Quoting the Bible (1)

It seems that once more we are subjected to yet another homophobic sermon by someone who uses the Bible as justification for their argument. In the letter The Bible and Homosexuality (July 7), Joseph Aquilina proceeds by quoting extensively the first chapter St Paul's Epistle to the Romans. Forgive me for pointing it out, but the texts he quoted do not refer to homosexuals but to idolaters, a fact which I have verified with the New American Bible, and the Bibbja published by the MUSEUM. Surely these two sources are as authoritative as Bibles get.

I will not go into the whole argument of whether God hates homosexuals, but I will point out that contrary to what Mr Aquilina thinks, homosexuals do not lead any particularly different lifestyle. Sure, there are homosexuals who lead a decidedly flamboyant and hedonistic lifestyle, just as there are heterosexuals who lead such a lifestyle. It may come as a surprise to Mr Aquilina, but homosexuals work across all levels of society. There are gay mechanics and lesbian models, and there are transsexual clerks and bisexual bank managers. As for choice, no sane person would choose to be homosexual; not with all the rampant homophobia around. The choice lies not in whether you are gay or straight, but in whether you want to accept it or not.

Furthermore, it would be hypocritical of the Catholic community to use the Bible to justify homophobia. No self-respecting theologian would take the Bible ad letteram. There are hundreds of social issues which were deemed unacceptable in Biblical times, which are now refuted by the Church. The Pentateuch is replete with laws regarding slavery, the segregation of menstruating women, and the prohibition of certain food. St Paul, the Apostle so dearly quoted by Mr Aquilina, has an extensive passage on women's subjugation to males (1 Cor, 11 2 -16). So is Mr Aquilina suggesting that we bring back slavery and revoke women's rights?

As for Adam and Steve/Eve, the point of that parable is not "And on the sixth day God created heterosexuality" but "God created humanity in his own image". Somehow, homophobia, or indeed another form of prejudice, does not seem to fit in with the Catholic doctrine of God the Almighty and All-loving Father.