The Bible tells me so
Christians and Jews who subscribe to, let’s consider, far-right variations of their religion typically cite the Bible to justify their opposition to homosexuality. “If a person lies with a person as with a lady, each of them have dedicated an abomination; they shall be put to demise, their blood is upon them,” says Leviticus, chapter 20, verse 13. Leviticus, the third ebook of the Previous Testomony (to Christians) and the Torah (to Jews) is a listing of guidelines allegedly despatched by God via Moses to the descendants of the biblical patriarch Levi and by extension to all believers. Within the very first ebook, Genesis, there’s additionally the story of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, interpreted by literalists as punishment for homosexual intercourse (extra fashionable thinkers say it was for rape and hospitality). And within the New Testomony, St. Paul calls homosexuality “unnatural” and “indecent.” However individuals who quote these verses hardly ever point out that the Bible additionally forbids consuming pork and shellfish or sporting combined materials, condones slavery, mandates the demise penalty for witchcraft (take that, Harry Potter), and instructions males to marry their brother's widow or danger dropping the shoe (actually). Learn on — for consistency, all quoted verses are from the Revised Normal Model. Most are from the ebook of Leviticus, a couple of from different books of the Bible.
Pork: This isn’t what's for dinner
“And the pig is unclean to you, as a result of it has a cloven hoof and its toes are reduce in items, however it doesn’t chew the cud. You shall not eat of their flesh, and also you shall not contact their useless our bodies; they’re unclean to you,” says Leviticus. 11:7-8. Many observant Jews, not simply Orthodox, abstain from consuming pork, and Islam's holy ebook, the Koran, forbids the consumption of pork as properly. And naturally there are folks of all faiths who keep away from pink meat or any meat for well being or moral causes (the traditional prohibition may very well have originated from well being and hygiene causes). However we suspect there are a lot of right-wing Christians who hearken to Sunday sermons towards homosexuality after downing bacon, ham or pork sausage for breakfast. Ham can be in style as an Easter appetizer!
Loss of life to wizards!
“A person or a lady who’s a medium or a sorcerer shall be put to demise; they shall be stoned, their blood shall be upon them,” says Leviticus 20:27. The Hogwarts gang ought to be careful – possibly even the likes of David Duke (pictured), former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.
No Jumbo Shrimp for you!
Based on Leviticus, God frowns upon consuming shellfish comparable to shrimp, crabs, and lobsters. From chapter 19, verses 9-12: “All the things within the waters that has fins and scales, whether or not within the seas or within the rivers, you could eat. However something within the rivers that doesn’t have fins and scales, of the creatures that swarm within the waters and of the dwelling creatures which might be within the waters, is an abomination to you. They’ll stay an abomination to you; you shall not eat of their flesh, and their useless our bodies shall be an abomination to you. All the things within the waters that doesn’t have fins and scales is an abomination to you.” And sure, many observant Jews, together with these in LGBT-friendly branches of Judaism, nonetheless keep away from shellfish at present. However most antigay Christians don't object to shellfish—little doubt they've typically dined at Pink Lobster.
Avoid the Barber
“Thou shalt not around the hair of thy temples, and destroy the sides of thy beard,” says Leviticus 19:27. Humorous, we're sufficiently old to recollect a time when the far proper thought lengthy hair and beards have been an indication that the world was going to hell within the proverbial basket.
Shut up these ladies
“Girls must be silent in church buildings,” writes St. Paul in First Corinthians, 14:34-35. “For they don’t seem to be allowed to talk, however are to be subordinate, because the regulation additionally says. In the event that they need to know something, allow them to ask their husbands at residence. For it’s shameful for a lady to talk in church.” Sure, there are some Christian church buildings that also don’t permit ladies to be members of the clergy. However we haven't seen anybody utilizing it to cease the anti-gay rants of Linda Harvey, Sandy Rios, Phyllis Schlafly and others like them.
