Sexual Orientation and Religion
Sexual orientation is an umbrella term for defining a pattern of romantic and sexual attraction. There are various common sexual orientations (Sell, 1997). The first kind of sexual orientation is what is referred to as straight or heterosexual. This is where an individual is basically attracted to another person of the opposite sex. This is for example where a man is attracted to a woman. It is the most common and generally accepted sexual orientation. The other type is lesbianism, otherwise known as gay women. This is where a woman is sexually attracted to another woman. The other type is homosexuality also known as gay men. This is where a man is sexually attracted to other men. There is also what is referred to as bisexual. This is where an individual can be sexually attracted to those of the same gender as well as those of the opposite sex. Asexual is where one is not romantically or sexually attracted to any gender. However they are able to enjoy close relationships (Pollack, 2007). Sexual orientation is a very crucial aspect of human life. Heterosexuality is the kind of sexual orientation that is considered moral and one that is accepted across the board. It is accepted by the society as a social norm as well as the religion as a religious moral. The others are controversial issues that have sparked debates from the society all the way to the religion. They are aspects of sexuality that are not about to be accepted as a norm in the mainstream religion and society. The relationship between sexual orientation and religion has varied greatly across time and place. Regarding the subject of sexual orientation especially in relation to the kinds that are not regarded as being within the religious morals, there have been differences within and between different religions and sects. Most of the major religions across the world view homosexuality and bisexuality negatively (Swidler, 1993).
Religion and heterosexuality
This one kind of sexual orientation that is acceptable in religion across-the-board. It is the kind of sexual orientation that was the original intention of God since creation. The first instant of heterosexuality is when God created the first man according to the Holy Bible and later made for him a helper who belonged to the opposite sex. The initial intention of heterosexuality was reproduction. It is through the sexual mating between a male and a female that reproduction can occur. This is the reason behind religious acceptance of the marriage between a man and a woman. This is what the religion declares as a holy union that is blessed by the creator. Any other kind of sexual orientation that is not heterosexual is considered immoral by most of the religions in the world. The focus of the paper will not be on this kind of sexual orientation for the simple reason that it is not a controversial issue (Mcleland Sutton, 2008). The paper will focus on homosexuality, encompassing both gay men and women, and bisexuality.
Homosexuality, bisexuality and religion
Homosexuality and bisexuality is viewed negatively by most of the major religions around the world. The treatment towards homosexuality and bisexuality has varied among the religions. The religions have discouraged these sexual orientations among their believers as well as the public acceptance. They have forbidden these kinds of practices in their religions and strongly opposed campaigns that advocate for acceptance of homosexuality and bisexuality in the society. In fact religions have been in the front line in opposing these practices. However, there are some that have accepted homosexuals and bisexuals fully in their midst (Pollack, 2007).
Most of the religions that oppose homosexuality and bisexuality, consider these practices a sin. They do not consider it a sexual orientation. The only one considered a sexual orientation is heterosexuality. From this point of view, they do not view homosexuality and bisexuality a natural sexual orientation. However, in the same religions there are those who have accepted homosexuality and bisexuality as a natural trait and as a result they are blessing gay marriages. These are mostly the liberalized religions that do not hold dear the traditional beliefs. Mythologies and traditions that have historically accepted and institutionalized gay couple marriages are common worldwide. They do not discriminate against gay people and have in fact accepted and understood their sexual orientation. They do not judge them for they view it as something that is beyond them something that they are not in control of (Mcleland Sutton, 2008).
Regardless of what they believe in, most of the believers look at the religious writings to guide their view on homosexuality and bisexuality. Despite the fact that most of the writings make it clear that homosexuality is not accepted, there is the argument regarding the translations and interpretations of these writings. There are claims that in translating and interpreting religious texts from the original format, they tended to loose the original meaning and thus cannot be used as authentic basis of deciding the issue. This is the kind of claim that is supported by reformists who support gay marriages. They claim that the translations of the religious writings have been so much such that they have lost their intended meaning (Swidler, 1993).
