Other Sheep - Multicultural Ministries with Sexual Minorities

Clobbering back with the Clobber texts:
Taking the Bible Seriously - Are There Clobber Texts in the Bible?
Rev. Dr. Thomas Hanks

Part 4:
Deconstructing our homophobia: with Paul in Romans

Conclusion

Conclusion --

In addition to taking seriously Paul's total message in Romans, some kind of dialectical or
deconstructionist interpretation has the advantage of maintaining Paul's basic fidelity to the
liberating message of Jesus and the Exodus tradition of Moses. Jesus' invitation to discipleship
remains just as valid for gay men and lesbians as it is for everyone else -- gay men are not singled
out as requiring special quarantine by keeping them under the law of Leviticus. Paul need not be
viewed as the only biblical writer who sought to invent a new "ethical absolute" against lesbians --
and then goofed by using such euphemistic, ambiguous language that the church's most influential
"sexologist" missed the point. Paul's Good News is indeed developed against the somber
background of God's "wrath," but this wrath is revealed from heaven against all violence
(faggot-burning, gay-bashing) and oppression (Romans 1:18) -- not against "homosexuals"!

Such a dialectical or deconstructionist approach, of course, does not eliminate the need of a
hermeneutic that takes into account obvious limitations in Paul's scientific horizon. It is not an
"either/or" choice between exegesis or hermeneutics, but of finding the proper blend. One may
disagree with the precise blend here proposed, but responsible missiology, evangelism and pastoral
care for sexual minorities, their families and friends, demands that we keep an open ear not only to
exegesis, but to a century of scientific studies in the area of human sexuality.

Traditionalists like to pride themselves on "taking the Bible seriously" -- but this is precisely what they
have not done in the interpretation and use of the "clobber texts" they most commonly cite to
rationalize their ignorance about homosexuality and their bigotry against sexual minorities. The New
Testament book of Hebrews reminds us that:

"The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword" (Hebrews 4:12 -- not a
"club"!).

Carefully translated and properly interpreted, traditional "clobber texts" -- like all the rest of Scripture
-- serve as a sword to pierce the conscience and convict the oppressor of sin and to liberate the
oppressed. If the Bible is indeed inspired by the liberating God revealed to Moses and Paul and
incarnate in Jesus of Nazareth, no text should ever be used to rationalize our bigotries and foment
violence against oppressed sexual minorities.