{"id":2276,"date":"2021-09-21T15:53:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-21T15:53:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/clone\/2021\/09\/21\/pro-gay-theology-an-interview-with-douglas-jacoby\/"},"modified":"2023-06-02T06:59:15","modified_gmt":"2023-06-02T04:59:15","slug":"pro-gay-theology-an-interview-with-douglas-jacoby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/pro-gay-theology-an-interview-with-douglas-jacoby\/","title":{"rendered":"Pro-Gay Theology: An Interview with Douglas Jacoby"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Guy Hammond is the Executive Director & Founder of <\/span><\/span> Strength in Weakness <\/a> , a Christian organization that helps to bridge the gap between the Christian community and the LGBTQ community through awareness, education, and support. <\/span><\/h3>

Dr. Douglas Jacoby is an internationally recognized authority in the areas of biblical training and Christian apologetics, and has taught tens of thousands in over 125 nations on every continent. <\/span><\/p>

Guy’s newest book <\/span><\/span>Gay or Christian?<\/a> addresses the relatively new phenomenon of pro-gay theology in the debate of sexual ethics. As stewards of Biblical truth, Christians must have a response. The following is the first of a three-part interview between Guy and Douglas about pro-gay theology. <\/span><\/p>\"\"


Guy Hammond: Dr. Jacoby, thank you for speaking with me today. <\/span><\/p>

Dr. Jacoby: You\u2019re very welcome. <\/span><\/p>

GH: Your resume is impressive and given your expertise, I\u2019m certainly interested in hearing your thoughts on some of the issues my new book is addressing. In this interview I would like to pose a number of questions and objections I have heard through the years. These aren\u2019t necessarily my own questions, but they are definitely others\u2019. <\/span><\/p>

DJ: I don\u2019t consider myself in any way an expert. But yes, I do think a lot about theology, and have been following developments in the ongoing sexual revolution. <\/span><\/p>

GH: Through the centuries, the Bible has been misused to support prejudice, segregation, slavery, treating women as second- class citizens, and so on. Today we look back and recognize these horrible errors. However, as the accusation goes, the Bible is still being misused\u2014against gay people. They predict that in years to come people will look back aghast on our generation, just as we do on previous generations. Would you agree? <\/span><\/p>

DJ: Yes, that\u2019s exactly what people will say. It\u2019s already happening. A number of public intellectuals compare \u201chomophobia\u201d with resistance to the Civil Rights Movement. They portray Bible believers as backward and hateful. True, the lack of grace and love shown to LGBTQ people on the part of supposed Bible believers is atrocious. Such people seriously misrepresent Christ. Moreover, as Christians we freely admit that many do distort the meaning of the Scriptures\u2014an unfortunate reality throughout the centuries of church history (2 Peter 3:1-3, 16). <\/span><\/p>

GH: It seems you aren\u2019t comfortable with the term \u201chomophobia.\u201d <\/span><\/p>

DJ: I\u2019ve never cared for the word. Phobia denotes a fear, often an irrational one. But mere disagreement doesn\u2019t necessarily entail fear. I don\u2019t care for brussel sprouts\u2014to me they taste bitter\u2014but does that mean I have a phobia I need to grow out of? I don\u2019t agree with the Buddhist tenet that the material world is unreal, nor with their doctrine that there is no soul. Does this make me \u201cBuddhaphobic\u201d? <\/span><\/p>

Now I\u2019ve never heard the term \u201cheterophobia.\u201d Nor will I use it, since it would be unfair to accuse those who live and think differently from me of suffering from a phobia. Is it possible that gay people fear straight people? Of course\u2014just as there\u2019s evidence many straight people fear and hate gays. But such ungracious attitudes are not inherent in biblical morality. Loaded words like \u201chomophobic\u201d and \u201ctransphobic\u201d are coined to paint those of a different opinion as narrow-minded, ignorant, or otherwise in the wrong. <\/span><\/p>

GH: But back to the matter of the comparison between Civil Rights and Gay Rights… <\/span><\/p>

