Where he is most convincing, however, is in attacking the “natural law” argument against homosexuality – which is pure persuasive writing and not an attempt at reinterpreting Scripture or history as part of a claim of being scientific.ĭespite its incredible revisionism, I do think the book worth more than one star, and if I could, I would even give it 2.5 stars. (That is, they would likely condemn homosexual sex in the absence of any Christian tradition, and they are not concerned with honoring the Christian tradition in other respects that are inconvenient to them personally.) However, Boswell does not merely argue that Christianity as a belief system can be interpreted in such a way as to not condemn homosexuality he actually argues that Christianity as a historical institution did not condemn homosexuality until relatively recently – and that is such an absurd claim that the mental contortions involved in supporting it are at times amusing. This is not to say that he convincingly argues that Christianity did not condemn homosexual sex, but rather that he convincingly argues that Christians who condemn (and have condemned) homosexuals are more often motivated by their prejudices than by their religious devotion. First, he wishes to prove that homosexuality was generally accepted and approved of until about the 12th century and, secondly, he wishes to “rebut the common idea that religious belief - Christian or other - has been the *cause* of intolerance in regard to gay people."īoswell is considerably more convincing when arguing for the second point than when arguing for the first. This is revisionism of the most agenda-driven variety. The book has a scholarly appearance and copious footnotes, but the author engages in a great deal of interpretative gymnastics with regard to Scripture, Christian tradition, and especially history. But I find the claim that one is merely being scientific (and if the science happens to agree with my personal agenda, what a coincidence!) to be disingenuous. I very much enjoy reading persuasive writing.
Now, I have absolutely no problem with books with agendas. I say it is odd because the massive volume is clearly aimed at convincing the reader that Christianity is, if you really dig into history and read the Scriptures just right, supportive of homosexual love and the sex that is an expression of that love. The author of “Christianity, Homosexuality, and Social Tolerance” begins his book with the odd claim that he is not supporting any particular moral position with regard to homosexuality.
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