ABSTRACT
Being based on the Torah, Judaism warns against behavior that compromises the clear distinction between male and female and their social roles. In Leviticus 18.22, homosexuality takes its place as an abomination alongside incest and eating unclean animals. In the narrative of Lot in Genesis (19), he decides not to give two male visitors to a gang demanding to have sex with them. Rather than being a party to homosexual rape, Lot gives his two daughters to the gang. In addition to citing these Jewish sources, many Christians agree that homosexuality is an abomination before God, as evident in the writings of the early Christian apostle Paul (Rom. 1.26-27; 1 Cor. 6.9-11), and that it can influence a person’s salvation, although homosexuality is not a topic that occupies the attention of Jesus. In agreement with ancient Judaism and the early Christian Church, Islam forbids homosexuality in the Qur’an (4.16; 7.81; 20.28), and it is strongly condemned by the prophet Muhammad in Hadith literature. The major monotheistic faiths make it clear that heterosexuality within the context of marriage is the norm for sexual relationships. Such restrictions do not completely stop homosexuality, but it does drive it underground.