DJ: Basic human rights should be denied to no one, whether on the basis of gender or ethnicity or preference in vegetables. <\/span><\/p>

But I\u2019d say the comparison fails, for several reasons. First, there\u2019s a difference between regulation of already-existing customs and institutions and active support for them. For example, in Old Testament times divorce was permitted, but a certificate provided the woman a fresh start, and protection against any future claims on the part of her former husband (Deut 24:1ff.). Slavery was a social institution worldwide\u2014though it has nearly faded out globally since the 19th century (1). Yet in Israel humane treatment of fellow human-beings was required by the Law (Exod 21:2ff.). And engaging in the slave trade was a capital crime (Exod 21:16; see also 1 Tim 1:10). Blood vengeance was virtually a social expectation in the ancient world (as it still is today in many countries), which is why the Torah provided cities of refuge for the innocent (Num 35:6). <\/span><\/p>

Let\u2019s consider one more well-known principle: that the punishment must fit the crime. \u201cEye for eye\u201d (Exod 21:24) is a recognition of proportionality: the punishment of a criminal cannot exceed the level of harm suffered by the victim. That is, \u201can eye for an eye\u201d determines a maximum penalty, not a minimum. In fact there is strong evidence that despite the designation of numerous capital crimes in the Torah, cases were normally settled financially. (2) None of these lamentable practices (slavery, divorce, blood vengeance, etc.) were actively encouraged. But they were regulated. There is, however, no \u201cregulation\u201d of homosexual sin (Lev 18:22)\u2014any more than there was \u201cregulation\u201d of bestiality (Lev 18:23). It is true that among the 1189 chapters of the Bible there are only a handful of scriptures forbidding homosexual behavior (two in the O.T., three in the N.T). That is, the Bible hardly obsesses over the issue. Yet it is not true that this is therefore a non- issue. <\/span><\/p>

GH: The film 1946: The Movie (3) advances the claim that the first time the word \u201chomosexual\u201d appeared in any Bible was in 1946, with the publication of the Revised Standard Version. In the translation of 1 Cor 6:9, the word \u201chomosexual\u201d was used to render of the Greek words \u201cmalakoi\u201d and \u201carsenokoitai.\u201d Years later, the head of the translation committee admitted that this was a mistake. Subsequent revisions of the RSV, however, didn\u2019t replace \u201chomosexual\u201d with \u201csexual perverts\u201d until 1971, 25 years after the mistranslation occurred. By then, many other translations of the Bible had followed suit with the word \u201chomosexual\u201d in biblical texts. The damage had been done. Did a mistranslation occur back in 1946? <\/span><\/p>

DJ: No, I don’t think so. Languages change; all languages are constantly evolving. The word \u201chomosexual\u201d came into the English language in the late 1800s. But that hardly means there was no such thing as homosexuality before the 1890s! Men having sex with men or women having sex with women\u2014phrases, not words\u2014still connote what is meant by the modern phrase \u201chomosexuality,” even if there is no exact biblical equivalent of the English word. <\/span><\/p>

Translators are only human, and they do make mistakes\u2014especially when they are pressured to agree with others, or face public academic shaming. As far as the RSV goes\u2014which is normally a perfectly fine translation\u2014the mistake seems to have been made not in 1946, but in 1971. <\/span><\/p>

1. Nevertheless, even in our time there are millions trapped in servitude of various forms, ranging from sweatshops and child labor to sex trafficking and outright slavery. <\/span><\/p>

2. The only exception to this practice seems to have been in the case of first-degree murder (Num 35:31). As for \u201can eye for an eye,\u201d I don’t know of a single example in the O.T. where this was carried out literally. <\/span><\/p>

3. <\/span><\/span>www.1946themovie.com<\/a><\/p>

Read <\/span><\/span>Part 2<\/a> and <\/span><\/span>Part 3<\/a> of this interview. <\/span><\/span><\/p>

