it's a good summary & probably a good foundation reading if you want to know this side of the debate's main arguments.