>The Story of Sodom

>Next week I promise more mundane subjects. Be sure to read my review of Dr. Solomon’s presentation at Bessemer Science and Nature.

This is by Rev. Jonathan Loppnow and Rev. Paul C. Evans of Topeka. I have permission to reprint it. I did place some emphasis here and there.

Update: This post was pretty much a response to comments on
this post about Perry Stone.

Genesis 19 The Story of Sodom

Genesis 19 describes how two angels visited Sodom and were welcomed into Lot’s house. The men of the city gathered around the house and demanded that Lot send the visitors to the mob so that they might know the angels.

[The Hebrew verb yada (to know) is ambiguous. It appears 943 times in the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). In only about a dozen of these cases does it refers to sexual activity; it is not clear whether the mob wanted to rape the angels or to meet with them, and perhaps attack them physically. From the context, it is obvious that their mood was not friendly].

Lot refused, but offered his two virgin daughters to be heterosexually raped if that would appease the mob. The offer was declined. God decided to destroy the city because of the wickedness of its inhabitants. The angels urged Lot and his family to flee and to not look back.

Unfortunately, Lot’s wife looked the wrong way, so God killed her because of her curiosity.

God was apparently not critical of Lot for offering his two daughters to be raped. However, God was angry at the other inhabitants of the town. He destroyed Sodom with fire and brimstone (sulfur). He presumably killed all of the men in the mob, their wives and other adults, as well as children, infants, newborns, etc. It is unclear from these few verses whether God demolished the city because the citizens:

1)were uncharitable and abusive to strangers
2)wanted to rape people
3)engaged in homosexual acts.

The Church has traditionally accepted the third explanation. In fact, the term sodomy which means anal intercourse is derived from the name of the city, Sodom.

But the first explanation is clearly the correct one.

As recorded in Matthew 10:14-15 and Luke 10:7-16, Jesus implied that the sin of the people of Sodom was to be inhospitable to strangers.

In Ezekeiel 16:48-50, God states clearly that he destroyed Sodom’s sins because of their pride, their excess of food while the poor and needy suffered, and worshiped many idols; sexual activity is not even mentioned.

Jude disagreed with God; he wrote that Sodom’s sins were sexual in nature. Various biblical translations describe the sin as fornication, going after strange flesh, sexual immorality, perverted sensuality, homosexuality, lust of every kind, immoral acts and unnatural lust; you can take your pick.

We are faced with the inescapable and rather amusing conclusion that the condemned activities in Sodom had nothing to do with sodomy.

Source: OCRT: Bible and Homosexuality

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah actually condemns inhospitality and idolatry, not homosexuality.

Read the Scriptural cross-references: Deuteronomy 29:23, Isaiah 1:9, Jeremiah 23:14, Lamentations 4:6, Ezekiel 16:49-50, Amos 4:11, Zephaniah 2:9, Matthew 10:15 / Luke 10:12, Luke 17:29, Romans 9:29, Jude v.7, Revelation 11:8

NOWHERE in the Scriptures does it say that the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah was homosexual sex. Even if the specific point of the story was concerning a sexual matter, rather than hospitality, the issue is rape not homosexuality. Jesus claimed the issue was simply one of showing hospitality to strangers (Luke 10:12).

How ironic that those who discriminate against homosexuals seem to be the true practitioners of the sin of Sodom.

Source: Same Gender Sexual Behavior and the Scriptures

This paper is provided as a service of the Metropolitan Community Church of Topeka, authors Rev. Jonathan Loppnow and Rev. Paul C. Evans. It may be reproduced freely as long as the entire text is reproduced and unaltered, all attributions are left intact and it is not sold for profit or included in a for-profit publication. Copyright © Jan. 7, 1998
Copyright © by the author All Rights Reserved

>D. C. Votes for Equality

>Be sure to read my Western Tribune column from today’s paper, following this post. I think I stirred something up.

