Complete Christian Guide to Understanding Homosexuality

Joe Dallas and Nancy Heche

Description

One of the hot-button issues of our day is fully addressed in this comprehensive new resource on homosexuality. This well-researched and highly readable guide is the perfect go-to manual for families, church workers, counselors, pastors, civic leaders, schools, and those who themselves struggle with same-sex attraction.Readers will find the answers to these and many more important questions:What is homosexuality?Is the tendency for homosexuality genetic?How should the church respond?What's the proper response when a relative or friend announces they're gay?What are the legal and civic ramifications of homosexuality?Should homosexuals serve openly in the military?What about gay marriage and adoption?Authoritative authors Joe Dallas (Desires in Conflict, When Homosexuality Hits Home) and Dr. Nancy Heche (The Truth Comes Out) tackle the hard questions about same-sex attraction in this helpful volume.

Sujets

• Philosophie et théologie

Informations

• Publié par: Harvest House Publishers, Inc.
• Date de parution: 01 juillet 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780736960335
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 9 Mo

Extrait

Unless oterwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from te New King James Version. Copyrigt © 1982 by homas Nel- son, Inc. Used by permission. All rigts reserved.

Verses marked  are taken from te King James Version of te Bible. Scripture quotations marked  are taken from te Holy Bible, New International Version , NIV . Copyrigt © 1973, 1978, 1984 ® ® by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rigts reserved worldwide. ™ Scripture verses marked  are from te New Revised Standard Version of te Bible, copyrigt © 1989 by te Division of Cristian Education of te National Council of te Curces of Crist in te USA. Used by permission. All rigts reserved.

Cover by Dugan Design Group, Bloomington, Minnesota

THE COMPLETE CHRISTIAN GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING HOMOSEXUALITY Copyrigt © 2010 by Joe Dallas and Nancy Hece Publised by Harvest House Publisers Eugene, Oregon 97402 www.arvestousepublisers.com Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data he complete Cristian guide to understanding omosexuality / Joe Dallas and Nancy Hece, general editors. p. cm. Includes bibliograpical references. ISBN 978-0-7369-2507-5 (pbk.) ISBN 978-0-7369-6033-5 (eBook) 1. Homosexuality—Religious aspects—Cristianity. I. Dallas, Joe, 1954- II. Hece, Nancy. BR115.H6C672 2009 261.8'35766—dc22

All rights reserved.No part of tHis electronic publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval sys- tem, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mecHanical, digital, pHoto- copy, recording, or any otHer—witHout tHe prior written permission of tHe publisHer. he autHorized purcHaser Has been granted a nontransferable, nonexclusive, and noncommercial rigHt to access and view tHis electronic publication, and purcHaser agrees to do so only in accordance witH tHe terms of use under wHicH it was purcHased or transmitted. Participation in or encouragement of piracy of copy- rigHted materials in violation of autHor’s and publisHer’s rigHts is strictly proHibited.

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O OO O

herefore, if anyone is in Crist, e is a new creation; te old as gone, te new as come! All tis is from God, wo reconciled us to imself troug Crist and gave us te ministry of reconcilia- tion: tat God was reconciling te world to imself in Crist, not counting mens sins against tem. And e as committed to us te message of reconciliation. We are terefore Crists ambassadors, as toug God were making is appeal troug us. We implore you on Crists bealf: Be reconciled to God.

2 C 5: 17-20 

C ONTENTS

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

 P O Capter : he Curc in Crisis, Part :Trut Revised . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : he Curc in Crisis, Part  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : Homosexuality and Trut:A Time to Speak. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : A History of te Gay Rigts Movement in America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : Terms, Definitions, and Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

9

    

 P T Capter : Understanding Pro-Gay heology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Capter : Rebutting Pro-Gay heology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

 P T Capter : Homosexuality and American Psyciatry: Were We’ve Been and Wy It Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : heories of Origin, Part :. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Inborn heories  Capter : heories of Origin, Part :Developmental, Spiritual,  and Interactive heories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

