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January 31, 2003
Views on homosexuality evolve
Certain biblical passages may have been misinterpreted, says rabbi.
PAT JOHNSON SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN
A barely perceptible, yet still significant, social shift is taking
place in Jewish views of homosexuality and homosexuals, according
to a rabbi who led a discussion on the issue last week.
Rabbi Robert Daum said every denomination of Judaism is exploring
its traditional view of homosexuality and, to varying extents, altering
the historically negative interpretation of homosexual behavior.
"It's almost like watching the grass grow, but it does
grow," said Daum.
Daum made a direct parallel between the evolution of gay identity
itself and the evolution of Judaism in addressing it as an issue.
"Both are dynamic, fluid phenomena," he said. Talmudic
Judaism is influenced by halachic discourse that is influenced by
changing societal norms, he said. Similarly, the idea of homosexuality
has altered enormously in the past century, moving from one of "behavior"
to one of identity. Where homosexuality was once viewed as a temptation
or vice, it is now viewed by most people as an intrinsic personal
identity.
Daum, who holds the Diamond Foundation Chair in Jewish Law and Ethics
in the University of British Columbia's department of classical,
near eastern and religious studies, was speaking at a small meeting
at Beth Israel Synagogue Jan. 23. The event was not intended as
a major public forum on the complex issue of halachic views of homosexuality,
but rather as a small meeting where people, primarily parents of
gays and lesbians, could share ideas and hear a sympathetic view
of the issue.
Rabbi Charles Feinberg, who participated in the discussion, made
a comparison between Jews who view homosexuality as sinful or wrong,
and those who take lightly the interdiction to observe the Sabbath.
If one accepts that homosexuality is not permitted by halachah,
one must reflect on one's own devotion to Shabbat, he said. If the
two are on a continuum of mitzvot, of biblically proscribed behaviors,
the need to observe Shabbat adequately would be at the top of the
list as perhaps the most important thing an observant Jew can do,
while homosexual activity, if one accepts it as wrong in the first
place, is a far lesser offence to Judaism's tenets than ignoring
Shabbat.
Daum spent the first part of the evening discussing biblical and
talmudic interpretations of homosexuality. New scholarship suggests
that verses that have been traditionally viewed as condemnations
of homosexuality may have been misinterpreted or overemphasized.
For example, the story of the people of Sodom has been interpreted
as an interdiction against homosexuality. In fact, Daum believes,
it should be seen as an interdiction against rape of any kind and
may be about the ancient priority of befriending and sheltering
passing strangers, rather than any commentary whatsoever on same-sex
relations.
Genesis observes that, when a man grows to adulthood, he shall leave
his parents and cleave to his wife, but Daum does not view this
as a mitzvah. It is an observation that reflects the reality for
most human beings, but it is not necessarily a value judgment or
a commandment, said Daum. For a grown man to choose other than cleave
to a wife is unusual, but acceptable.
The strictest condemnations of homosexuality seem to come in Leviticus,
where it is stated that man shall not lie with a man as with a woman.
But Daum and other scholars view this section with nuance and an
understanding of the complexity of language. In the most literal
sense, Daum maintains that the forbidden act is impossible and the
interdiction therefore moot. A man simply cannot physically lie
with a man as with a woman.
"Well, one can't," said the rabbi wryly.
More likely, he said, the verse reflects a confluence of ancient
canards and what could be viewed in present terms as superstitions.
Sexual impropriety was a standard form of discrediting opponents
in ancient times. Moreover, the ancients exhibited strong social
anxieties about the implicit power of penetration. Again, this matter
could be interpreted as forbidding an act more akin to rape than
to a loving relationship.
Daum maintained that the intertwining of rape and consensual sexual
relations has for centuries been at the root of religious views
of homosexuality. Observers have made much more of the same-gender
issue than of the violence issue, he suggested, using a modern phenomenon
to illustrate his point.
The abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic church right now is being
viewed as a "sex" scandal, when, at its root, it is about
violent sexual exploitation and rape. Because the priests have been
accused mostly of abusing male parishioners, the public perception
is one of "homosexual priests," rather than "rapist
priests," said Daum.
These biblical passages were probably intended to forbid rape, said
Daum. They have been misinterpreted to forbid loving respectful
homosexual relationships.
The evening may be the first in an ongoing effort to provide a forum
for parents of gays and lesbians in the Jewish community and to
foster more discussion on the issue. The evening took place with
the assistance of the Jewish Family Service Agency.
An independent community group for Jewish gays and lesbians began
last year under the name Ga'avah (Hebrew for "pride")
and has been organizing various community events, including holiday
celebrations.
Pat Johnson is a native Vancouverite, a journalist and
commentator.
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