Beliefs of specific religions
Abrahimic religions
These religions have traditionally prohibited sodomy holding the belief and the teaching that it is a sin. Currently some factions of these religions are accepting homosexuality and bisexuality and accepting those who have these kinds of sexual orientation amongst them. Reform Judaism, UCC and the MCC are examples of the factions of the Abrahimic Religions that have accepted homosexuality and heterosexuality (Duncan, 2002). The Presbyterian churches as well as the Anglican churches have also accepted homosexuals. In some regions, these religions have gone further to accept the ordination and acceptance of homosexuals as clerics. Some are even joining in marriage gay couples. Reform Judaism has accepted to ordain homosexual rabbis and same gay couple marriages, same case with the conservative and Reconstructionist Judaism. It is clear that most of the Abrahimic religions have accommodated changes as far as the topic is concerned (Pollack, 2007).
Judaism
The key source for this group on religious guidance on the topic is the Torah. The Torah consists of the initial five books of the Hebrew Bible. A man shall not lie with another man as he would with a woman, (Leviticus 1822) (Mcleland Sutton, 2008). Doing so is considered an abomination by the Torah. Like all other sins described by the Torah, the punishment for going against this commandment is death. However, this is killing as a punishment is no longer practiced in Judaism. It is clear that sexual relationship between people of the same sex is a grave sin in this religion. The traditions of the religion have been tough as far as homosexuality and bisexuality is concerned, however there are changes as there are many transformations in the religion (Mcleland Sutton, 2008).
Conventional Judaism considers homosexuality a sin. Since the 1990s, the Conservative Judaism began to undertake serious studies on the topic. The studies have engaged various religious leaders presentation of various legal papers for deliberation. The legal decision of the movement is to allow gay Jews into the places of worship and to shun any form of prejudice against them, both in the civil law and in the society. However, the leaders seek to maintain the prohibition on homosexual sex as a requirement in religion. This means that regardless of the fact that homosexuals and bisexuals are accepted in the places of worship, this does not mean that it ceases to be immoral (Swidler, 1993).
Reform Judaism and Reconstructionist Judaism in the United States as well as Liberal Judaism in the UK, claims that the homosexuals and bisexuals should be accepted on the same grounds as the heterosexuals. The progressive Jews consider those laws that outlaw homosexuality as having outlived their usefulness, and that the understanding of sexual orientation has changed just like many other aspects of life and faith. Everything associated with faith has not remained static, and therefore should be the case with homosexuality and bisexuality. Some of those who support homosexuality and bisexuality argue that the restriction by the Hebrew Bible was aimed at prohibiting coercive or ritualized kind of homosexuality, such as the acts that were blamed on Egyptians and Canaanites (Mcleland Sutton, 2008).
Christianity
Christianity is among the biggest religions in the world and the one that is the most diverse. As far as homosexuality and bisexuality is concerned Christians hold diverse views. The views range from absolute condemnations to total acceptance. According to the traditions of Abrahimic religions, most of the Christians have accepted homosexuals, but continue to teach their followers that homosexuality is a sin. The Roman Catholic is one example of these denominations. This denomination continues to shun homosexuality and consider it sinful, but does not forbid homosexuals from the congregation as well as the places of worship. However, they cannot be ordained as priests nor can gay couples wed under the Catholic Church. Others that hold to the same views are the Methodist church, and the Eastern Orthodox Church, among others. Most of the Pentecostal churches like the KAG, together with others like the Jehovahs Witnesses and Mormons, continue to hold to the belief that homosexuality is a sin. They do not accept homosexuality amongst their believers. These are some of the Christian denominations that still want nothing to do with homosexuality (Swidler, 1993).
