Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Progressive Christian
God and the Gay Christian

God and the Gay Christian

Last updated on: May 21, 2014 at 9:47 am by Susan Cottrell

God and the Gay Christian 2014-05-21T09:47:14-05:00 Susan Cottrell

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

GodGayChristian Can you be Christian and gay? What does the Bible say and what does it not say? What does the Bible mean and not mean?

If you are a Christian parent of an LGBTQ child, or a Christian LGBTQ, these are questions that you must answer to be at peace with your faith.

In his new book God and the Gay Christian, Matthew Vines does an incredible job at just that, as he gives insight and historical context that helps make sense of this whole issue in a truly biblical way.

I want to give you just a few discoveries that will turn our understanding of the Ancient Greek culture on its head:

bisexuality was expected; heterosexual men, married to women, also had sex with boys — Vines quotes several sources for this.
men were expected to have sex with women, men, slaves, concubines: but not in the female role; hence “lying with a man as with a woman” means just that, as taking the female role in sex belonged to slaves, boys, and women — and why is that so terrible?
…because a woman was considered to be “a deformed male” — can you see how the context of those verses matter to our interpretation?
same-sex relations in the Bible were about excess lust, not orientation — Vines provides quotes
“unnatural” in Romans 1:26 means “beyond nature” because of its excess, not because it is same-sex
same-sex relations with a slave was also abuse of power, as the slave had no choice but was forced into the “inferior” female role
pederasty [sex with boys] was often “an act of sexual assault and conquest, a spontaneous transgression, [and] a casual diversion to satisfy an occasional sexual urge.”

These are just a few of the discoveries in Vines’ book. They reveal a significantly different culture from ours, making it impossible for us to lift Bible verses off the page and think we understand them. We do not. Only with significant study and wisdom can we begin to understand something of their intended meaning. That ought to be enough to make us stop quoting those “clobber” verses until we have read this book!

As Vines’ writes: “[T]he traditional interpretation of the Bible affects gay Christians in a unique way. It requires them to be single and celibate for life. If past societies shared similar understandings of sexual orientation, we should expect them to note that requirements as well. But they do not. I have not been able to find any Christian writings prior to the 20th century that acknowledge that lifelong celibacy is the necessary outcome for those who are incapable of heterosexual attraction.“

If we seriously want to have a voice in this debate that is relevant to the people we are making judgments about, then we need to take it seriously. To understand this issue and the biblical intent behind it, you owe it to yourself to read this book. I hope you enjoy.

christian parents gay child

christian parents of gay children

christians with gay children

freedhearts

gay children

gay Christian

gay christian charity

gay christian community

gay kids

gay marriage

gay teens

god and the gay christian

help my child is gay

homosexuality

homosexuality and sin

homosexuality and the bible

homosexuality and the church

how to respond to a gay child

parent of a gay child

parents of gay children

parents of gay kids

Susan Cottrell

to christian parents of gay children

what do you do when your son is gay

what to do if your son is gay

what to do when your son is gay

when your family rejects you

Previous Post

May 20, 2014

Jesus Wept... Because of Christians, not Gays.

Next Post

May 22, 2014 Moms & Dads... What The Heck Are We Doing?!?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Church & Religion Dear Susan Family Support Gay Weddings & Marriage GCN Conference Jesus Blog LGBTQ Support Parenting Personal Stories Suicide The Real Jesus Theology Transgender Uncategorized X Archived Posts

Select a Month August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 January 2025 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 June 2022 December 2021 May 2021 February 2021 November 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 May 2019 March 2019 January 2019 November 2018 March 2018 January 2018 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does "El Shaddai" mean?

Select your answer to see how you score.

God Almighty God is Judge Prince of Peace Provider

Support this
Column