Click here to order Gay & Christian?<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Guy Hammond’s newest book “Gay or Christian?” addresses the relatively new phenomenon of pro-gay theology in the debate of sexual…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":2277,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ghostkit_customizer_options":"","ghostkit_custom_css":"","ghostkit_custom_js_head":"","ghostkit_custom_js_foot":"","ghostkit_typography":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"post_folder":[151],"class_list":["post-2276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bible-study"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/gayandchristian.png?fit=740%2C416&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"dtadmin","author_link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/author\/dtadmin\/"},"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/phsvEw-AI","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3647,"url":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/congratulations-to-rmsmt-2021-graduates\/","url_meta":{"origin":2276,"position":0},"title":"Congratulations to RMSMT 2021 Graduates","author":"dtadmin","date":"September 27, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Because of the global COVID pandemic, we at the Rocky Mountain School of Ministry and Theology had our 2021 Graduation Celebration online this summer via Zoom. Dr. Douglas Jacoby was our special speaker.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/RMSMT-2021.png?fit=785%2C452&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/RMSMT-2021.png?fit=785%2C452&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/RMSMT-2021.png?fit=785%2C452&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/RMSMT-2021.png?fit=785%2C452&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1909,"url":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/rmsmt-announces-fall-2022-courses\/","url_meta":{"origin":2276,"position":1},"title":"RMSMT Announces Fall 2022 Courses","author":"dtadmin","date":"July 18, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Rocky Mountain School of Ministry and Theology announces Fall 2022 courses.","rel":"","context":"In "Bible Study"","block_context":{"text":"Bible Study","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/category\/bible-study\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/RMSMT_Fall-e1674932262399.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/RMSMT_Fall-e1674932262399.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/RMSMT_Fall-e1674932262399.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/RMSMT_Fall-e1674932262399.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3628,"url":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/rmsmt-2022-worldwide-report\/","url_meta":{"origin":2276,"position":2},"title":"RMSMT 2022 Worldwide Report","author":"dtadmin","date":"March 17, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Rocky Mountain School of Ministry and Theology continues to thrive worldwide.","rel":"","context":"In "Bible Study"","block_context":{"text":"Bible Study","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/category\/bible-study\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/RMSMT.png?fit=1033%2C691&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/RMSMT.png?fit=1033%2C691&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/RMSMT.png?fit=1033%2C691&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/RMSMT.png?fit=1033%2C691&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":24222,"url":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/rmsmt-fall-2024-course-registration-opens\/","url_meta":{"origin":2276,"position":3},"title":"RMSMT Fall 2024 Course Registration Is Open","author":"Vida Li Sik","date":"July 28, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The Rocky Mountain School of Ministry and Theology opens Fall 2024 course registration for fully online courses for audit or credit.","rel":"","context":"In "Bible Study"","block_context":{"text":"Bible Study","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/category\/bible-study\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15733,"url":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/rmsmt-fall-2023-course-registration-is-now-open\/","url_meta":{"origin":2276,"position":4},"title":"RMSMT Fall 2023 Course Registration Is Now Open","author":"Ashaki Sorrell","date":"August 13, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Enroll in RMSMT's Fall Semester Courses for in-depth biblical studies, theology, and spiritual growth.","rel":"","context":"In "Bible Study"","block_context":{"text":"Bible Study","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/category\/bible-study\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/RMSMTFall2023.jpg?fit=600%2C730&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/RMSMTFall2023.jpg?fit=600%2C730&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/RMSMTFall2023.jpg?fit=600%2C730&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23412,"url":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/rmsmt-2024-worldwide-report\/","url_meta":{"origin":2276,"position":5},"title":"RMSMT 2024 Worldwide Report","author":"Ashaki Sorrell","date":"March 15, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"In 2023, Rocky Mountain School of Ministry and Theology celebrated the graduation of nine students with various Masters Degrees and awarded its first Certificate in Biblical Studies.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1154%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1154%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1154%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1154%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/RMSMT.jpg?fit=1154%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/gayandchristian.png?fit=740%2C416&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2276"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=2276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}