Some of the liberal Christians do support the homosexual movement. Some others consider the fact that as long as a person is faithful to one partner, whether heterosexually of homosexually, then it is not immoral or sinful. Some of the churches that hold to this view are the United Church of Canada, and the United Church of Christ. Particularly, the MCC was established to a serve the LGBT community among Christians (Duncan, 2002). This is a Christian denomination of whose membership is approximately 40,000 people, which is dedicated to openness and affirms to the LGBT Christians. The UCC and the Alliance of Baptists have accepted same-sex marriages. In the Anglican Church there is an open gay clergyman. One incident to indicate this is the case of Gene Robinson. Robinson is a declared homosexual Bishop in the United States Episcopal Church. These churches have continued to ordain gay clerics (Duncan, 2002).
Some religious leaders like Fred Phelps and Jerry Falwell have come out in the open to claim that HIVAIDS is a form of punishment from the Almighty against homosexuality. This view that has been supported by many Christians is a claim that God has sent this terrible disease to punish the world due to the increase in homosexuality. There is an argument that some of the verses in the bible, especially in the Old Testament have been misinterpreted to claim that the punishment for homosexuality is death. In the 20th century, many theologians, studying this issue claim that many of the verses in the bible have not only been misinterpreted, but have also been taken out of context so as to relate to this concept that is referred to as homosexuality (Pollack, 2007).
Some of the protestant churches use the scripture in Leviticus to condemn homosexuality and gay couple marriages. They deem these acts sinful and immoral. Where the catholic belief is based on the argument of the natural law as stated in the bible, the Protestants see it as being founded purely on the interpretations of the bible. The Protestants also view homosexuality as an obstruction of the natural kind of relationship which is heterosexuality. This is the originally intended kind of sexual relationship. They translate some of the scriptural verses to be laws that favor heterosexual marriages (Duncan, 2002). The catholic religion has accepted some unmarried people in theory midst as priests, nuns, and unmarried lay people for a very long time. Some of the self-described homosexuals and ex-homosexuals Christians have been reported to be satisfied in mix-orientation relationships. The Roman Catholic religion encourages the people who have sexual attraction to the individuals of the same gender to practice chastity. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints holds a completely different view. The teaching by this denomination is that a person should stir up sexual desires outside of the opposite sex attractions, include the feelings towards those of the same gender. However, these desires should be conquered through self-discipline and dependence on the atonement of Christ. This is to say that falling prey to these desires is a sin (Mcleland Sutton, 2008).
Islam
In Islam homosexuality is totally condemned. The religion views homosexual feelings as a natural temptation. Homosexual relationships are viewed as regressions of the accepted role and objective of the sexual act. The tradition of the faith in what is referred to as the hadith tradition, there is presuming of homosexuality, the Quran praises abstinence from homosexual act and condemns consummation. In the Islamic world, it is expected that males can be naturally attracted to male youths. This act is tolerated as it is considered a human trait that is the same as the attraction of the older sibling to the younger ones. The consummation of the desire is what is condemned. It is seen as a sort of lust and going against the holy Quran. This argument is based on the fact that affection for people in the same sex is natural, but should never be followed by sexual contact (Pollack, 2007).
The discussion in this topic in Islam is basically relating to homosexual acts among males. Sexual relationships between women, where they are seen as being problematic, they are handled in the same way as adultery. For instance, al-tabari accounts a killing of a harem couple. The two were executed under Caliph al-Hadi. Islam support filial attraction between siblings of the same sex. Sexual relationship in this kind of relationship is completely forbidden. There have been many accounts and writings using this proclamation of brotherly affection between men while arguing to be chaste (Mcleland Sutton, 2008).
Zoroastrianism
The religious view concerning the issue of homosexuality in this religion is based on the Vendidad. This is an ecclesiastical code that evolved around 8th century BC. It is believed that some aspects of the law like uncleanliness, duo-relationships, and salvation were shared among religions. The following interactions among the religions are recorded following occurrences like the release from captivity in Babylon, and the visit of baby Jesus by the Wise Men. These are the teachings that guide the religions on sexual matters (Swidler, 1993).
