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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]For me, it is the biblical prohibition on homosexual behavior, as well as Paul's writings on women in the church.  I am not someone who just pretends the Bible does not say things that I don't like.  Anyone who has known a homosexual person knows that it is not some sort of "choice," and yet the bible is very clear.  It just seems to me to go so much against Jesus' loving, inclusive message.  I also think that Paul's writing on women specifically set women back for thousands of years.  Why did these things happen?  Even if we assume that Paul's teachings were based more on his opinion, how do we reconcile the last 2,000 years?  It's a really difficult topic for me.[/quote]

The Bible is not "very clear" on homosexuality.  It is very clear against sexual immortality.  There is no mention of monogamous same sex relations.  The type of homosexuality that existed in biblical times were primarily heterosexuals who also had sex with male boys.  Not the same.  We sure don't beat up adulterers nearly as much as homosexuals - which the Bible is clear about adultery being a sin.  And the Bible has pretty strict rules about getting remarried after getting a divorce but most Christians ignore those rules.  I don't understand the obsession with homosexuality...

And to take Paul's words about women at face value to cover all women in leadership positions, you sure have to ignore a lot of other bible verses where women were in leadership roles (like deacons and prophets) - which I'm sure was pretty radical back in the day.

Read a little more broadly - there is a lot of excellent scholarship on these topics but not from publishing houses where they practice censorship.  You don't get your best thoughts when people can't struggle with things that we need to struggle over (like a lot of "Christian" and Baptist books. [/quote]

Romans 1:6-8

“26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged NATURAL sexual relations for UNNATURAL ones.27 In the same way the men also abandoned NATURAL RELATIONS WITH WOMEN and were inflamed with lust FOR ONE ANOTHER. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. ”[/quote]

Well, if it's in the Bible, it must be true.  That's what some people think.  [/quote]

Some of us don't read the Bible literally. And that's our faith and our right to practice it as is.

I follow the words of Jesus, not the words of Paul the zealot.[/quote]

Can you really pick and choose? If you purely follow the words of Jesus and nothing else in the Bible, can you really call yourself a Christian? [/quote]

Of course I can, just as most people who call themselves Christian have decided not to follow certain books or verses of the Bible. Do you think women ministers are following Paul's directives? Nope. Are you going to say they aren't Christian? Yikes.

You may have a different definition of Christian. My definition is that I follow the words and example of Jesus Christ, Son of God. I might not always do it right, but I try.

Go ahead and tell me I'm not a Christian. You have the right.  Just as I would have the right to look at people who never follow Christ's example of love and charity in their personal lives and say they are not Christians according to my definition, no matter how loudly they proclaim that they are.
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