Separation of Church and Hate

by John Fugelsang

Context is a wooden stake to Christian homophobia.

Today many scholars argue that Leviticus 18:22 should be understood within the broader context of Leviticus 18. Why? Most of the sexual condemnations in Leviticus 18 are for different forms of incest.

God’s clearly taken the time to think through every possible family incest dynamic He can forbid.

Every sinner must get stoned.

If they wanna hate the gays, they’ve gotta love the immigrants.

And remember, Gentiles, Jesus brought a New Covenant. You don’t get to hide behind a book you don’t truly follow just to hurt a people Jesus commands you to love.

Your devotion to Old Testament laws about gay dudes being an abomination has nothing to do with Christianity.

Deuteronomy 23:17 states, “There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel” (KJV). There are similar verses in 1 Kings 14:24, 15:12, and 22:46, and 2 Kings 23:7.

And while the passages from Kings aren’t usually invoked by homophobes, Deuteronomy is occasionally cited because of the word “Sodomite.” In the original Hebrew, the word used was “Qadesh,” which historically referred to male temple prostitutes, associated with pagan religious practices.

But the best part of this story is that it’s been incredibly meaningful and inspirational to many gay Christians, whether David and Jonathan were a thing or not.

But this new rule that a man who gets married has to keep his wife for life is a bit shocking to the apostles. In Matthew 19:10, they remark,” If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry.”

But when Jesus starts with “eunuchs who were born that way,” he’s not talking about those astronomically rare boys born without genitals. He’s talking about the men who, since birth, are clearly never going to be marrying women.

The one chapter used to argue that Jesus opposed gay marriage is the same chapter where Jesus says, calmly and matter-of-factly, that gay men are born that way. Jesus asserts some boys are born who will never be interested in girls, that they are the minority, and that God made them that way. And nobody bats an eye at this. “The one who can accept this should accept it.”

Jesus knows that, hey, some guys aren’t into women, and it’s not that big a deal. Because Jesus, time an...

The original Greek word used to describe the servant in Matthew’s account was pais, a term that had several meanings: boy, son, and “beloved boy.” It carries cultural connotations of a younger male beloved by an older male in certain contexts, potentially implying a much deeper relationship.

Which is ironic, because when you list them it sounds like a gay Italian leather bar.

It’s not God telling your school board to ban books.

The two-thousand-year-old Greek word Paul used, that was later translated to “homosexuals,” is arsenokoitai. Its exact meaning is debated among scholars, who believe it may just be something Paul made up. It’s a compound word from arsen (meaning male) and koitai (meaning bed).

Dearly beloved, the most common form of sexuality that’s “against nature” is pretending to be straight when you’re not.

Because the early church was established in diversity, equity, and inclusion.

We’ve now reached the operating principle of modern right-wing Christianity. The issue that re-empowered white supremacists like Falwell after civil rights and Dr. King took away their mojo. The issue that reenergized a political party after the scandal and shock of Nixon’s resignation. The political football that’s driven conservative politics and come to define Christianity in the US media for most of our lifetimes. The issue is safe and legal access to abortion. As you probably know, God, Jesus, and the Bible condemn abortion, repeatedly, in both the Old and New Testaments—oh wait, no, that’s adultery. Never mind.

America doesn’t actually have an abortion problem. We have an unwanted pregnancy problem, and an abortion symptom. And it will continue to divide us.

If our right-wing friends would actually focus their efforts on preventing unwanted pregnancies, they’d stop far more abortions than their politically coercive methods have accomplished. But that wouldn’t help politicians get elected, so the issue is never going away, and will continue to bitterly divide America.

The Southern Baptist Convention, Rev. Jerry Falwell’s denomination, was officially pro-choice throughout the 1970s; antiabortionism was considered a Catholic thing. At their 1971 meeting in St. Louis, SBC delegates passed a resolution calling for the legalization of abortion, which they reaffirmed in 1974 (one year after Roe) and again in 1976.

By 1980, things had changed. Ronald Reagan had already flipped from pro-choice to staunch antiabortion Republican.