 P F Capter : Counseling Men Wo Struggle wit Homosexuality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Capter : Counseling Women Wo Struggle wit Lesbianism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Capter : Tips for Ministry to Homosexual Strugglers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : Sexual Addiction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

 P F Capter : he Parents Dilemma. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : he Spouses Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : he Adult Cilds Dilemma: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .One Woman’s Firstand hougts . . . . . . . Capter  Gay Teens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

 P S Capter : Same-Sex Marriage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : Gays in te Military . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : Gay Parenting:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Plus, Minus, or Equal? . . . Capter : Pro-Gay Education in Scools: Wy Is Wat hey’re Teacing So Dangerous?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : Hate Crime Legislation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : Transgender Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capter : HIV and AIDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Afterword:A Cristlike Response. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bibliograpy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . About te General Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . About te Contributing Autors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

 

 

  

   

    

I NTRODUCTION

by Nancy Heche, DMin, and Joe Dallas

It is a mark of great people to treat trifles as trifles, and important matters as important.

—D L

f it doesnt matter to God, it neednt matter to us. I here are, after all, countless issues for Cristians to be concerned about. So in an age marred by terrorism, poverty, violence, and corruption at every level, some would assume tat sexual morality is, by its nature, a secondary matter. And even if we do see sexual sin as an important issue, te aspect of it dis- cussed in tis book migt seem tame next to oters. Compare omosexuality to abortion—te taking of an innocent life—or to teen pregnancy, wit its tragic repercussions; or to te wounds inflicted by molestation; or to te glar- ing evil of forced prostitution. Next to tese, a consensual erotic relationsip between two adults of te same sex can seem mild. Wrong, peraps, but not wort verbalizing. So wy boter reading (muc less writing) a compreen- sive book on te subject? he answer lies in watever motivated you to pick up tis book.

If you’re a pastor, priest, or lay ministry leader,youve seen ow omosexu- ality impacts te people you serve. Youve met parents wose sons or daugters

9

T HE C OMPLETE C HRISTIAN G UIDETO U NDERSTANDING H OMOSEXUALITY

ave just “come out” to tem, and teyve got questions youre not sure ow to answer. You pray wit people wo struggle against sexual desires for te same sex, and you want to give tem counsel tats compassionate and practical. Your denomination may be debating te rigtness or wrongness of omosexuality, and you want to be better equipped to take a stand. Or you simply want to give your congregation te full counsel of God on tis difficult subject, so you want a good working knowledge of it. hose are all good reasons to keep reading.

Someone you love migt be gay,and youre wondering ow, as a Bible believing Cristian, you can keep a bond wit tis person witout compro- mising your moral position. Youre wondering ow to andle it if your loved one wants to bring a partner ome for te olidays, or asks you to attend is or er same-sex wedding ceremony. And wen tat family member saysI was born tis way, I can’t cange, and you need to accept it!ow do you answer? Well cover te dilemmas faced by spouses, parents, siblings, and cildren of omo- sexuals in tese pages.

Peraps you’re an educatorwanting a better grasp on te academic questions te subject raises. Wat causes omosexuality? Is it immutable or cangeable? Wat beliefs cause some people to embrace it, wile oters reject it? As a teacer, tese questions matter to you, as do te omosexual students (and teir parents and loved ones) wom you deal wit almost daily. Muc of tis as been writ- ten wit you and your needs in mind.

Maybe you’re a counselor, psycologist, or terapistlooking for insigts you can incorporate into your work, so tat wen your patient says, “Im a les- bian” or, “Im a gay man,” youll better understand te issues e or se brings into your office. And if youre a Cristian counselor, working wit people wo want to overcome omosexuality, youll want to know wat canges tey can realistically expect, wat steps tey sould take, and wat callenges teyll face along te way. Youll find all tese concerns addressed ere.

You yourself could be a Cristian wo’s attracted to te same sex,engaged in a lifelong struggle wit feelings you neiter desired nor cose, wondering wat, if anyting, you can do. If you abstain from omosexual sex, will you ever become attracted to te opposite sex? Is marriage an option? Were do you go for elp and support wen you wrestle wit feelings few people can relate to?

10