Yesterday the D. C. council voted to recognize same sex marriages performed elsewhere. This is preliminary to a gay marriage bill for the city. Story from the Washington Post .

A poll at that web site at this moment has 87% of respondents choosing “The city should itself legalize gay marriage,” 4% choosing “The city should recognize gay marriages,” 2% choosing “Civil unions or domestic partnerships only,” and 5% choosing “None” (no recognition of same sex relationships).

I need your help at Bessemer Science and Nature. It has to do with this:

Barring big news, tomorrow I plan to address a reader’s comment regarding the story of Sodom in the Bible. Yesterday’s post, of course, addressed the story based on the Hebrew writings. Oh, the Old Testament book of Genesis is Hebrew writings, that’s right. Anyway…stay tuned.

>Western Tribune Column April 8, 2009

>This column has already angered some. But here it is:

To say that President Obama “favors the taking of life from the unborn” is a misinterpretation of policy if I have ever heard one. But that is part of the rhetoric being applied to the debate over the invitation by the University of Notre Dame for the president to speak at commencement.

For the Catholic Church to be so focused on abortion is not surprising. After all, anything to take the focus off of their own misgivings. Remember, this is the church that allowed Cardinal Bernard Law, the prelate who obstructed justice in the investigation of pedophilia in his own diocese, to remain a member in good standing, in fact, allowing him to run the third largest basilica in Rome.

Catholic universities have always been places where freedom of thought and differing opinions have been allowed. Thomas Reese, a distinguished fellow at Georgetown University, wrote that in denying the voices of people with different views, “We are admitting that our arguments are not convincing.” And Dick Meister, the former provost of DePaul University (the nation’s largest Catholic University), said that allowing Obama to speak “epitomizes Notre Dame’s Catholic identity.”

On the subject of abortion, if that’s what the Catholics in opposition to Obama want to talk about, a recent Gallup Poll released last week shows no difference between American Catholics and Non-Catholics on the issue. And the majority of Americans do not want to outlaw abortion, although they may want to limit the procedure to certain circumstances.

Our president, regardless of what one might want to believe, is more interested in preventing unintended pregnancies than in taking away a woman’s right to individual choice as a way to reduce abortion. If unintended pregnancies are significantly reduced, the number of abortions will decrease also. Is that so hard to understand?

On the other hand, if abortion were outlawed, abortions would continue, but would be less safe. I recently attended a presentation at UAB on what might happen if abortion were outlawed, by physicians who were practicing before it was legalized. Their predictions regarding the health of women were dire. I couldn’t help reflecting on Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s scoffing at the concern over the health of the woman when abortion was mentioned during a debate.

Many see the hypocrisy in the current debate and believe it’s just a way for Catholic Republicans to demean Obama.

Meanwhile, his approval ratings remain steady.

>Vermont Legalizes Same Sex Marriage

>Vermont becomes the fourth state to legalize same sex marriage, this time from the legislature, which overrode the governors veto of the legislation yesterday.

Time marches on. Equality is catching up.

>Sodom – What Happened?

>A few weeks ago a reader posted a comment asking if I had watched Perry Stone on TBN. “Entire 30 minute episode with historical evidence about Sodom and the homosexual sin (out in the streets) that brought it down,” he wrote.

Well I don’t often watch TBN and have never watched Perry Stone, but of course you can find him online. The episode referred to is #441 – The Zoar Factor.

True to the form of Christians that pick and choose verses and mis-interpret them to demonize gays, Mr. Stone does the same thing with Hebrew Scripture, taking a passage from the book of Jasher and after misinterpreting the verse, forgetting all of the words around it. He focused on one verse.

Here is what Jasher 19:3 says: And by desire of their four judges the people of Sodom and Gomorrah had beds erected in the streets of the cities, and if a man came to these places they laid hold of him and brought him to one of their beds, and by force made him to lie in them.

Those are the words displayed on the screen, but Mr. Stone mis-quotes the end, saying “and by force made him to lie with them.”

There is a big difference between “in” and “with”.