Marry your brother's widow
From the ebook of Deuteronomy, chapter 25, this is among the most weird commandments within the Bible, and the penalty for disobedience is the lack of a shoe. “If brothers stay collectively and one in all them dies and has no son, the useless man's spouse shall not marry a foreigner exterior the household; her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his spouse, and shew the obligation of her husband's brother to her, and the primary son whom she bears shall comply with the identify of his brother who’s useless, that his identify might not be blotted out of Israel, and if the person doesn’t want to marry his brother his brother's spouse will strategy the gate to the elders and say: 'My husband's brother refuses to perpetuate his brother's identify in Israel, he is not going to fulfill the obligation of a husband's brother to me.' Then the elders of his metropolis name him and converse to him; and if he insists, 'I don’t need to marry her,' his brother's spouse will come to him within the presence of the elders and pull him and take away his sandal from his foot and spit in his face, and she is going to reply: 'So shall it occur to the person who doesn’t construct his home brother.' And the identify of his home shall be known as in Israel, the home of him that had one sandal off.” Truthfully, we don't know of anybody who would comply with that. However once we see somebody leaping round in only one sandal…
No hybrids or blends
“Thou shalt not trigger thy cattle to bear one other form, neither shalt thou sow thy area with two sorts of seed, neither shall a garment of two varieties of material come across thee,” says Leviticus 19:19. Many farmers and scientists are apparently certain for hell until they repent of this sin, as are those that put on cotton/polyester blends.
Don’t cost curiosity!
“You shall not lend him your cash at curiosity, nor give him meals for revenue,” says Leviticus 25:37. Now we all know banks and bank card corporations aren't in style, however is charging curiosity a sin? And by all accounts, farmers, grocers and eating places ought to present meals for a value. Making a reservation on the French Laundry now.
Die, adulterers!
It's not simply homosexual intercourse that provokes God's wrath—some heterosexual intercourse can be worthy of demise, says Leviticus 20:10: “If a person commits adultery together with his neighbor's spouse, each the adulterer and the adulteress shall be put to demise. ” Many antigay politicians and preachers appear to have confessed to extramarital affairs, but escaped the demise penalty. Perhaps their associate wasn't a neighbor.
Individuals with disabilities: Unclean!
The instructions present in Leviticus to folks with disabilities don’t present a lot of God's mercy. “None of your descendants all through their generations who has a blemish shall come close to to supply the bread of his God,” says chapter 20. “For nobody who has a blemish shall come close to, or blind or lame, or one who has a maimed face or too long-limbed, or a person who has a wounded leg, or a wounded hand, or a hunchback, or a dwarf, or a person with a defect of sight, or an itchy illness, or scabs, or crushed testicles no man; of the descendants of Aaron, the priest who has a blemish to supply burnt choices to the Lord, as a result of he has a blemish, he shall not come close to to supply the bread of his God, he shall eat the bread of his God. each essentially the most holy and the holy issues, however he shall not come close to the veil nor come close to the altar, as a result of he has a defect, lest he profane my sanctuaries, for I’m the Lord who sanctifies them.” We actually can not think about anybody observing this.
Slavery: Good!
Based on Leviticus, God is cool with slavery! “Chances are you’ll purchase female and male slaves from the nations which might be round you,” says chapter 25. “You may additionally purchase from the foreigners who reside with you and their households who’re with you, who have been born in your land and you could to bequeath them to your sons to inherit them as slaves ceaselessly.” A number of years in the past American slave house owners drew on the Bible to justify the follow of proudly owning different folks, however then our nation fought the nice conflict over slavery and it has been banned ever since. You might have heard of it in a documentary by Ken Burns.
Don't say 'OMG!'
Should you use God's identify aside from in prayer, you might be in massive bother, based on Leviticus, chapter 24: “He who curses his God shall bear his sin. He who blasphemes the identify of the Lord shall die. The congregation shall stone him.” So watch what you say in anger, in ecstasy, or in your textual content messages.
