Biblical Sexuality
In 1975, when Virginia’s sodomy law was challenged, a federal court upheld the statute, arguing that it was rooted in Judaic and Christian law — and quoted Leviticus as justification.
It took 28 years before that argument became moot: in 2003 the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated sodomy laws across the United States, including Virginia’s — a year after Massachusetts had struck down its sodomy laws.
This wasn’t the first time Biblical texts were invoked to justify modern laws, and it won’t be the last, says Jennifer Knust, an assistant professor at the School of Theology.
Knust’s 2005 book Abandoned to Lust: Sexual Slander and Ancient Christianity (Columbia University Press) examines the use of sexualized vocabulary by Christian authors from Paul to Irenaeus of Lyons. She is working on a new book on sex and the Bible, slated to come out next year.
“My main argument is that Biblical texts do not speak with one voice,” says Knust, an ordained American Baptist (USA) pastor. “There is no shortcut to sexual ethics through the Bible.”
As part of a lecture series sponsored by the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ) ministry at Marsh Chapel, Knust is speaking tonight at the School of Education on the topic What the Bible Does (Not) Say about Homosexuality.
(read more of the story from BU Today)