So I wondered what the verses that followed said.

Jasher 19:4-7:
4
And as he lay down, three men would stand at his head and three at his feet, and measure him by the length of the bed, and if the man was less than the bed these six men would stretch him at each end, and when he cried out to them they would not answer him.

5
And if he was longer than the bed they would draw together the two sides of the bed at each end, until the man had reached the gates of death.

6
And if he continued to cry out to them, they would answer him, saying, Thus shall it be done to a man that cometh into our land.

7
And when men heard all these things that the people of the cities of Sodom did, they refrained from coming there.

There is not a word in there that would lead one to believe they are talking about forced sex between men, but that is what Stone implies. In fact, that is what he bases his entire show on.

You can read Jasher 19 here and you will learn that the people of Sodom went on to starve and torture visitors. It seems this is the abomination that may have been looked upon by God with disfavor.

In fact, read on. Just after covering a woman with honey and then placing her before a swarm of bees that were stinging her all over, and as she was being ignored by the people:

44
And the Lord was provoked at this and at all the works of the cities of Sodom, for they had abundance of food, and had tranquility amongst them, and still would not sustain the poor and the needy, and in those days their evil doings and sins became great before the Lord.

45
And the Lord sent for two of the angels that had come to Abraham’s house, to destroy Sodom and its cities.

In fact, nowhere are relations between same sex partners mentioned.

As for Stone, he has no credibility. He goes on to say that the same abominations are taking place in the United States. Well, yeah, we are not “sustaining the poor and the needy.” But it has nothing to do with homosexuality!!!

Stone goes on to compare judges in Biblical times permitting torture of visitors to judges in the United States making rulings (about gay rights is implied). Apples and oranges?

He blames the hurricane in New Orleans and the mildew that resulted on a curse from the Lord (he says “mildew” is biblical), and the city of Galveston’s storm damage last year on the Bible’s admonition that it rains upon the just and unjust, and says just as Lot (who was a just man) had to relocate, so the “just” citizens of hurricane damaged areas have to relocate.

Give me a break!

>Young Evangelicals

>I’ve written previously about Rick Cizik and evangelicals in general. Cizik, of course, is the former vice president for governmental affairs of the National Association of Evangelicals who was booted after saying he believed in civil unions for gays and lesbians during an interview on NPR’s Fresh Air.

The Advocate has an article in their current issue titled “Reduce, Reuse, Religion?” The article focuses on Jonathan Merritt, a Southern Baptist student (or former student) who is becoming a leader in the growing “creation care” movement among evangelicals.

Read what Merritt said about his new found fame (or infamy) in this article from the Christian Index. He’s been tagged a (gasp) liberal.

All because he is concerned about the environment. Southern Baptist Environment and Climate Initiative is the web site he started and his declaration that created the buzz can be found there.

My interest in the Advocate article (and I assume their purpose in printing it) is that it says young evangelicals are taking the focus off of divisive social issues and placing it on more pressing concerns. (The article is not available online as I write this) A majority of young white evangelicals (age 18-29) support either marriage or domestic partnership for same sex couples (58%), according to a 2008 study referenced in the article, compared to 46% of evangelicals over 30.

Merritt says it’s easy to see why. Four out of ten evangelical youths say they have a close friend or family member who is gay, twice as many as their older counterparts. When the issue becomes personal, attitudes change. “Many older [evangelicals] are in disbelief when you quote that statistic,” he says. “One man said to me, ‘Well, I have a cousin who is gay.’ I told him the difference is that I hang out with my friends who are gay on Friday nights. You just see your cousin at Christmastime.”

The future looks bright(er) for the planet, and for equality.

Read an announcement about a distinguished speaker, Susan Solomon, coming to UAB Wednesday at Bessemer Science and Nature, speaking of climate change.

>Bessemer = New York? Why Not?

>I don’t see why not, at least in this respect.

