Sifra is ancient and authoritative. A common traditional view attributes its editing to Rabbi Hiyya, who was active in Tiberias, Israel, a bit after 200 CE. The Encyclopedia Judaica would push up the date of its authorship a couple of centuries. Either way, it's very old and records interpretive oral traditions that are older still.
Some context: Leviticus 18 records the forbidden sexual relationships, including homosexual intercourse (v. 22). The list is prefaced with the statement, "Do not perform the practice of the land of Egypt in which you dwelled; and do not perform the practice of the land of Canaan to which I bring you, and do not follow their decrees" (18:3).
Sifra explains there about those "decrees": "And what did they do? A man would marry a man, and a woman would marry a woman."
The end of the chapter in the Bible warns, "[T]he inhabitants of the land who are before you committed all these abominations, and the land became contaminated. Let not the land disgorge you for having contaminated it, as it disgorged the nation that was before you" (v. 27-28).
It sounds like such things were also done in Egypt, but it was the decrees of Canaan sanctioning same-sex marriage and similar relationships that resulted in the Canaanites losing their land and dying out as a people.
Please understand. My purpose here is not to condemn anyone. I am not saying to gays, "You're bad and I'm good." As I've said from the beginning of this blog, my hope is simply to be honest about classical sources like these. Look them in the face, and ask what we can learn from them that's relevant today.
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Think about this...G-d made us all in his image...therefore, at some point, G-d must have thought about what attracts each one of us to the others. Since we all have been taught that He makes no mistakes and that all things that he made were made with a purpose...I believe His purpose in making Gays and Lesbians is to teach us: To love without conditions. To learn to be tolerant. To learn to be strong. To learn to absolve our sins against each other. To be benevolent. To learn humility and to practice kindness.
Since we are ever so much flawed...we still haven't learned what He is trying to teach us...so He still has not sent us our savior and so we still wait. Small steps to heaven; giant rewards if we but see.
PS: I am not gay, I have no fear of difference and I teach tolerance to all who will listen. Listening is the first and last step to love.
The author of the article quoted from Traditional (and widely recognized) Jewish sources. Whatever one's orientation may or may not be, the Jewish documentation is clearly supportive of a heterosexual relationship within marriage.
As we all know, any sexual contact between 2 people changes the relationship. The change can be destructive or constructive. While there are many variables that are better addressed by a scholar, I think a few are: the type of contact, the intent of the contact, the existing relationship between the 2 people, and many more.
I will acknowledge in the short term it is very effective to call someone a bigot for disagreeing with your point of view. This can effectively shut them up through intimidation and fear. Not only in this column, but in the broader community, this appears to be the Gay communities repeated response. What I do not see from those who disagree with the author is a thoughtful, Torah and/or Talmudic - or anything Jewishly related - based counter argument. This doesn't mean such an argument doesn't exist. What the people who scold the author are doing is charactor assassination and personal attacks on his integrity, not thoughtful disagreement intended to educate, inform and perhaps change someones opinion.
YN,
" the Jewish documentation is clearly supportive of a heterosexual relationship within marriage."
Um, you'd better update your files. Both the Reformed and the (ahem) Conservative branches of Judaism approve of and perform same-sex marriages as well.
This comment is directed to Steve Cornell,
You mentioned in your post that you did not see how someone could have homosexuality forced on them. Well, I know of an incident where exactly that was done.
I used to know a gay man we'll call Todd. I gave him a ride home from work one night. He was laughing telling me about two sixteen year old boys he had tricked into having sex with him, by getting them high and a little drunk, while showing them Playboy magazines.
These two boys looked very down-trodden and depressed. After what Tod told me he had done, I realized the reason why. Prior to that I always had the attitude live and let live. But hatred and anger actually welled up me upon hearing what Todd had done to these formerly heterosexual boys. And to see him laughing about it. That was the ulitmate offense.
I never spoke to Todd again.
Who knows what became of those two sixteen year old boys after that experience. They were young, easily confused and who knows what became of them or how that horrible experience may have affected their life and their psychology.
There are a lot of gay men that seem to get a kick or a thrill out of enticing straight men into sexual situations with them. GAy men have admitted this. Maybe not all gay men, but a fair enough number of them do ...for it to warrent contemplation before handing out any more rights.
As far as the marriage issue goes. I believe that heterosexual marriage could be an arguement in favor of Cultural Relativism.
If I can recall the perameters and criteria for Cultural Relativism.
In all cultures all down through the recorded history of mankind, Marriage has been between man and woman....celebrated with a special ceremony of some kind reserved only for matrimony to commemorate that union. One cannot say the same of same sex marriage.
I live in a area where most of the men are gay. And I am aware that some of them believe they did not have a choice. Some of them are very unhappy with their orientation from a social standpoint .... or so they've told me. But they are honest and open about their orientation. I feel bad for their unhappiness, but imposing upon a vast body of peoples religious / spiritual belief system ... as with altering marriage laws would actually be doing .. is not the way to find personal satisfaction or societal acceptance. No more than what Todd pulled on those two kids.
Bev, how many young women have been victimized in the same manner by heterosexual 'Todds'? There are a lot of folks willing to take advantage of a situation. When Ogden Nash said "Candy is dandy, but liquor is quicker," no one assumed he was talking about gays.
Marriage has had any number of permutations.
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