The Vendidad basically supports procreation. The union between a man and a woman is the only way that procreation can occur. The man who is married is given more respect that the one who does not have. There is also respect to a man who has a home over one who as none, and same for a man that has children over the one who does not have. The book also goes ahead to detail the penalty for a man who practices sodomy. This is referred to as a sin. Its punishment is equal to that of a man who violates an agreement with the worth of an ox. However, for people who practice sodomy willingly, there is no penalty, as nothing can atone or cleanse such a person. In short, it is a sin that can never be atoned. Nevertheless, the people who were in the religion of Mazda were forgiven for the previous sins before they are converted. This is because they are considered to have moved from ignorance to the light. All the past sins are forgiven and should not be continued (Olyan Nussbaum, 1998).
Indian religions
Some of the religions that emanated from the country were Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. These are religions whose teachings are different from the Abrahimic religions. Just like teachings about other aspects of life, the teachings on homosexuality are very different. While the subject of sexual orientation is freely discussed in the western religions, it is rarely discussed in Indian religions. This is because there is no openness in discussing issues related to sex in the community. Nevertheless, most modern religious leaders view homosexuality and bisexuality in a negative way. Whenever this topic is mentioned it is condemned and seriously forbidden. Ancient spiritual writings, like the Vedas, usually mention a third category of gender. This is the class of gender that is neither male nor female, commonly known as hijira. Some of the people who have carried out researches in this area relate the description of hijira to the modern-day gay women, gay men, bisexual, transgender and intesexual. The ancient writings negatively value this class as a pariah class. In Hinduism, the ancient writings view non-vaginal sexual intercourse as impure. The kind of intercourse that is respected is the vaginal one (Swidler, 1993).
Hinduism
This religion has assumed various viewpoints concerning this topic from positive to neutral to negative. One of the canonical holy writings in this religion, rigveda, presents an argument that nature is all about diversity. In addition what is viewed as being un-natural is actually natural. From this writing some researchers presents the argument that homosexuality and bisexuality perspectives of life are similar to all sorts of universal diversity. However, the issue of sexual orientation is not commonly discussed in the open in the Hindu community even today. The topic of homosexuality is widely held as a taboo especially among those who strongly hold on to the religion. In a study carried out in the year 2004, majority of the swamis accepted to be in opposition to the idea of Hindu-sanctified same-sex unions. Most of the laws like the Manu Smriti, consider homosexuality a punishable offence. The kinds of punishments that can be administered to these people include ritual baths, public embarrassment, fines, and chopping off of fingers. The severity of the kinds of punishments administered proves the seriousness of the matter (Pollack, 2007).
Since Vedic times, a third gender has been recognized within the religion. Some of the texts in the religion like the Manu Smriti and Shushruta Samhita claim that some individuals are born with mixed gender characteristics. This is identified as an issue of natural science. Currently most individuals of the third gender are common within the Indian community. Nevertheless, this is the group that belongs to the lowest caste, which is the outcast. The Kama Sutra that was documented in the 4th century AD describes this group where men performed oral sex with other men. Despite the description, the writer did nit approve of the acts and treated them with disgust. Some medieval temples and objects of art reveal some aspects of homosexuality and bisexuality, in their carvings. A good illustration of this is the walls of the temple in Khajuraho. Some people argue that it is possible that in the past, the community was more open about sexual orientation that they are presently (Olyan Nussbaum, 1998).
Buddhism
People who profess to this faith have a strong moral stand in issues related to man and especially sexual orientation. Nevertheless, unlike many of the other religions around the world, most faction of Buddhism do not describe what is wrong or right regarding the ordinary aspects of life. There is no religious writing in this religion that offers details of what should or should no be done as far as sexual issues are concerned. The most common source of morality in this religion is the Five Precepts and Eightfold Path. These teachings argue that one is not to be emotionally involved or long for bodily pleasure. However, sexual orientation is a very broad topic that is subjected to different understanding depending on the moral norms of the followers. Therefore, determining if or not homosexuality is tolerable from a common mans perspective is not a religious issue. This is to say that the religion does not commonly offer directions as to how people should behave sexually (Swidler, 1993).
