Sodomites!

1 Timothy 1:1-17

           As a gay man my eyes widen a bit when I read scripture that speaks of sodomites in the same breath as murderers, fornicators and slave traders.

           Take a deep breath. Huhhhhh. OK, so I recall that sodomite is a word invented to refer to a single sexual act  in about 395 AD, perhaps a thousand years after the story of Sodom and Gomorrah was written. How interesting. Time to consult some biblical texts and exegesis. 

           I have always warned my readers of proper translations and in this case, the reading is rampant with translational problems. First, a sodomite might be simply a citizen of Sodom. Unfortunately, we know that is not what is being said in this passage. It is trying to refer to a sexual act. In correct translation the sin of Sodom (and Gomorrah) was not that of sexual relations between men, it was being inhospitable to Lot's guests. Even if you were to judge the male citizens of Sodom for wanting to have sex with Lot's guests it would be more on the vane of rape. It certainly does not correspond to a loving physical relationship of any kind, committed love or not. It was going to be a rape, pure and simple. I do not think that is acceptable in any reasonable religion or society. And what of Lot's daughters who were offered up in place of Lot's guests, what sin should we make of that? Is it acceptable to throw his daughters to the wolves and allow them to be raped? Where is the reasoning that the sin called Sodomy after the year 395 is homosexual anal sex and not rape? 

        If we are to accept the translation that is being used in this reading, what are we to make of some of the other listed sins? If fornicating is sinful, are we to abstain from sex altogether? Does this apply to straight and gays? What sense does that make? Is all sex a sin? No, not likely. Did God make such beautiful intimate life sustaining acts a sin? I believe intimacy is a gift from God. 

         Further, what of slave traders? I thought I read in Leviticus that having and selling slaves was OK. You can even pass them along and their children down as inheritance. At least that's true according to Leviticus.  Here it is listed with fornicators and murderers. What's up with that?

          Bad translations it seems are just that, bad translations.

          The sin of Sodom and Gomorrah was inhospitality. Communities that had much and did not share or welcome strangers. Those are the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah. I would add the willingness to hand over your daughters to a gang of rapists might also be an incredible evil as well.

          As for fornicators, I would equate that with sexual promiscuity rather than loving, intimate sexual relations. Frankly, I think an argument could be made that it applies more to the straight community than it does to the gay community. Check out the one night stand crew at any club on a Friday night. Drinking and sex seem to be the order of the day for the young straight set. If sexual promiscuity is wrong, it is wrong for all, straight and gay. But if loving committed intimacy is OK, it is OK for all as well.

       As if to drive the whole bad translation thing down altogether, we see that slave trading is bad when in Hebrew scripture it is condoned as OK. How can faithful people change the Bible like that? The answer is that we have grown and realize that everything in scripture is not a universal OK. We are guided by the Holy Spirit to realize Slavery is wrong. We must pay careful attention to translation, context and the growth of mankind.

       Once again, bad translations are bad translations. Be careful. Read, inquire, nurture your faith and watch what you are reading.

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Saviour and of Christ Jesus our hope,

To Timothy, my loyal child in the faith:

Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

I urge you, as I did when I was on my way to Macedonia, to remain in Ephesus so that you may instruct certain people not to teach any different doctrine, and not to occupy themselves with myths and endless genealogies that promote speculations rather than the divine training that is known by faith. But the aim of such instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and sincere faith. Some people have deviated from these and turned to meaningless talk, desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make assertions.

Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it legitimately. This means understanding that the law is laid down not for the innocent but for the lawless and disobedient, for the godless and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their father or mother, for murderers, fornicators, sodomites, slave-traders, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to the sound teaching that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.

I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because he judged me faithful and appointed me to his service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost. But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever.^* Amen.