Is Homosexuality Hereditary Or A Choice?
There are few issues in American society today more volatile than those dealing with human sexuality. Anyone looking at our culture with an objective eye would be right to conclude that sexual mores are in a virtual free fall. Topics like homosexuality, transgenderism, and pansexualism dominate everything from Facebook posts and tweets from celebrities to legislation shaping government policy.
The Debate
One of the critical issues at the core of the debates over the nature of human sexuality is whether homosexuality is hereditary or a choice. As many homosexual advocates have said in the past, they were simply born with a natural attraction to the same sex. The reason is that if they were born with such proclivities, then they must be genetic and therefore immune to criticism. If a person’s sexual orientation is determined in the same way as their ethnicity, then homophobia should be just as criminal as racism.
Homosexuality in Ancient World
What does it mean to be homosexual? Here we must see an important, and perhaps even complicated, difference between homosexual practice and homosexual orientation. Throughout history, human beings have sought out sexual encounters for the sake of personal gratification. We can see some of this in the ancient Greek practice of pederasty, in which an older man would take a younger man (usually a teen) as a lover. This one-sided relationship was considered part of the maturation process for the young men and did not include shared affection or mutual desire. Instead, it was a very one-sided affair.
Roman society did have homosexual relationships, although they tended to be somewhat different from their earlier Greek counterparts. Similar to Greek attitudes, relationships between males were considered acceptable only in an unequal relationship. Roman men would take the active role in the physical encounter, while their partner was typically a non-Roman male prostitute or slave. Romans criticized effeminate behavior and seemed to have seen the Greek practice of pederasty as something to be avoided.
Homosexuality in the Modern World
Homosexuality in Islamic culture today is significant, perhaps because Islam places such extraordinary restrictions on the social interaction of men and women. Same-sex relationships are forbidden in Islam, a fact that came to light prominently in 2015 when the US Supreme Court legalized gay marriage. Proponents in the Middle East showed their support for the ruling but were quickly silenced by their respective authorities. This official condemnation of homosexuality may lead some to believe that Islam expressly forbids sexual contact between males. This is not the case. For many centuries wealthy Muslim men— often powerful warlords—have engaged in bacha bazi (sexual slavery and child prostitution involving adolescent boys). Although outlawed by the Taliban and highlighted by the documentary Dancing
it continues today.
Boys of Afghanistan,
The prison population in the United States frequently engages in homosexual behavior. It is well-known that sexual behavior and sexual orientation here are not the same. Like other men in various times and places, incarcerated adults in the US frequently engage in sexual encounters with members of the same sex purely for the sake of sexual gratification. Thus, homosexuality in these instances is born from physical desire and regulated by social or cultural circumstances and does not truly represent a different form of human relationship entirely similar to natural heterosexual relationships.
Genetic Research and Homosexuality
Some people today seem to have adopted the view that sexuality is a social construct, including some element of personal choice. However, attempts to discover a genetic basis for homosexuality date to the 1970s. Two additional studies in the 1990s also tried to find a genetic cause. One attempted to locate a gay gene, while the other studied the differences between the neural physiology of heterosexuals and homosexuals. Both studies were conducted by gay activists, and the scientific community challenged their conclusions. Although these studies failed to show a genetic cause for homosexual behavior, they gave a veneer of legitimacy to the belief that some people are born gay.
Although additional studies have been conducted, researchers today confess that any reference to a “gay gene” is inaccurate, with most of them questioning whether such a gene exists (or will ever be discovered). Most scientists today understand that human sexuality is a complex interaction of many factors, including both biological and environmental factors.
Is there proof of a genetic basis for homosexuality? So far, researchers exploring the subject have failed to offer any convincing evidence. This evidence would need to clearly define the genetic cause, with test results needing duplication by other researchers who could verify the original conclusions. This cause would have to be something identifiable explicitly in homosexuals but absent in heterosexuals. Test results would also need to be free from influence by the researchers, a problem inherent in early tests conducted by prohomosexual advocates.
A great deal of misinformation exists about homosexuality and its supposed genetic basis. Advocates often describe historical perspectives on same-sex relationships with modern language, obscuring the significant differences between ancient practices and modern ones. Many writers also seem to assume that science had proven a genetic link and simply claim that research has proven it despite their inability to produce any actual proof. Others deny science altogether and claim to have been born as homosexual without providing any evidence.
What Does The Bible Say?
Homosexuality is forbidden in Scripture (Lev. 18:22; Rom. 1:26-28; 1 Cor. 6:911), although it would be a mistake for Christians to see homosexuals as the enemy in a unique way. Indeed, every human being who has sinned has been considered an enemy of God (Rom. 5:10). Those who experience same-sex attraction must be approached in the same way as anyone else needing the gospel. Every human being desperately needs to hear the good news of Jesus Christ.
While we do not hate any individual but we do hate sin as set forth in the Bible. It is our God given responsibility to warn those in sin of the eternal consequences of continuing to engage in any practice that is clearly condemned by God. The gospel holds the answers to all those who find themselves enslaved to sin.
Have You Obeyed The Gospel Of Jesus
Christ?
Do you have this hope? Have you been baptized into Christ? If you have not been baptized you are still lost in your sins. Jesus says, “He that believes and is baptized shall be saved” (Mark 16:16). Paul said; “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). The words of Jesus teach us that to become a Christian one must:
• Hear the gospel (John 6:44-45). • Believe in Jesus as the Christ
(John 8:24).
• Repent of all sins (Luke 13:3). • Confess Christ as Lord
(Matthew 10:32-33).
• And be baptized to be saved
(Mark 16:16).
• After baptism remain faithful to God.
(Matthew 10:22).
Our Plea To Our Friends And Neighbors
It is our sincere desire and prayer that you obey the gospel today and be saved. Remember the words of Jesus, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matthew 7:21-23).
If we do just what our Lord commanded we know that our salvation is certain and we will hear Him say “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Matthew 25:21). Let us go back to the Bible, back to Christ and His church and do exactly what He commanded. Please let us help you in your obedience to the gospel before it is eternally too late.
[This material is presented by the members of the Northside church of Christ - 700 Jolly Road, NW - Calhoun, Georgia 30701. If you would like to have a Bible Study or discuss this subject further please contact one of our elders; Kent Bailey at 706-629-6111 - Ron Hall at 770-548-3167 - Eddie Jones at 706-2642651]