The religion is typified as skeptical to physical pleasure and sexual orientation in general. Conventionally, homosexuality and gender variance are viewed as hindrance to spiritual development in most factions of Buddhism. For example, monks are meant to keep off all sexual acts and the Vinaya particularly forbids all sexual contact. There is a distinguished exemption in the history of the religion that took place in Japan. This is was during the time commonly known as the Edo period, where sex between young novices and elder monks was fted. During this period, there was no restriction on homosexuality among these groups (Mcleland Sutton, 2008).
From the writing in the religion of Buddhism where one is supposed to abstain from sexual misbehavior, it has been translated to comprise homosexuality. The Dalai Lama translates sexual misconduct to comprise homosexuality and bisexuality. Additionally, they include all other sexual contact that does not involve vaginal contact. However, Dalai Lama advocates for universal human rights in spite of of the sexuality. It is suggested in Thailand that homosexuality and bisexuality emanates from the result of going against the Buddhism prohibitions against sexual misbehavior. The karmic writings define homosexuality and bisexuality as an innate characteristic that cannot be reversed. This is a call to the society to have compassion and understanding for people in this condition. This is an aspect of support to the human rights as far as sexual orientation is concerned. However, religious leaders in the country have condemned homosexuality (Olyan Nussbaum, 1998).
Sikhism
There is nothing documented on the view of this religion concerning homosexuality and bisexuality. However, in the year 2005, the international highest Sikh religious leaders defined homosexuality as being against the religion and its laws. They added that the conduct is totally against the law of nature. This means that the religion is totally against homosexuality and bisexuality. There is even a call for all the followers of the religion to advocate for the laws against same-sex marriages (Mcleland Sutton, 2008).
Jainism
Chastity is one among the basic virtues in the basic morals of the religion. For the common man the only platform for sexual relationship is marriage. This is obviously marriage between people of the opposite sex. Homosexuality as well as bisexuality, is seen as leading to destructive karma. This is due to the fact that it is going against the accepted kind of marriage. In the year 2004, Duli Chandra, who is a writer in Jain wrote that homosexuality as well as transvestitism, are staining to the mind and emotions as they involve sexual pleasure (Olyan Nussbaum, 1998).
Religious views and public policy
Disproval to gay couple marriages and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender rights is often related to traditional religious beliefs. The opponents to the move claim that accepting to approve same sex marriages will be going against the long-held religious morals. Majority of religious groups have supported boycotts of movements that are aimed at passing the policy. On the other hand, there are some religious groups that support the policies in line with the LGBT community. The Unitarian Universalist Association supports the liberty of gay couples and their rights to marry. In the Islamic community homosexuality and bisexuality are strongly forbidden and proper translation of the Sharia Law calls for execution of the guilty. This has mostly raised controversy as the human rights movement condemns the law as violation of human rights (Swidler, 1993).
Conclusion
Sexual orientation is a topic that is subject to diverse views as far as religious views are concerned. The LGBT rights have been widely accepted as any other human rights and must be protected. Most of the religions have supported the move and have thus accepted homosexuals and bisexuals amongst them. Others like the Islam have held their stand as to condemn homosexuality and bisexuality. Some of the religions have accepted them fully to the extent of ordaining them to leadership positions and joining them in marriage. This is for example in the Anglican religion. Others have accepted them, but not to the extent of ordaining them and uniting them in marriage. The debate concerning sexual orientation and marriage is one that is not likely to be settled in the near future. Things might continue changing in favor of LGBT community, but in a very slow pace.
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