Gays,
Lesbians and Judaism
by
Senior Rabbi, Alan Green (00-Present)
Published in the Shaarey Zedek Shofar in November
2007
My Yom Kippur
sermon on gays and lesbians generated a great deal of comment.
Certainly, in the wake of the December 2006 meeting of the Committee
on Jewish Law and Standards, which simultaneously affirmed both
positive and negative positions on same sex unions within Jewish
law, the issue needed to be addressed. Perhaps not surprisingly, the
overwhelming majority of the comments that we received were
positive.
While the sermon is far
too long to be reproduced here, I felt that a follow up in the form
of a summary would be in order. I present these points for the sake
of further reflection, and also to elicit responses from anyone who
has yet to speak out on this complex and challenging topic.
Please feel free to send
your comments to clergy@shaareyzedek.mb.ca, or else as hard copy
addressed to me, care of the synagogue. Again, I urge
everyone--particularly those of a legal bent--to examine the
response on same sex unions presented at the CJLS, now posted at
www.shaareyzedek.mb.ca. These papers represent some of the finest
creative Jewish legal thinking in the world. They are a real
education in the way Conservative movement attempts to embrace both
the deepest values of Jewish tradition, along with the cutting edge
of change in the modern era.
Any discussion of gay and
lesbian relationships in Jewish law must begin with a verse that we
read on Yom Kippur afternoon—Leviticus, Chapter 18, verse 22—which
explicitly teaches, “Don’t lie with a male, as one lies with a
woman. It’s an abomination.” In Chapter 20, verse 13, this
prohibition is repeated: “And if a man lies with mankind, both of
these have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to
death. Their blood shall be upon them.”
At the same time,
according to our best sources, at least 4% of the general population
of North America is gay or lesbian. Demographers suggest that this
same percentage applies to most subgroups, including our own. Thus
if there are five million Jews in North America, it means that some
200,000 of them are gays, or lesbians.
Over the years, Jewish
gays and lesbians have come to me and revealed their stories. I
would ask: “Did you choose to be gay? Is this a matter of your free
will?” They responded with substantially the same story: that their
sexual orientation wasn’t chosen, but rather, discovered with
anxiety, and with pain.
These kinds of encounters
throw the whole issue of gay and lesbian relationships in Jewish law
into bold relief. Because it’s one thing to read a scientific paper,
or to contemplate a responsum, but quite another to look into the
pained eyes of another human being.
How should a rabbi respond
to such confessions? It shouldn’t be difficult. Biblical and
rabbinic tradition are consistent in their condemnation of gay and
lesbian sexual behavior. Rabbis say, “We cannot tell you how to
feel, but we can tell you how to behave.”
In the mean time, a great deal of scientific material has emerged
that indicates the genetic character of some, if not all of same-sex
orientation. This objective evidence, combined with the subjective
fact offered by gays and lesbians themselves--that their sexual
orientation isn’t chosen—invokes a fundamental principle of Jewish
law: ANOOS RACHMANA PATRAY—“the All-Merciful One exempts those who
act under duress.” If God exempts, who am I to condemn? Can I
dictate how someone ought to feel, or to whom they should be
attracted?
The traditionalists
counter by saying that the law is the law. They argue that it’s
irrelevant whether homosexuality is biologically determined; whether
or not gays and lesbians can meet their emotional needs in
heterosexual relationships; whether or not gays and lesbians are
ANOOSIM—compelled by Nature. None of these factors justifies
overturning the law. All non-Halachic considerations are
inconsequential.
But I must tell you that I
cannot, and do not judge gays and lesbians as sinners, nor can I
judge their love as an abomination. I cannot condemn gays and
lesbians to lives of celibacy, because the God in whom I believe is
EL MALEH RACHAMIM – a God filled with compassion—and the attribute
which we Jews are commanded to pursue in our lives, is that of
RACHMONIS.
Moreover, Jewish law is
hardly opposed to change. In Biblical times, the laws of leprosy
assumed that it was contagious, and a punishment for sin. They
didn’t know about Hansen’s disease, and they didn’t know it wasn’t
contagious. But who, knowing what we know today, would treat the
leper according to the misguided understanding of ancient times?
Similarly, the rabbis of
old believed that homosexuality was a moral choice—contrary to
Nature. Through no fault of their own, they had no knowledge of gays
and lesbians acting only as God and biology created them. Since
their judgment was based on false data, I believe that it should be
revised accordingly.
So, what to say to a
Jewish mother whose gay son committed suicide? What to say to Jewish
gays and lesbians who come asking whether there is, in the heart of
Judaism, any blessing for them? To our children, I would say,
“Blessed are You, Lord God, Master of Creation, Who has created
human beings in Your image.” To that mother, knowing what we know
today, I would say that neither her son, nor his behavior are
abominations.
What is abominable for the
homosexual is what is abominable for the heterosexual: promiscuity,
coercion, rape, sexual exploitation, infidelity, and adultery. What
is abominable for one gender is abominable for another. What is
abominable for all sexual orientations is disrespect for the
personhood of the other. This applies to employment, to the teaching
profession, and to full participation in Jewish life. It is
behavior, conduct, and character that count—not sexual orientation.
The issues raised by gays
and lesbians in Judaism are complex, and have all kinds of
implications—theological, psychological, moral, and Judaic. But
whatever your viewpoint on these issues, remember that in the end,
we’re dealing with human beings of flesh and blood. And we’re
dealing our children—your child, or grandchild—if not today, then
tomorrow.
(With thanks to Rabbi
Harold Schulweis for supplying much of the background for this
talk.)
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