Lily of Valleys
Well-Known Member
Here is a comment by the bible scholar, the late Walter Wink, on the verse above:
Putting these texts to the side, we are left with three references, all of which unequivocally condemn homosexuality. Leviticus 18:22 states the principle: "You [masculine] shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination." The second (Lev. 20:13) adds the penalty: "If a man lies with a male as a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall be put to death, their blood is upon them."
Such an act was considered as an "abomination" for several reasons. The Hebrew prescientific understanding was that male sperm contained the whole of nascent life. With no knowledge of eggs and ovulation, it was assumed that the woman provided only the incubating space. Hence the spilling of sperm for any non-procreative purpose -- in coitus interruptus (Gen 38:1-11), male homosexual acts or male masturbation -- was considered tantamount to abortion or murder. (Female homosexual acts and masturbation were consequently not so seriously regarded.) One can appreciate how a tribe struggling to populate a country in which its people were outnumbered would value procreation highly, but such values are rendered questionable in a world facing total annihilation through overpopulation.
It seems like this bible scholar was suggesting God had no knowledge of eggs and ovulation and relied on Hebrew prescientific understanding when He said what He said in Leviticus 18:21-22:
"I am the Lord. You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination."
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