Peoples of Israel #2- Orthodox Gay Jews

There is new attention to the difficult subject of Jewish homosexuality that throws open difficult questions about the biblical writings on the subject. This blog will draw on diverse approaches to the history of homosexuality and its origins by examining biblical passages. In addition, an understanding of how Jewish communities have played a role in contributing to sexual discrimination and also assisting in accepting these individuals will be assessed. The understanding of homosexuality in the Jewish community and society’s affect on individual’s psychology will be a key axis around which this blog is formed.

Rosenthal writes that Orthodox Jews, “The residents-most of them Sabras, including laptop-toting civil servants, scientists, politicians, and high-tech executives-regard themselves as modern Orthodox Israelis showing the same idealistic, self-sacrificial spirit of the (mostly secular) Zionist pioneers who built the country. In fact, religious settlers are the most well-known of Israel’s (most nonsettler) Orthodox population (Rosenthal, 196). She continues to write that these people live in an area that is “biblically rich and emotionally charged, a place where scriptures, historical narratives, and nationalisms are tangled in a lethal embrace (Rosenthal, 196).” So then the question arises, how do Orthodox gay Jews live in such an area? How do they keep their religious identities?


According to VOA.com, the gay pride parade held in Jerusalem in July of 2010, which included approximately 3,000 Israelis angered Orthodox Jews who held signs that read “Sick perverts, get out of Jerusalem.” And to many Orthodox Jews they would agree as this is considered an abomination as according to the Bible. The Parade was seen as “homosexual rights vs. religion.” The march ended with a memorial service at Israel’s parliament for two Israelis that were killed in a shooting at a gay club in Tel Aviv. Gay rights activist, Gher, hopes that religious leaders will understand and learn from that event explaining that constant preaching of homosexuality being an “abomination” will lead to violence. According to the web source, 1,500 Israel police officers were present to guard the Gay Pride Parade.

(The following is a video that displays the parade & the Ultra-Orthodox Jews protesting against it)



The website, My Jewish Learning has an article called “The Gay Orthodox Underground”, that illustrates several individual’s personal struggles to accept their sexuality while being a good orthodox Jew. These individuals display a strong sense of passion for their religion, a religion that very blatantly forbids homosexuality. Many of these people have been rejected from their families and communities. Their pain then leads them to try and find a balance between being true to themselves which is that they are gay and also Jewish. Despite their rejection, they have a high resilience to keep their faith.

The basic issue is whether any homosexual behavior may be viewed as appropriate. According to Harry Woggon, a straightforward reading of the biblical text seems to indicate that homosexuality and homosexual acts are forbidden for Jew and Christian alike. In Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13, it is written:


And you shall not cohabit with a male as one cohabits with a woman; it is an abomination…And if a man cohabits with a male as with a woman, both of them have done an abominable thing; they shall be put to death; their blood falls back upon them.




However, he explains that “if one is honest to Scripture, tradition, reason, and modern scholarship, the matter is not so simple.” Therefore, he then asks “what is homosexuality and what are homosexual acts?” Rabbi Steven Greenberg, the first open gay rabbi, writes that these “feelings” are “natural urges from God” and that nothing can explain why another man enjoys physical affection with another man and nothing can truly explain why some men enjoy physical affection with women. That sexuality as a whole is innate, and “both heterosexuality and homosexuality are natural.” Though biblical writings view homosexuality with severe disapproval, “a spirit of tolerance and compassion is also voice in them.” According to Ruben Schindler’s article “Homosexuality, the Halacha and the Helping Professions” from the Journal of Religion and Health, it is suggested here that Jewish law placed "overt homosexuality in the category of illness to evoke compassion for it."

According to "LGBT topics and Judaism," more progressive movements of Judaism believe homosexuality today was not understood when the Bible was written so the Biblical prohibition of homosexual acts needs to be adapted. In Conservative Judaism, the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards affirmed its traditional exclusion on homosexual conduct by approving same-sex unions, and ordaining openly gay clergy. In comparison, Reform Judaism has rejected the traditional view of Jewish Law on this issue of homosexuality. They view “Levitical laws as sometimes seen to be referring to prostitution, making it a stand against Jews adopting the idolatrous cults and practices of the neighboring Canaanite nations rather than a blanket condemnation of same-sex intercourse or homosexuality.” Finally, Reconstructionist Judaism sees “homosexuality as a normative expression of sexuality and welcomes gays and lesbians into Reconstructionist communities to participate fully in every aspect of community life.” Due to the fact that these religious movements are incorporating homosexuality as a cultural norm, it displays how contemporary orthodoxy is willing to be somewhat flexible and pragmatic in the face of modernity.