The Biblical view of marriage is given in Gen 2:18-25 and is reinforced by Jesus (Matt 19:3-4, Mk 10:2-9). Marriage is between a man and a woman. There are obvious problems with the notion of homosexual marriage, the first being that homosexual practice is not physically or sexually compatible. Anal sex in males frequently leads to tearing of the fragile anal tissue and sphincter and an increase in diseases such as HIV, Anal Cancer, Chlamydia trachomatis, Cryptosporidium, Giardia lamblia, Herpes simplex virus, Human papilloma virus, Isospora belli, Microsporidia, Gonorrhea, Viral hepatitis types B & C and Syphilis[1].

1. [1] (a) Anne Rompalo. “Sexually Transmitted Causes of Gastrointestinal Symptoms in Homosexual Men.” Medical Clinics of North America 74. 6 (November 1990): 1633-1645. Print;
   (b)“Overview – Safer Sex & STD Prevention for Gay & Bi Men.” LGBT Health Channel. 01 Aug. 2001. Web. 01 Oct. 2010. <http://lgbthealth.healthcommunities.com/stdmsm/index.shtml>.;
   (c)“Overview, Anal Anatomy, STDs, Anal Health, Anal Cancer – Anal Health.” LGBT Health Channel. 01 Aug. 2001. Web. 01 Oct. 2010. <http://lgbthealth.healthcommunities.com/analhealth/index.shtml>.

Homosexual women are also not exempt from physical problems such as bacterial vaginosis (with 30% of women who had had sexual encounters with only other women within the prior year suffering from this), Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C (see here for details.)

Moreover, there is considerable evidence that children living in homosexual households tend to suffer a greater risk of clinical emotional problems, developmental problems, or use of mental health treatment services than those living in heterosexual households. No one wishes to dispute that children living in heterosexual households can also face troubles, but the fact remains that the Biblical view of marriage gives a complementary unit of male and female to help and to guide. Men and women are undoubtedly different biologically, hormonally and neurologically (as proved by a recent study by Ragini Verma, a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania), but God (who is spirit, neither male nor female) has ordained that heterosexual marriage (a committed, loving relationship between a man and a woman) should be the basis for family life, the building block of society.

Where does this leave those who are attracted to members of the same sex, then? Is there no hope? Are they simply doomed to a life of loneliness, condemnation and judgment? The gospel of Christ is good news to us all and, as this video from Living Out shows us, those who experience same sex attraction do not necessarily have to be identified by this; they choose to see their identity as disciples of Christ first and foremost and commit to living by biblical values, choosing not to engage in homosexual practice, even if they are attracted to others of the same sex. Vaughan comments in this video that we are all broken in some way; we live in a fallen, broken world and every one of us has to face the incredibly high standards God has for sexual purity and work with Him to maintain these standards. Nonetheless, with God’s help (2 Cor 12:8-10), acceptance and help from fellow Christians and a daily dependence on God’s grace and power, there is hope for us all. All of us are accepted by God because of His grace through faith, a gift of God we gratefully receive, wherever we are broken. When we are weak, then God’s power can be seen most clearly, shining through our brokenness and leading us ultimately to that perfection we all crave.

Garry continued his ‘Talking Point’ series tonight, looking at the subject of gay marriage. Homosexuality is a ‘hot potato’ in Christian circules and it is important to stress that we are all sinners saved by grace and that God loves everyone. Jn 3:16-18 emphasises God’s love for the whole world in sending Jesus to die to save us; Rom 5:6-8 reminds us that we didn’t have to change to be loved; ‘while we were sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom 5:8)  God urges us to love Him with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and to love our neighbour as ourselves (Mk 12:29-31); not only does He love everyone, but He urges us to love everyone too (including even those we may consider our enemies, see Matt 5:43-45). There is no room for us to hate anyone, whatever their sexual orientation, for God’s love reaches out to everyone.

God hates sin, however (see Is 59:1-3), and we live in a fallen world, where sin separates us from God. These verses show us that there is no ‘grading’ of sin; those whose hands are tainted with blood are separated from God just as are those whose lips spoke falsely. We may perceive some sins as more serious than others, but all sin separates from God and all of us need forgiveness.

There are several passages in the Bible which make it clear that homosexual acts are detestable in God’s sight (see Gen 19:5-7, Judges 19:22-23, Lev 18:20-23, Lev 20:13, Rom 1:26-27, 1 Cor 6:9, 1 Tim 1:9-10). This view, however, sees God as the ultimate authority in our world because He is the Creator and He made the rules. That view has been increasingly challenged in Western society since the 1950s. A pattern of rejection of homosexual practice because it was viewed as sinful gave way to tolerance of such practices to acceptance of these practices to promotion of such practices. Nowadays, homosexuality is seen as just as valid a lifestyle as heterosexuality and justification for this is often given using the following arguments:

• it’s been around a long time
• it happens in nature
• it’s just the way I am

Just because something has been ‘around a long time’ does not, of course, immediately justify it. Nor does what happens in nature immediately strike us as a valid excuse: voles, some fish and wolf spiders eat their young, but no one has ever successfully justified infanticide on the grounds ‘some animals do it’! Even the idea that homosexuality is somehow ‘just the way I am’, an integral part of our identity, does not necessarily mean that it is acceptable. Desire should not necessarily dictate our actions:  as humans, we believe we should not be controlled by our desires but should exercise self-control in how we live.

A rejection of God inevitably leads us to question His authority and His rules for our lives. If we reject God, many embrace an evolutionary theory of life, but even here, there are problems with homosexuality, for the survival of the fittest would not last long without procreation, and naturally speaking, the homosexual lifestyle cannot lead to procreation. “This is a paradox from an evolutionary perspective,” says Paul Vasey from the University of Lethbridge in Canada. “How can a trait like male homosexuality, which has a genetic component, persist over evolutionary time if the individuals that carry the genes associated with that trait are not reproducing?” So often, justification for homosexual practice and for gay marriage is based on conflicting ideas that directly oppose the Biblical view that God is the moral arbiter of our world.