Thanks to the gratuitously obsessive fixation on issues related to homosexuality among theological or political conservatives and liberals, it is difficult to find anyone who does not exaggerate the seeming harshness of the Biblical capital punishment law for homosexuality. Found in Leviticus 20:13, this law does fasten the death penalty to homosexual sex itself, but it does not teach certain ideas that have become associated with it due to the stupidity of the average reader of the Bible, Christian or not.
Leviticus 20:13 does not say, for instance, to execute people for experiencing sexual attraction to the same gender, nor does it say that all homosexual behaviors warrant the death penalty. Of course, this does not stop many unintelligent Christians and non-Christians from thinking or acting like Leviticus 20:13 literally says that all people with a homosexual "orientation" must be put to death. Nevertheless, mass misinterpretation does not alter the intended meaning of a text!
The popularity of pro-homosexuality ideas and the overreactions against them by Christians have led people of differing stances on the ethics of homosexuality to drastically misunderstand what exactly Leviticus says when it briefly addresses homosexuality. In their emotionalistic fervor, it is easy for people to exaggerate the content of Leviticus in order to win others over to some fallacious position regarding either the Bible and homosexuality as a general topic.
Yes, Leviticus does say to execute people who have homosexual sex with each other--if seen by two or three honest eyewitnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15). It should hardly be surprising that this detail is neglected by most people, as many are either eager to make the Bible seem to encourage as vicious a response as possible to homosexuality, whether they perceive that alleged viciousness to be positive or negative. The call for the execution of those caught engaging in homosexual sex is rather limited in its scope.
This is not the same as demanding the execution of anyone who feels homosexual attraction: even if homosexual feelings were themselves sinful (merely having a given emotional state without choice is not a matter of moral excellence or guilt), no passage in Mosaic Law prescribes a punishment for invisible thoughts or feelings. For example, no one is punished for wanting to commit adultery or murder, only for carrying out the deed. No one is punished for wanting to steal, only for theft itself. In the same way, no one is to be Biblically punished for any homosexual desire or even any homosexual behavior short of sex itself.
I've kind of wondered on and off, why do you suppose homosexual behaviors were given such a harsh penalty?
ReplyDeleteSecond question just so I can understand something. Near the end you say "no one is punished for wanting to commit adultery or murder, only for carrying out the deed." Sure, they may not be punished for thinking about doing something bad but is it still sinful to entertain those desires, like Jesus says in Matthew 5? Or is it more about having intent that makes it become sinful?
Hope you're keeping sanity during this damned quarantine! :)
There are a few Biblical laws like Leviticus 20:13 that might seem abnormally harsh to some people, even if conscience and cultural ideas are usually behind this perception, so death for homosexual sex can certainly seem very severe to modern Westerners. However, sexual offenses in general are often given the death penalty in Mosaic Law. Incestuous sex, rape, bestiality (which is itself a subcategory of rape), adultery, and homosexual sex all receive the death penalty. Many sexual sins involving actual sex just happen to contradict God's nature more than some people seem to think.
DeleteAs for the second question, experiencing the mere desire to, say, murder someone is not sinful by default. Desires are not always chosen and do not have to override one's will. There is a difference between having an involuntary desire to do something and actually wanting to carry it out. Desiring to truly commit a sinful act is indeed sinful by necessity--it is logically impossible for actively planning or hoping to do something evil to not be evil itself. Still, the fact that legalism has distorted how many people understand things like malice or lust often brings guilt for mere anger, righteous hatred, or sexual attraction, none of which are sinful at all on their own.
As an aside, there are multiple reasons why desiring to do something evil would not be a punishable offense. It would be impossible to actually give physical evidence that someone is guilty of something like malice or lust. Also, even on a purely logical level, it does not automatically follow from a behavior or desire being immoral that it deserves to be actively punished by governments. All sin is immoral, but not every sin has the theological status of a sin that deserves execution, lashes, or financial damages. That's why the Bible only demands punishment for certain types of lies, like accusing someone of a capital crime they did not commit.
Same to you! So far my quarantine has been bearable. I would like to catch up on some movies and video games now that I have more free time. I hope to try out The Swapper soon!
Ok gotcha! That checks out.
DeleteIt's been bearable for me too, I just really miss my friends haha. Let me know what you think of it if you do, maybe even review it here!
Sorry for the huge response! Haha
DeleteI miss my friends as well. That's been the worst part of it so far, although I have missed going to see movies too. I would love to review it!
Thanks so much for this. I haven't read the bible fully yet since I'm a Christian noob. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! Thankfully, no one needs to read the whole Bible to understand many of its specific teachings, but there is still a lot to read even with that in mind!
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