Only after Reagan invited him to be his running mate did Bush Sr. become rabidly opposed to women’s reproductive freedoms—but he did, overnight.

Abortion has since served as a litmus test for every Republican politician and Supreme Court nominee. As author and professor Kristin Du Mez explains, “Abortion has proved to be effective not only in forming a coalition, but also in giving the entire conservative agenda a moral foundation—or moral veneer, depending on one’s perspective. For many evangelicals who grew up in Christian communities from the 1980s on, promoting abortion rights is unthinkable. Thus, voting for Democrats is also unthinkable. This contributes to a sense where anything Republicans promote is seen as ‘moral’ and anything Democrats put forward is evil.”

The fetus is not given equal status to the mother.

The loss of the fetus is treated as a financial matter, because fetuses were not yet considered to be another life or a fully independent human.

The God of the Bible frequently commits panoramically violent mass killings, or delegates the job to certain lucky humans.

Oh, and don’t forget the two magical cocaine bears God sent to maul forty-two kids for mocking Elisha’s baldness. I certainly can’t.

“I do think criminalizing abortion has become a substitute Gospel for Christian nationalists. I’m sure you know the evangelicals who criticize their pastors for quoting the Sermon on the Mount as ‘too liberal.’ You can effectively demonize the poor, reject LGBTQI people, be racist and sexist; and as long as you are against abortion you are a ‘good Christian.’ It’s alarming to several evangelical leaders as it is kind of a ‘get out of hell free’ card.” Rev. Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite

“Shall oppressed humanity find no asylum on this globe?” Thomas Jefferson,

Immigration is one of the most controversial and morally complex subjects in both America and modern Christianity, one that demands both nuance and thoughtful, studious discourse. Historically, the Christian right hasn’t been interested in that—but they’re divine at reducing things to catchy xenophobic catchphrases: “Build the wall!” “Send them home!” “Go back where you came from!” “Deport them all!” “Keep America American!” “Stop the invasion!” “Jobs for Americans, not illegals!” “No amnesty!” etc. I guess “no room at the inn” was taken.

Cruelty to immigrants, while deeply popular, violates those tedious woke themes of compassion, justice, and inclusivity in both Old and New Testaments.

As we move forward, God consistently calls for the Israelites to treat foreigners with kindness and love, which would’ve made it very difficult for them to fully enjoy Fox News.

“Let them live among you wherever they like and in whatever town they choose. Do not oppress them” (Deuteronomy 23:16).

“You are to allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the foreigners residing among you and who have children. You are to consider them as native-born Israelites; along with you they are to be allotted an...

“The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt” (Leviticus 19:34).

“And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt” (Deuteronomy 10:19).

“Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in E...

“Cursed is anyone who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow” (Deuteronomy 27:19).

“Do not take advantage of a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether that worker is a fellow Israelite or a foreigner residing in one of your towns” (Deuteronomy 24:14).

“Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreign...

“So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreig...

Sessions, a Methodist, cited Romans 13 to justify the policy: “I would cite you to the Apostle Paul and his clear and wise command in Romans 13, to obey the laws of the government because God has ordained them for the purpose of order.”

Moreover, whenever a Democratic president has been in office, our Republican friends haven’t been so keen on “respecting the governing authorities,” as you may have noticed over the past few decades.

THE SCRIPTURE: Some anti-immigration fundamentalists are fond of Genesis 11:1–9, aka the Tower of Babel. Humanity, united by one language, settles on a plain in Shinar and begins constructing a tower to reach the heavens and make a name for themselves. God, annoyed, confuses their languages and disperses them, ending the construction. Many choose to interpret this story as God wanting firm borders. But the central issue in Genesis 11 is not the separation of people, but their collective pride and attempt to challenge God’s authority. Yes, God confuses the language and scatters everyone, thereby creating linguistic and cultural diversity. But all that proves is that within the Bible, diversity is presented as part of God’s divine plan.

THE CLAIM: “We must take care of our own first.”

THE SCRIPTURE: None. The parable of the Good Samaritan is Jesus specifically rejecting the idea of limiting compassion to one’s own group.