Scripture

“Clobber Texts” - Resource Page Updated

When I first began to grapple seriously with the tensions between life as a practicing Catholic, and living honestly and with integrity as a gay man in a committed, stable partnership, one of the discoveries that helped me enormously was a Quest pamphlet given to me by a Catholic priest, which showed me for the first time that far from being “obviously” against homosexuality, the Bible includes only a half dozen verses that even appear to be critical, and that the relevance of even these half dozen is seriously disputed by many modern scholars. That was twenty years ago: since then, many more scholars and theologians have been revising their views on the biblical take on same - sex relationships - and coming down on the side of acceptance.

So when I began to write at Queering the Church, in an attempt to share with readers the ideas and materials that had helped me, one of the first subjects I tackled was this question of the “clobber texts”, in a basic introductory post. Conscious of its limitations, for a long time I intended to return to the subject, with more detailed reflections on each of these troublesome texts, drawing on and summarising the key arguments about them - but held back, feeling intimidated and inadequate to the task. Later, as my own knowledge matured, I became less interested in the defensive approach to the texts of terror, and more interested in identifying the far more numerous supportive and affirmative passages, both those featuring specific peoples that LGBT Christians could identify with (David and Jonathan, Ruth and Naomi, the “Beloved Disciple”), and the more general passages emphasising love and inclusion, and warning against legalism or passing judgement on others . So, as I began to expand my back pages at the site into a collection of resource pages, for the pages on scripture I have added extensive links to material on the affirmative texts - but added very little on defence against the nasties.

It was always my intention though, to include as many links to useable posts elsewhere on these clobber texts, as I could find. Earlier this week, I was asked by a reader for some help in this area, and as I did not yet have the summary of links that I have planned but not put together, I was forced to do some digging about from scratch. In the process, I finally began the process of adding an extensive list of links to my “Defence Against the Clobber Texts” page (a subpage of the “Rainbow Bible” section, in the navigation bar above). It’s still not exhaustive - I know that I have seen many more on-line articlues on these than I have included. These are just the ones that I was able to track down in the short time that was then available to me. I will continue to add to it - and would welcome any further suggestions from readers.

This directory of links is permanently housed at - but as an introduction and for convenience , here it is, as it stands today.

*****

General: Overview

 

For a general discussion of these “Texts of Terror”, see Countering the Clobber Texts here at QTC,

and also:

The Bible and Homosexuality, ByRev. MonaWest,Ph.D. (at Metropolitan Community Church), with the sub-headings:

  • Sexuality in the Mediterranean World
  • The Story of Sodom in Genesis 19
  • Leviticus
  • The Writings of the Apostle Paul
  • Romans 1:26 ‐ 27
  • Issues of Biblical Authority

Also at MCC,

At Bridges Across the Divide, Homosexuality and the Bible by Walter Wink

  • Homosexuality and the Bible
  • Unequivocal Condemnations
  • Hebrew Sexual Mores
  • The Problem of Authority
  • Judge for Yourselves
  • An Appeal for Tolerance

For more detailed discussions on each, see:

Genesis

 

Genesis 1 & 2:

Genesis 19 (Sodom):

Leviticus / Judges

Leviticus 18:19-22 and 20:1-18

Judges (relevant for the additional insight it gives to Genesis 19 and Sodom)

  • Judges Chapter 19 (Created Gay)

Romans

Romans 1

  • But the Bible Says - A Catholic reading of Romans 1 (James Alison Website)
  • Romans 1 - Read the Whole Chapter Kiddo (Christian Gays)
  • Romans 1: The Way Too Long Version (Christian Gays)
  • The Bible and Homosexuality Romans Chapter 1 (Created Gay)
  • Romans 1: 2- Rembert Truluck, Steps to Recovery From Bible Abuse

And for a really exhaustive treatment, focusing on the historical context and emphasising shrine prostitution, see GayChristian101:

Romans 1 - What Historical And Religious Context Did Paul Address In First Century Rome? including:

Corinthians, Timothy, Jude

Corinthians, Timothy

Corinthians

Timothy

  • 1 Timothy Chapter 1 (Created Gay)

Jude

 

Books:

(Links to Amazon.co.uk, UK).

Boswell, John: Christianity, Christianity, social tolerance and homosexuality: Gay People in Western Europe from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the Fourteenth Century (University of Chicago Press, 1980) 424 pages

Coulton, Nicholas, (ed) The Bible, the Church and Homosexuality(Darton Longman Todd, 2005)

Countryman, L.William: Dirt, Greed, and Sex: Sexual Ethics in the New Testament and Their Implications for Today (Fortress Press 2007 (revised edition) 290 pages)

Helminiak,Daniel: What the Bible Really Says About Homosexuality (Alamo Square Press, 1994 ) 149 pages

Karslake, Daniel, Helen Mendoza, and Nancy Kennedy. For The Bible Tells Me So [DVD] New York: First Run Features. (film)

Martin, Dale B. Sex and the Single Saviour: Gender and Sexuality in Biblical Interpretation Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press.

Miner, Jeff, and John Tyler Connoley. The Children Are Free: Reexamining the Biblical Evidence on Same-Sex Relationships (LifeJourney Press)

Patterson, Linda J. Hate Thy Neighbor: How the Bible is Misused to Condemn Homosexuality

Rogers, Jack Bartlett. Jesus, the Bible, and Homosexuality: Explode the Myths, Heal the Church Louisville, Ky: Westminster John Knox Press.

Sharpe, Keith. The Gay Gospels: Good News for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered People O-Books.

Stone, Ken: Practicing Safer Texts: Food, Sex, and Bible in Queer Perspective T & T Clark International.

Truluck, Rember S: Steps to Recovery from Bible Abuse Chi Rho Pr

Vasey, M: Strangers and Friends: New Exploration of Homosexuality and the Bible

Via, Dan Otto, and Robert A. J. Gagnon. Homosexuality and the Bible: Two Views Fortress Press.

Wilson, Nancy L. Our Tribe: Queer Folks, God, Jesus, and the Bible (Updated and revised in 2000.)

 

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