Freedom from gays

Historically, many cultures tolerated homosexuality, but many had also tolerated excessive drinking, violent conquests, or communism. Acceptance of a behavioral trait doesn’t prove its morality. Societies are often intolerant to alien rather than abominable practices. In the past twenty years, American attitude quickly moved toward acceptance of homosexuality because media made that lifestyle familiar, non-threatening. But the public acceptance of homosexuality sunk after the Massachusetts court mandated gay marriage and therefore posed a threat to societal values. In Judaism, homosexuality threatens ritual purity of the society.

Torah bans gay relations and various improbable modes of female bestiality, but not lesbian relations. The message is clear: any recreational sex is fine, but do not deviate from normal procreation. One of Judaism’s major tenets is sanctity of life, specifically of moral life. Gay relations threaten that tenet on both counts: of life and morality.

It is truism that most people who tolerate homosexuality shrink in horror when their children engage in it. Homosexuals constitute tiny minority. For all the popularity of that decadent lifestyle among mass culture idols who influence uncritical youths, for all the leftist brainwashing of its acceptability, for all the hysteria around the gay parade in Jerusalem, only 4,000 deviants took part in it. Moral rather than sexual perverts made up much of the crowd: unknown numbers of leftists and “human rights” activists came to support the gays against religious Jews. Organizers likely brought in many demonstrators for hire, like the leftists bring to events ranging from Peace Now orgies to European vigils in support of various Islamic causes. (That’s right, if you watch European pro-Islamic demonstrations closely, you’d notice most people are not enthusiastic. They are brought on essentially free trips: bus, hotel, food, and often entertainment paid by organizers).

All societies suppress some deviating minorities. Gays are too few in Israel to care about their wishes.

freedom from gays, homosexual freedoms

Danny the Admin 2007 May 18

Let me interject. I, too, read “You shall not lay with a man as with woman” in the sense that you should not have sexual relations with men like you do with women. I don’t read the Hebrew text as “don’t lay with man as you don’t lay with a woman.” Obviously, one lays with a woman, preferably often.

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Well, about lesbians, that’s an implication at most, not a direct prohibition.

Danny the Admin 2007 May 19

Ray, how about – in Obadiah’s example – a freedom of eating excrements publicly?
As long as gays don’t exhibit their behavior publicly, I have no problem with them. That the Torah’s reasoning: gays are punished only if two witnesses see their criminal behavior.

Well, there’s a clear prohibition of pork, very literally.
Relations between two women is not sex in the biblical sense because there’s no semen involved. Speaking of sexual deviations, the Torah is concerned with potential or symbolic threat to life. That consideration doesn’t hold for lesbians. Note that the Torah prohibits plenty specific modes of intercourse, but is conspiciously silent on leasbian relations. Must be for a reason.

Danny the Admin 2007 May 20

It would be fair to interpret the prohibitions as narrowly as possible. That’s how the common law operates.
Sure enough, your implication is reasonable, but as long as lesbian relations are not expressly prohibited and the absence of the prohibition can be reasonably explained, I don’t think it’s fair to condemn lesbians.

Danny the Admin 2007 June 18

Neo-Nazis are a minority in America. Go treat them well.
Judaism is not reform or conservative. Some Jews who know nothing about Judaism attend reform and conservative establishments. Theirs is a politically correct Christianity, not Judaism.

Danny the Admin 2007 June 19

I do visit reform synagogues often on social meetings. Quite aware of their practices. You might prefer Catholic cathedrals – their services are even more beautiful. Or what the heck, go to a theater.
Homosexuality is bad not because it’s a different lifestyle or corrupts the youth, but for a single reason: the Bible prohibits it.

Danny the Admin 2008 April 05

Why is it we’re no longer obligated to kill witches? We don’t kill them now because there are no confirmed cases of the otherworldly communication, essentially for the lack of evidence.
Nothing that I know of in the Torah is “unscientific.”
I don’t see any difference in social conditions now and 3,500 years ago.

Danny the Admin 2008 April 06

Evidence of God is easy to come by. Look in the mirror. Unless, of course, you evolved from a monkey.

Danny the Admin 2008 April 07

Nicole, did you ever ventured from Haifa into Judea? The assimilationist situation you see in Haifa is too much even compared to Tel Aviv, and altogether different Jews are living in some of the settlements.