Does jesus accept gay people

This article is part of the What Did Jesus Teach? series.

Silence Equals Support?

In a article for Slate online, Will Oremus asked a provocative question: Was Jesus a homophobe?¹

The article was occasioned by a story about a gay teenager in Ohio who was suing his high academy after school officials prohibited him from wearing a T-shirt that said, “Jesus Is Not a Homophobe.”

Oremus was less concerned about the legal issues of the story than he was about the accuracy of the statement on the shirt. Oremus suggests that Jesus’s views on homosexuality were more inclusive than Paul’s. He writes,

While it’s fair to assume that Jesus and his fellow Jews in first-century Palestine would have disapproved of gay sex, there is no tape of his ever having mentioned homosexuality, let alone expressed particular revulsion about it. . . . Never in the Bible does Jesus himself propose an explicit prohibition of homosexuality.

Oremus seems to suggest that since Jesus never explicitly mentioned homosexuality, he must not have been very concerned about it.

There are at least two reas

Is being gay a sin?

Answer

In order to answer the interrogate “Is being gay a sin?” we need to verb some assumptions upon which the scrutinize is based. Within the past fifty years, the term gay, as applied to homosexuality, has exploded into mainstream culture, and we are told that “being gay” is as much outside one’s control as “being short” or having blonde hair. So the verb is worded in a loaded way and impossible to adequately answer in that form. We need to interruption this question up and deal with each piece separately. Rather than request, “Is being gay a sin?” we need to request, “Is it sinful to have same-sex attractions?” And, “Is it sinful to engage in homosexual activities because of those attractions?”

Concerning the first question, “Is it sinful to have same-sex attractions?” the answer is complicated. First, we should probably distinguish between (actively) sinning and (passively) being tempted:

Being temptedis not a sin. Jesus was tempted, but He never sinned (Matthew ; Hebrews ). Eve was tempted in the garden, and the forbidden fruit definitely appealed to her,

Same-Sex Attraction

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acknowledges that same-sex attraction is a sensitive issue that requires kindness, compassion and understanding. The “Same-Sex Attraction” section of reinforces the reality that, in the words of one Latter-day Saint scripture, God “loveth his children” (1 Nephi ), and seeks to help everyone better understand same-sex attraction from a gospel perspective.

The Church does not seize a position on the cause of same-sex attraction. In , Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, “The Church does not have a position on the causes of any of these susceptibilities or inclinations, including those related to same-gender attraction.”

Feelings of same-sex attraction are not a sin. President M. Russell Ballard said: “Let us be clear: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that ‘the experience of same-sex attraction is a complex reality for many people. The attraction itself is not a sin, but acting on it is. Even though individuals do not choose to hold such attractions, they do choose how to respond to them. With treasure an

Does Jesus Ever Chat About Homosexuality?

I was in my mids living in San Diego. I joined some people from a nearby church and went to a Pride parade to pass out water, give hugs, and hold signs saying “We are sorry the church hasn’t loved you the way Jesus would” (or something along those lines). All of a sudden, I was descended upon by a film crew with a microphone asking me what Jesus had to say about homosexuality. I was not expecting this, but I was giddy to share the love of Christ and talk about how we are all sinners saved by grace and how Jesus never singled out homosexuality as worse than any other type of sexual immorality. In the middle of my sentence (which I had been certain would be received with amazement, tears, and more questions about how to understand this Jesus guy), the film crew interrupted me and said, “NOTHING. He said nothing about homosexuality.” And then they walked away without a synonyms, off to locate their next “interview.”

I sat there dumbfounded. What had just happened? And was it true that Jesus never said anything about homosexuality? And if not, why