The Complete Christian Guide to Understanding Homosexuality: A Biblical and Compassionate Response to Same-Sex Attraction

by Joe Dallas, Nancy Heche

One of the hot-button issues of our day is fully addressed in this comprehensive new resource on homosexuality. This well-researched and highly readable guide is the perfect go-to manual for families, church workers, counselors, pastors, civic leaders, schools, and those who themselves struggle with same-sex attraction.

Readers will find the answers to these and many more important


What is homosexuality?
Is the tendency for homosexuality genetic?
How should the church respond?
What's the proper response when a relative or friend announces they're gay?
What are the legal and civic ramifications of homosexuality?
Should homosexuals serve openly in the military?
What about gay marriage and adoption?
Authoritative authors Joe Dallas ("Desires in Conflict, When Homosexuality Hits Home") and Dr. Nancy Heche ("The Truth Comes Out") tackle the hard questions about same-sex attraction in this helpful volume.

Genres: Sexuality, Religion

496 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2009

About the author

I'm a Christian author, husband and father of two, married to my lovely wife Renee since 1987. We fellowship at Newport Mesa Church in Orange County, CA, and I run a ministry in Tustin, CA, called Genesis Counseling. Most of my writing has focused on sexual issues from a conservative Christian perspective, and since 1987, I've been honored to work with men who want to resolve conflicts between their sexual behavior and their relationship with Christ.

Reviews

[Slade Hogan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Endorses reparative therapy, would not recommend this to anyone truly seeking a compassionate, biblical response.

[Kelly Cobrett · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you're looking for "justifications" for your intolerance of queer people and not a loving biblical response, this book is for you. You'll find it easy to read if you're fine with throwing out modern science and historical biblical context.

[Daniel Keef · Rating 1 out of 5]

Throughout the Complete Christian Guide, the authors repeatedly fail to make any moral distinction between consensual and nonconsensual sex acts and relationship structures. In a chapter about same-sex marriage, one author rhetorically asks “If a father wants to marry his 14-year-old daughter, on what grounds can we deny him? Wouldn’t that be discrimination?” (p. 356) And that’s the end of the paragraph—the text moves on and leaves this question dangling as if there is no obvious answer to a query conflating consensual same-sex marriage among adults and an incestuous marriage between a parent and child that any reasonable person would recognize as nonconsensual (children cannot give consent) and therefore inherently abusive. This is just one example, but the absence of the topic of consent can be felt throughout the book. There is never a meaningful discussion of where consent fits into a framework for sexual ethics.

In one chapter, Dallas (the main author) seeks to dismantle the common arguments made by advocates of pro-gay theology. He does this by isolating each passage of scripture that may reference homosexuality and then setting up a dichotomy between what he calls the traditional view and the (pro-gay) revisionist view. This dichotomy gives the reader the impression that these two opposing views are our only options when interpreting these passages. Meanwhile, there is no discussion of biblical hermeneutics or historical criticism. Nor is there a meaningful discussion of biblical inerrancy or inspiration (these views are largely assumed to be shared with the reader). 2 Timothy 3:16 is used as a proof for inspiration, but nowhere is it mentioned that most scholars believe the pastoral letters (1 & 2 Timothy) are pseudonymous and not actually written by the apostle Paul. Dallas does not disclose his interpretive methodologies because that would undermine his goal of holding out his interpretation as a “common sense reading.” However, I do not think, for example, that it is common sense to assume the apostle Paul had the same understanding of human sexuality as a Hellenized Jew in the 1st-century Greco-Roman world as we do now.

I think a quality exegesis of these passages would require quality biblical criticism. What is our interpretive framework here? What methodologies of interpretation are we using? What was the biblical author’s intent in writing this passage? Who was the intended audience? What historical context may be informative of the biblical author’s point of view? These questions are not answered here, and their importance is not acknowledged in any meaningful way. I do not believe answering these questions would result in anyone arriving at a “pro-gay” theology as defined by Dallas but rather it would surely affect how we use the biblical text in trying to answer complicated questions about human sexuality.

These are just a couple of the major deficiencies in the book. I caution anyone who reads this with the hope of obtaining a “complete” understanding of homosexuality, Christian or not.

Reading Recommendations:
The New Testament on Sexuality by William Loader
Sexing the Body by Dr. Anne Fausto-Sterling

[Bob Hayton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Countless people are struggling in the church pews today. Our world is full of addictions, fears and psychological disorders. Divorce is rampant as is sexual infidelity. From all corners we are hounded by the siren call of worldly desires and sensual pleasures. What was deviant and beyond consideration three decades ago is considered standard fare today, and today's deviance would make previous generations shudder.

Enter homosexuality. While thirty years ago this sin was still a mystery for most, today it is trumpeted from the billboards all over the place. And slowly and steadily, the problem of homosexuality is being realized inside our churches today. It is becoming increasingly common for young people in Christian homes to struggle with same-sex desires. And many a pastor, bible teacher or other church leader is confronted with a respected church member admitting to a problem in this area and seeking help. With all the controversy and debate that surrounds the issue today, and with the assumed distance the Church enjoys from this issue, it should not be surprising that many feel unprepared to help those struggling with this contemporary problem.

The Complete Christian Guide to Understanding Homosexuality: A Biblical and Compassionate Repsonse to Same-Sex Attraction (Harvest House, 2010) looks to be an accessible and comprehensive resource that will equip church leaders to handle this all important issue. Editors Joe Dallas and Nancy Heche have personal experience dealing with this problem. Joe is a former homosexual who found a new life in Christ. He is a past president of Exodus International, a network of Christian ministries dedicated to equipping Churches to minister to homosexuals. Nancy's husband was secretly living as a homosexual who contracted AIDS, while her daughter, actress Anne Heche, was for a time, the gay partner of Ellen DeGeneres. Both editors are experienced counselors who continually address this issue.

Dallas and Heche have compiled a comprehensive collection of accessible and helpful articles covering the range of questions relating to homosexuality. Six others contribute to this volume, ensuring that each chapter contains expert advice. Part one gives a background to this issue calling on the Church to pursue truth, and which gives an overview of the issue and a history of the gay rights movement. Part two explains and rebuts the pro-gay theology. Part three looks into the debate concerning the origins of homosexuality and takes care to evaluate theories from a biblical perspective. Part four contains practical counseling advice for helping homosexuals. Part five deals with how to help the parents or spouse who finds their loved one struggling with this issue. Part six finishes out the book by dealing with some of the hot button policy concerns such as same sex marriage, gays in the military, hate crime legislation, transgender issues, and AIDS. The book is rounded out by a call from the editors for a Christlike response to homosexuality.

This book seems to have the right balance and care for such a sensitive topic. The Bible is repeatedly brought to bear but the Church is cautioned against making uninformed assumptions. Numerous resources are referenced throughout the work, and it is a great place to start for finding information on any question you are interested in regarding this issue. It is going to be a useful handbook on my shelf in the years to come.

With the problem of homosexuality all around us, the Church cannot afford to ignore this issue. We must speak truth with love and grace to those struggling with this issue. Church leaders and pastors cannot afford to be without a resource like this. I recommend this book highly.

Disclaimer: This book was provided by Harvest House for review. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

Pick up a copy of this book at Amazon.com or through Harvest House direct. An expanded version of this review, with additional resources, will also be available at CrossFocusedReviews.com.

[Jeffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A compilation of essays on the topic of homosexuality.

[Charlene Hios · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book every pastor, every counselor, every youth minister, and every lay leader should have on their shelves.