Quote:
Originally posted by mystmarimatt
Lebell,
Hopefully you haven't covered this already, I did a cursory check and saw nothing, but I might be wrong.
As a Christian, what are your personal feelings on homosexuality with regards to biblical interpretation, and to the relative beliefs of both liberal and conservative churches? In essence, I suppose I'm wondering which side you believe supplies more viable biblical "proof," and which side you choose to take, as I've heard support from both sides from various parts of the good book. I've already developed my own opinion, I just enjoy learning the opinions of others.
sidenote: I greatly respect you and your posts, and I highly doubt your opinion either way will jeopardize my respect for you. 
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Dear mystmarimatt,
Thank you for you kind words. I’ve also come to respect you in my readings/musings on TFP and I enjoy reading your posts.
Now to your question:
Yesterday (Sunday, July 11, 2004), I heard a very interesting sermon that sums up what I feel very nicely.
The Gospel reading was on the “Good Samaritan” and specifically, about how there are always things to look at even when we think we know the story.
This time, the preacher talked about how this parable spoke to the “compassion” nature of God’s laws and how Jesus went against any other interpretation.
If you recall, in the parable a Rabbi and a Levite both ignore the man who lay beaten and robbed, because to them, they were following their religious laws which said that to help him would make them “unclean”.
Yet it was the Samaritan (who also was committing an “unclean” act) who showed the nature of God’s mercy and how we should treat one another and interpret the “law”.
In other words, any interpretation of the "law" that goes against compassion and love is not in accordance with God's will.
So I see it with homosexuality.
First, I think there is much evidence that homosexuality is actually not “a choice”, but a function of biology, which can also be seen in other species. (So this is how God created us).
Secondly, I don’t see that our greatest purpose on this earth is to “recreate”, but to seek God through each other, and when two people truly love one another to the point of giving themselves physically and spiritually to one another, then I see God in that relationship. (We are to seek God through our relationships with each other).
Third, to answer you question about the Bible, I see Leviticus as being more to the addressing of how we are to treat our honored guests, not about the evils of homosexuality, but that still leaves Paul.
Point blank, I think Paul is wrong.
Paul was a human being and I don’t think that as such he was above making mistakes and yes, I think this was one of them.
I’ve seen far too many loving, spiritual, homosexual relationships as well as far too many joyless, dead heterosexual marriages to think that the former is evil while the latter is holy.