Does the Bible really say that homosexuality is sinful?

[Pickle]

1 Samuel 9:21  And Saul answered and said, Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? wherefore then speakest thou so to me?

So said the future King Saul to Samuel. And the reason why is found in that grisly story in Judges which brings together the family backgrounds of Samuel, Saul, and David, and explains why Saul sent 12 pieces of oxen to gather the armies of Israel to go save his kinsmen at Jabesh-Gilead. It also seems to shed light on Sodom's last night.

Judges 19:22-24  Now as they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain sons of Belial, beset the house round about, and beat at the door, and spake to the master of the house, the old man, saying, Bring forth the man that came into thine house, that we may know him. And the man, the master of the house, went out unto them, and said unto them, Nay, my brethren, nay, I pray you, do not so wickedly; seeing that this man is come into mine house, do not this folly. Behold, here is my daughter a maiden, and his concubine; them I will bring out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good unto you: but unto this man do not so vile a thing.

Benjamin's refusal to punish the gang rape and subsequent death of the concubine resulted in the near annihilation of the entire tribe. The host in the above words makes the contemplated gang rape of the male guest as being far worse than gang rape of the female guest.

There are two possibilities:

• The customs of hospitality in ancient cultures did not apply to women, and thus there was nothing that would bar a host from delivering a female guest to a mob to be gang raped.
• Homosexual actions were considered far worse than heterosexual actions.

I see no other possibilities, and nothing in the story in Judges that would prevent the applying of the second conclusion to the story in Genesis of Sodom's last night.

[BobRyan]

On 3/17/2016 at 0:43 AM, David Geelan said:

(the distinction between a homosexual orientation and homosexual actions is something that will likely arise naturally in the discussion)

Let us take a close look at each of the texts in the Old and New Testaments that are read as condemning homosexuality, to find out whether that is a valid reading of those texts.

The discussion is not about the inspiration of the Bible, it is about reading the Bible honestly and carefully. Let's try not to project our own views, in any direction, onto the texts (eisegesis) but to carefully and inductively go to the texts themselves and discover what they mean (exegesis).

Let's start with a list of texts, to which others can add if they know of any that I have missed. 

I've used the KJV because it's the version I grew up with and know, and because more people trust it. I'm happy to see other translations used if it clarifies the meaning, but hope all can agree that the original language is more important to understanding than any translation.

Leviticus 18:22 "Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination."

Leviticus 20:13 "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them."

Romans 1: 26-27 "For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature. And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet."

1 Corinthians 6:9-10 "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God."

1 Timothy 1:8-11 "Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust."

That's 5 texts - are there more that should be included? Perhaps then we can take the two in Leviticus together first for study, then each of the others individually?

Sinful nature - everyone has one. Being born with the tendency to sin does not turn sin into not-sin.

And the texts you gave are pretty clear in themselves

Does not appear to be a lot of confusion about this inside the church so far.