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Interested to where these views stem from, I Googled ‘bible quotes on homosexuality’. I was particularly shocked by the Corinthians verse condemning "homosexuals" alongside “adulterers” and “ thieves”. It stunned me that the Bible views homosexuality as sinful as these other things. Does this means if gay Christians give into their natural impulses they really won’t “inherit the kingdom of God”? I next came across a Pope Benedict XVI quote expressing his belief that homosexuality is “ordered to an intrinsic moral evil”. For gay Christians (actually, anyone gay) this is a really hard thing to read. Surely when you hear the word “evil” you think of murderers and rapists etc not homosexuals. As the Torah shares the same books as the Old Testament, Orthodox Jewish responses are similar.
Islam similarly condemns homosexuality, the Qur’an equally describing homosexuality as an “abomination” and “unnatural". This has been taken to the extreme by Islamic leader and previous President of Iran, Ali Khamenei, who claims that “homosexuality has become [an] unsolvable problem for the intellectuals in West”. This disturbing quote epitomises the religious attitudes that many have towards homosexuality. The fact that Khamenei is actually undermining Western leaders for not killing homosexuals is truly a distressing thing to read!
By this point of my research I was disheartened by religious attitudes towards homosexuality BUT then I fortunately ended by looking at Hinduism where I discovered that “Nowhere in the Hindu sacred texts is romantic love excluded to all but a man and woman, so there are no religious grounds to make a statement to the contrary.” YAAAY. I didn’t expect to come across any religion where there wasn't condemnation of homosexuality today, let alone a religion where there’s never really been. Admittedly, not all Hindus are pro-gay rights but I found this article from 2009 explaining how “The Hindu Council UK welcomed the Delhi High Court's historic judgement which decriminalised consensual homosexual relations and said Hinduism does not condemn gay people.”
What do you think about all of this? Do you think Hinduism has got the right idea? Or do you think that if the key religious texts express arguments against homosexuality then people should stick to these beliefs?
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| Protestor at The National Equality March on Washington, October 11, 2009. |
This was really interesting!! I think in the 21st Century Hinduism absolutely has the right idea. In today's society gay couples should be able to express their love the same as heterosexual couples. However, I would ask do you think that Hinduism really does not condemn gay couples or do you think that the culture of the religion, which of course, is a really prominent part of the religion might take over from the actual texts??
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. I'm really glad you found it interesting!
ReplyDeleteYour question is a really good one and I'm really glad you've asked it. Of course not every Hindu will be pro-gay rights. It ultimately falls upon the individual’s interpretation of their religious texts and beliefs. When speaking with a friend of mine, who is Hindu, she told me that she doesn’t know of any Hindu’s who oppose gay rights. On the other hand, if you take a look at this website -http://www.religionfacts.com/homosexuality/hinduism.htm (which I have quoted above) -
you can see different Hindu interpretations.
Here is an example the website gives;
‘Opponents of homosexuality argue that:
Premarital and extramarital sex are wrong, and because homosexuals cannot marry, they should not engage in sexual relationships.
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Proponents of homosexuality argue:
Sexual expression within a loving relationship is encouraged by Hinduism because it is not an expression of lust, but an expression of love and devotion to each others' happiness. Therefore, homosexuals in loving relationships (i.e. marriage) should be allowed to express their love sexually.’
We can see here how different interpretations of Hindu beliefs can lead to either an anti-gay or pro-gay stance. However, this particular site has begun each argument with the arguments against homosexuality before counter-arguing them (as we can see in this example), continuously suggesting pro-gay attitudes. Additionally, this site is what led me to come find the declaration from the Hindu Council UK (which I have quoted above as well). This agrees that “Hinduism does not condemn gay people”.
Finally, check out this web article
-(which hasn’t been quoted above: http://76crimes.com/2012/08/29/lgbt-rights-hindu-style-the-example-of-nepal/ ) -
titled ‘LGBT rights, Hindu style — the example of Nepal’. This article explains how “In Nepal…‘Hindu deities are so diverse and have been gays, lesbians and transgender themselves.’… Many Hindus believe that a marriage lasts for seven lives and although there is no guarantee whether a spouse will be born male or female in the next birth, the relationship continues”.
...hope that has all been helpful!
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