In New York High Line Park will soon open. An abandoned railway is being turned into a park in the sky. Their park will be 1.45 miles long, winding 22 blocks through Manhattan’s Meatpacking district and West Chelsea. The area’s gays will love it. And the area is full of ’em. Of course, others will enjoy it too. We don’t hog all the fun.

Aside from that, according to press, it is only the second elevated park – the first being Promenade plantee in Paris. Now, I can’t believe that there are no other elevated railways turned park in our country, but that’s what the Advocate says. But what about this?

Here in Bessemer we have the abandoned rail line that spans Carolina Avenue and turns parallel to First Avenue. It’s wide enough for a bike/walking trail and then some.

It could be extended over Arlington and Berkeley Avenues. The infrastructure is already there.

It would span across Berkley Avenue here.

And could continue across Clarendon, Dartmouth and on…and meet up with an extension of Red Mountain Park if our city leaders would look into it. The Auburn University Urban Studio already thought of this. I have plenty of these proposals/maps if anyone is interested in what could happen in Bessemer. In there plan the elevated park comes down to ground level somewhere before the Hall of History.

Please be sure that your favorite Bessemer leader sees this.

Uh-oh. I’m seeing coffee shops and art galleries again.

>Be sure to read my Western Tribune Column which follows this post.

And check out Bessemer Science and Nature to learn about recycling plastics and recycling in general in Bessemer.

I had something prepared to write about, but NEWS FLASH.

The Iowa Supreme Court just ruled in a unanimous decision that Same Sex Marriage is legal. Des Moines Register.

Picture credit Rodney White/ The Register

Iowa becomes the third state to legalize equality in marriage, following Massachusetts and Connecticut.

“The Iowa statute limiting civil marriage to a union between a man and a woman violates the equal protection clause of the Iowa Constitution,” the justices said in a summary of their decision.

More information from 365 gay

Progress marches on. Equality marches on. The dream becomes reality.

A reader yesterday said, concerning the fight for equality, “This is one fight that will never be won.” (In a comment I did not post, because it violated my rules).

The fight is being won. This is in the “heartland.”

Now we just need to see the Prop 8 overturned in California. And maybe a “southern state.”

>Western Tribune Column April 1 2009

>It seems that Bessemer is on the verge of a Spring time renewal of sorts, at least in the historic South Side neighborhood.

Whenever a building is unoccupied, whether it be a church, a school, a home or public housing, there is concern that the structure will deteriorate or become a haven for vagrants or those who are up to no good.

In the historic district we are especially concerned for several reasons. One, the old buildings, while built from sturdy materials with construction methods meant to last, also deteriorate quickly if not properly maintained. Two, because of the historic nature of the structures, they connect us to the past and to our roots. Third, the buildings represent architectural styles that can be mimicked but not reproduced in part because of a lack of skilled craftsmen but also because the lumbar produced today is not as dense or strong as that used a century ago.

So you can imagine the relief felt by preservationists last week when we learned that one of the most notable vacant houses on Clarendon Avenue is being sold to a couple who is interested in preserving its beauty.

Then the community’s spirit was lifted when the Bessemer Board of Education approved the superintendent’s recommendation to sell Arlington School to an individual who already has shown his willingness to restore historic properties. Preservationists have fought for years to save this building, and the Alabama Historical Commission listed the property as one of its “places in peril” in 2003.

These two items of good news came after learning that another historic property, the “neo-classical Revival temple fronted church” formerly known as South Highland Baptist Church, had been purchased and will be used to benefit the community. More about this will be revealed over the coming weeks, but at least we will stop hearing “I hope it doesn’t become another Arlington School.”

Spring time is a season of renewal, no doubt, but what’s renewal without a sense of security?

That is why the fourth item of interest is important. A new police substation is being built on Dartmouth Avenue and our perception is that this will make us safer. Perception of course, is not necessarily reality, but I can’t help but believe that the community will benefit from increased police presence. And when this community, or any community in the city is improved, the entire city benefits.

