What makes you assume Leviticus has anything to do with god? Did not men write those words?
Wow! I had to check your personal info on this. So, you're a philosopher. I did say "God said..." in referring to the teachings in Leviticus; and indeed, Leviticus itself says that God spoke those words:
Lev 18
[
1] And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying...
"The LORD", in all caps, is the KJV translation of
יהוה -- which is the name of the God of Israel, the God I worship.
What would Leviticus have to do with laws in the developed world, like about who can get married? This is not a theocracy.
That's a reasonable point. We are certainly free to make any laws we wish; and even the Bible gives non-Jews tremendous leeway in how they live. Concerning homosexual acts, though, the Bible says,
Lev. 18
[
22] Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.
[
23] Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion.
[
24] Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for
in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you:
[25] And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants.
[
26] Ye shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you...
What God is implying here, is that these are not just statutes to separate the Jews from non-Jews; they are NATURAL laws, with PHYSICAL consequenses.
The Apostle Paul even goes so far as to describe homosexuality not as a SIN, but as a PUNISHMENT!
Romans 1
[
18] For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
[
19] Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
[
20] For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
[
21] Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
[
22] Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
[
23] And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
[
24] Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
[
25] Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
[26] For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
[27] And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
Paul was no doubt referring to Gay Bowel Syndrome, and the many STDs and immune system overload disorders associated with this conduct.
No, we are not a theocracy; but for our own good, we ought to use common sense. We require people to use seat belts, for their own protection. How much more should we not have laws that promote our health?
There is so much discarded violence in those old pages and yet people focus on the line about homosexuality like it's a shining strand of timeless wisdom amidst the other abandoned laws.
I have been actively serving God for 40 of my 65 years, and spent very little of that time even thinking about homosexuality. The "focus" you see comes entirely from the Pro-Gay community. It is a rare pleasure, when I get to watch Public Television for more than an hour, without being lambasted by Homosexual propaganda; and during the news hour, that time reduces to about fifteen minutes.
Because facts matter.
Uh, many types of sex that homosexual people engage in are the same as the types of sex that heterosexual people engage in.
The
facts are these:
People engaging, say, in anal sex, are probably equally likely to have a transfer of fluids (blood, etc.), whether the union is same-sex or heterosexual. The BIG difference is that in BIBLICAL heterosexual unions, and even most extramarital unions, the exposure to disease is largely limited to the two engaged in the act. The risk of cross-contamination increases considerably, when there is infidelity or casual sex. In the case of homosexuals, promiscuity tends to be rampant,
viz:
Statistics on sexual promiscuity among homosexuals
by Matt Slick
Promiscuity
"
28% of homosexual men had
more than 1000 partners..."
--
Statistics on sexual promiscuity among homosexuals | homosexual partner statistics | Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry
With numbers like that, we aren't even talking about a crap shoot: We're talking about facing a firing squad with only one cartridge misfiring.
Saying that something is unclean simply because a homosexual person did it, regardless of the act itself, is basically calling a homosexual person unclean, inherently, which is pretty messed up.
I hope you can see by now, that I am not doing that. By "unclean", I mean simply, physically and epidemiologically, unclean. God codified lots of things into the Jewish law, that are flat-out good for us. This is one of them.
Which is irrelevant because I'm not talking about the Israelites. The OP is about marriage, and you're posting about homosexuality being unclean.
(covered above)
The fact is, condoms exist now, which is relevant for heterosexual people and homosexual people.
I have already covered this. Since the widespread availability of condoms, the rate of STDs has gone up in the US. These devices to not stem the epidemic; they fuel it.
Not even close, because condoms are useful for heterosexual people engaging in intercourse as well. It is not proof of it being unclean.
Among "clean" people (i.e. free of STDs), condoms are useful in reducing unwanted pregnancies. In every other case, they are used precisely because of the probability of infection.
Condoms are highly effective at preventing many types of STDs. People, regardless of their sexual orientation, generally transmit diseases when they are not using protection.
-- only if they have STDs (covered above)
Besides... (coverd)
And telling people to go from puberty to age 28 (average age of marriage) without sex is effective?
Yes -- and especially more effective than encouraging them to practice casual sex because condoms are available. Honey, this has been the norm for millennia.
They just end up having sex without knowledge on how to do it safely.
Two pieces of advice:
(1) Until he says "I do", you don't.
(2) "Why buy a cow, when milk is free?"
I'm a grandpa, four times over. I'm talking about things I know about.
Of course I condone homosexuality. There's no good reason not to. Your arguments aren't coherent...
Aw, sorry! :sorry1: