Judaism’s Sexual Revolution: Why Judaism (and then Christianity) Rejected Homosexuality

Catholics Education Resource Center ^ | September 1993 | DENNIS PRAGER

[KantianBurke]

Then again, sometimes Jews take it a bit far. See King David and his 700 wives! :>

[jwalsh07]

btt

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

A strong piece!

E-mail to your friends!

Arnold has done us some good by his actions !

More needs to be done!

[rontorr]

bump

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

OK:

Solomon: The Shaping of a Bible Writer

Polygamists in the Bible

This one is interesting:

King Solomon, the wisest of all men, built the Temple in Jerusalem and reigned over Israel's golden age.

| WOMEN IN ISLAM VERSUS WOMEN IN THE JUDAEO-CHRISTIAN TRADITION:
| | THE MYTH & THE REALITY

We are all of one flesh

[Integrityrocks]

I really enjoyed that article. Well written.

[agrace]

That was Solomon. David had under a dozen I think.

[jocon307]

Excellent post, fascinating piece. You have made my day, I actually feel like I know a lot more about this whole subject than I did yesterday. And I always aim to "learn something new every day."

I had no idea, none at all, that homosexuality was so wide spread and so accepted, historically. I had never thought about the ancient pagan religions and their lustful sexuality in this way, even though I've seen the urns.

On a somewhat more elevated note, I'd never really thought about HOW the God of the bible differs from Zeus, and that whole pagan lot, always knowing just THAT He does.

Prager is really good, and a very nice writer too.

Thanks Ernest!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks for the comment. I just came across it today chasing links :

Found this also:

A comprehensive collection of links on the topic of :

Women in Islam

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I stumbled onto this and intend to use it with family who are too tolerant!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I have no answer on your question.

I am a novice in this area!

[VOA]

Then again, sometimes Jews take it a bit far. See King David and his 700 wives! :>

(I'm not a theologian, and don't even play one on TV!)
But...I think it was Solomon who tried to find fulfillment with so many wives/consorts.

I'll be darned because I can't seem to find it via the Bible Gateway search,
but IIRC, G-d told the Jews something like "the king should not have many wives"...
and we saw what a mess an accomplished warrior and king like David made of his
life and household with his wandering eye. The "You are the man" passage in which
Nathan convicted David of his guilt at his fling with Bathsheeba (sp?) and his
effective murder of Bathsheeba's virtuous husband Uriah is just about as good a
moral story about playing it safe when it comes to s-e-x.

And as best I recall, Solomon felt pretty empty at the end of his attempt to
win the Viagra-free "rising to the occasion" award of all time!

[MEG33]

Very timely.

[supercat]

The Torah's prohibition of non-marital sex quite simply made the creation of Western civilization possible.

Adultery in the Old Testament is specifically the act of a married woman sleeping with a man not her husband. Such an act deprives the woman's husband the right to know that his children are 'his'.

Other forms of non-marital sex are strongly cautioned against, and in some cases (e.g. having sex with a virgin) may result in civil actions (compelled marriage if the girl's father demands), but aside from adultery there are only a few other behaviors to which the term prohibition (forbidding, with punishment for those who disobey) would apply, and most of those aren't applicable to most people (e.g. for the daughter of a priest to become a harlot is a capital offense).

To be sure, the Old Testament strongly recommends against other forms of non-marital sex, among other things on the basis that such things will distract energies that a man should be spending forming his own family, but I see nothing to suggest that the term "prohibition" should be applied to all non-marital forms of sexual conduct (or even, for that matter, to female homosexual conduct).

[CasearianDaoist]

It maybe that the truth is that the Jews were the first people to have direct knowledge of God. Perhaps they did not "desexualize god" do much as reject the human tendency to project their own natures on an imagined "god." I agree that this notion mars and otherwise insightful article.

[CGVet58]

a powerful piece! Especially that last paragraph which really brings the charge home.

To this , I would humbly add that the virtue of a modern-day, western society rests overwhelmingly with it's women. Setting aside crimes like rape, we can only be as licentious as the women whom we direct our attentions towards allow us to be.

Juan
(yes, I really should have been born in the 19th century... and wistfully wish it were so...)

[VOA]

I'm really happy this article has been posted for discussion.
I stumbled across it last year.

Although I make my living in research science, I do have a real amateur love of
things Roman and other articles of antiquity.

BUT...this Prager article BLEW MY MIND!
A couple year of Latin and reading Roman history, as well as talking to my brother
who took a number of courses in "the classics" (read ancient Greeks) did not
prepare me for the sexual pecadillos of those "Noble Romans" and "Noble Greeks", etc.

From my past experience, and the generally good public-relations image the "ancients"
get in a lot of school courses...this article should be REQUIRED READING for
high school kids in schools AND those receiving religious instruction
at temple or church!

And people should ask themselves...
"Hey, our great-great-great-great-etc. grandparents tossed this sexual "freedom" B.S. to
the side of the road...do we really want to follow San Francisco and Europe
back down into the abyss?"

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I was thinking of all the action in San Francisco when I came across this in my wanderings.