The New Testament and Homosexuality: Contextual Background for Contemporary Debate

by Robin Scroggs

Book Overview

Just what is a proper use of the Bible, especially the New Testament, in Christian debates about acceptance of homosexuals? In addition to bringing clarity and honesty to issues of the relevance of the Bible, this work brings a little more light and a little less heat to the discussion, a little more acceptance of all persons on the "other side," and maybe even an awareness that in Christ there is really no "other side" at all.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0800618548
• ISBN13: 9780800618544
• Release Date: August 1984
• Publisher: Fortress Press
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

This book blew my mind!

The information in this book is incredible. It compares and contrasts the "boys club" in Rome and Greece circa 300 BCE to 300 CE with the loving caring relationships enjoyed by modern gay couples, and concludes they have nothing in common. The reader is guided through an unjust, misogynistic, male dominated society that was in every way the exact opposite of God's kingdom of equality and justice and love. It is no wonder, the early church found so much to condemn. And it is no wonder the later, unjust, misogynistic, male dominated church did nothing to correct the misunderstanding. Robin Scroggs has come a long way toward documenting the injustices done to our brothers and sisters.

Academically sound and intellectually honest

This is an excellent book for anyone curious about the Scriptural basis (used by both sides) in Christian debates over the morality of homosexual acts. It is short (150 pages) and very readable. The book starts out with a brief overview of various positions on homosexuality taken by different Christian sects, and how those different positions are claimed to be supported by Scripture. Then he takes a historical approach, going into detail about the cultural background of the time and place where the New Testament was written, which means particular focus on Greek pederasty (sex between men and boys). Scroggs explains both the debate in mainstream Greek society, as well as the views of and Scriptural interpretations (and misinterpretations) of both Palestinian and Hellenistic Jews. He makes clear what is known, as well as what is missing from the historical records. My favorite aspect of this book is that Scroggs does not let the reader know his opinion at first. He starts being incredibly objective, and then slowly becomes more and more opinionated and colorful in his statements. Finally, in the last chapter, Scroggs gives his own conclusions. I won't spoil the end, but I will tell you that he bases his conclusions on two conditions: (1) The biblical statements must be consonant with the larger, major theological and ethical judgments which lie at the heart not only of Scripture, but of the historical church throughout the ages. (2) The context today must bear a reasonable similarity to the context of the statements at the time of writing. Scroggs, a Biblical scholar and Christian, is intellectually honest and rigorous about both his research and analysis. He jumps to no rash conclusions about anything, and when he states his own conclusions, he always presents opposing views in a way that is non-judgmental.

A must read for anyone struggling with this issue

The author did a very good job of examining in a logical and scholarly fashion exactly what the Bible does and does not say about homosexuality. I appreciated the lack of political rhetoric in the book. The cultural background information was very helpful in understanding how to interpret the Biblical passages often quoted on both sides of the debate.I found the list of Biblical passages referenced in the back of the book very helpful. I used the index to read all of the referenced passages in the NIV translation of the Bible.To get the maximum out of this book, you have to be willing to put some intellectual effort into exploring the Bible as a Bible scholar does. This doesn't mean that the book is hard to read - on the contrary, it is written very clearly. This book is most useful if you have an honest desire to understand how the Bible addresses the issue. It will not be as useful if you are simply trying to find ammunition to support your already stated viewpoint.

Another friend gave me a copy of this book

This book is a bit older than some of the others available today but the message remains clear and can be applied to any situation where you are in a relationship with a gay or lesbian. When my husband of 20 years began having an identity crisis problem I found the information in this book to be helpful in dealing with his feelings of homosexuality. We did infact split in the end but the split was much cleaner than it might have been had I not found this book....END

A Good Place to Start

If you think that the reason Christians should oppose homosexuality is "because the Bible says it's wrong" then, you should buy this book. One of my seminary professors recommended this book to me while I was an M.Div. student, and I have recommended it to many others since. Scroggs does an excellent job of introducing the reader to basic prinicples of biblical interpretation and then applying those principles to the (very few) verses that seem to address homosexuality. If you have any biblical questions on this issue, this is the book to start with. It's starting to get a bit dated now, but it is still a great way to grasp the basic concept that the biblical writers were not addressing the issue of loving, consensual, monogamous, healthy relationships between adults of the same sex.