>Fashion Inquiry and LGBT Civil Disobedience

>First…

She always has it.

She always had it.

She had it too.

So why doesn’t she have it?

That’s the question Brits were asking yesterday, as they realized that Michelle does not carry a handbag with her all the time. I’m glad that is the pressing issue of the day, as thousands of British citizens were protesting the G-20 and the European press was trying to assign blame for the global crisis on the US.

But we love Michelle. So do 72% of Americans according to a recent Gallup Poll. Her approval even surpasses her husband’s.

I approve of both.
Take It to The Streets
A coalition of prominent activists for gay equality is promoting non-violent civil disobedience in the fight for equality.

Nonviolence4equality.org

“We are tired of defeat, token change, defending ourselves against charges of moral inferiority, and being told to “wait” in the land we love while liberation occurs in other countries. Martin Luther King, Jr. acknowledged that real change takes time; yet he also warned against the “tranquilizing drug of gradualism” and instructed the oppressed to demand equality now – not on the convenient time schedule of those doing the oppressing.”

Among those supporting this effort are leaders of Soulforce, who for years have led the fight to combat the Spiritual Violence which targets gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons. This type of violence toward the soul of a person drives people away from the love that God offers and contributes to the low self esteem that many LGBT persons harbor.

In a letter, the leaders of the effort said this (emphasis mine):

Efforts to achieve full civil equality – such as the right to marry the person we love, the right to care for our families, the right to nondiscrimination in the workplace, and the right to serve openly in the military – have awakened a sleeping giant within the soul of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ) community.

We are tired of agonizing political setbacks, token change, defending ourselves against charges of moral inferiority, and being told to “wait” in the land we love while liberation occurs in other countries. Martin Luther King, Jr. acknowledged that real change takes time; yet he also warned against the “tranquilizing drug of gradualism” and instructed the oppressed to demand equality now – not on the convenient time schedule of those doing the oppressing. Legislative efforts toward equality, while essential, have proven woefully inadequate under current circumstances.

Today, we affirm that nonviolent strategies such as marches, vigils, demonstrations, public protests, and civil disobedience, seek to create what Dr. King called “healthy tension”.. This constructive tension forces those who perpetuate injustice, and society as a whole, to pause, reflect, and consider the ugliness of their prejudices and the indecency embodied in their discrimination. In his Letter from Birmingham Jail, Dr. King wrote: “Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored.”

In addition to Dr. King’s legacy, we remember that those of Mahatma Gandhi, Bayard Rustin, Oscar Romero, Cesar Chavez, the Velvet Revolution, and countless others are deeply rooted in United States and world history. Nonviolent resistance continues to play a vital role in undermining the power of repressive political regimes.

We call on community organizers, activists, movement leaders, and all LGBTQ people across the nation to begin training the masses in nonviolent direct action. We have prepared a new online resource – www.nonviolence4equality.org – to assist in this vital task. As we resist injustice, we must avoid violence of the fist, tongue, and heart and remember that in truth we are challenging unjust systems, not people. In due course, we seek to be in community with those from whom we currently find ourselves divided.

We, the undersigned, call on LGBTQ and allied people everywhere to act with strength and integrity. Today, we reclaim nonviolent direct action as part of that process. Let’s understand that the vision of equality belongs to all of us and we are each responsible for taking action in pursuit of that dream. We all have the faculty to be powerful, influential, and prevailing. Let’s reinvest in our movement for social change and believe in our own capacity to effect that change. Let’s allow the boldness and hunger for justice to grow and contagiously spread to others.
Let’s take it to the streets.

Jeff Lutes, Soulforce
Cleve Jones, UNITE HERE
Willow Witte, Join the Impact
Sara Beth Brooks, San Diego Equality Campaign
David Comfort, Equality Network
Kip Williams, Radical Designs
Jeff Sheng, Fearless Campus Tour
David Valk, UCLA Student
Laura Kanter, Orange County Equality Coalition
Christopher Hubble, Soulforce in Colorado