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Homosexuality

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===The Church's View and Teachings===
The Church's teaching is very clear with respect to homosexuality. The Encarta dictionary defines homosexuality "as an attraction to the same sex; sexual attraction to and sexual relations with members of the same sex."1 There are numerous references in [[Holy Scripture|Scripture]] with regard to same sex relations and sexual activity. Starting with [[Genesis]] 19 where there is reference to homosexual activity among the men in Sodom (hence the term ''sodomy''), as well as in [[Leviticus]] (18:22, 20:13) which makes reference to the adopted "Holiness Code" and the penalty for such an action—"If there is a man who lies with a male as those be with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act"—was ''death''. The [[Old Testament]] viewed sexual relations to be "normal" as those between a man and woman (confined to intercourse facing one another) with the express purpose of procreation. This view, thinking, and teaching continued to the [[New Testament]] as well with St. [[Apostle Paul|Paul]] writing the most extensively on this subject. He condemns male prostitutes prostitution and homosexuals homosexuality in [[I Corinthians|1 Cor.]] (6:9-10): "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral nor the idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals (''arsenokoitai''), nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor robbers shall inherit the kingdom of God." These two examples do show the evolution of the Church's view on homosexuality. The Old Testament's view is consistent with its "judgment and retribution" (death penalty) ethos found in Jewish society in those times. The New Testament writing by St. Paul reflects Christ's teaching, where the "judgment" consisted of a stern yet "tough love" warning that persisting in these types of activities would prohibit prevent you from 'inheriting' the kingdom of God. This evolution of thought and teaching is significant for it signals the importance of the [[eschatology|eschaton]] and a genuine concern for the individual in a loving, outreaching, yet solemn way. St. Paul's writing is also significant because the activity of homosexuality is mentioned in the ''same'' context as other sinful activities and passions. The "pastoral concern" for the individual will be addressed in the next section of this article. The [[Church Fathers|Fathers of the Church]] also wrote on this and expressed the same view and teaching that homosexual acts are immoral and wrong. The ''[[Didache]]'', as well as St. [[Basil the Great|Basil]] ([[Canon]]s 35, 77), Sts. [[John Chrysostom]], [[Augustine of Hippo|Augustine]], [[Gregory of Nyssa]], [[John the Faster]] (Canons 9, 18) contain some of these writings as well as the 6th century code of [[Justinian]] and the [[Quinisext Council|Quinisext Synod]] (Canon 87). In all the writings of the New Testament and of the Fathers, "there is no example ... of approval, acceptance, or even tolerance of homosexuality."{{ref|2}} In fact, this is one topic that ''all'' Orthodox [[jurisdiction]]s are in agreement on, as indicated in the 1978 [[SCOBA]] statement on homosexuality.
===The Actions versus the Condition of the Person===
===Non-Orthodox Sources===
*[http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20030731_homosexual-unions_en.html Considerations Regarding Proposals To Give Legal Recognition To Unions Between Homosexual Persons] - from the Roman Catholic ''Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith''
* Lorraine P. Lafferty. ''Religion, Sexual Orientation and the State: Can Public Officials Refuse to Perform Same-Sex Marriage?'' '''The Canadian Bar Review'''. Volume 85, No. 2, January 2007.
:<small>("In Canada, civil marriages are performed by both public officials and religious officials. The Supreme Court of Canada recently confirmed that religious officials cannot be compelled to perform same-sex marriages contrary to their religious beliefs. This article concludes that '''accommodating the religious belief of public officials who refuse to perform same-sex marriages is an appropriate response''' as Canada transitions from the historical and familiar definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman to the new and inclusive definition of marriage as the union of two persons.")</small>
===Recommended Books===
*[http://www.conservapedia.com/Homosexuality Homosexuality]
*[http://www.narth.com/ NARTH]
*[http://www.exodusinternational.org/ Exodus International]
*[http://www.eskimo.com/~nickz/axios.html Orthodox Christian discussion group]
===Notes===
 
* {{note|1}} ''The Encarta Dictionary
* {{note|2}} ''The Orthodox Church- www.fatheralexander.org pg 10
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