BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION AND HOMOSEXUALITY VIDEO DIALOGUE
The Ministers Council of the American Baptist Churches USA thanks you for ordering the video dialogue between Manfred Brauch and Bill Herzog on biblical interpretation and homosexuality. The professional society of ministerial leaders within the denomination, the Ministers Council seeks to serve as a health maintenance organization for the entire body by providing a forum for dialogue on potentially divisive issues which may become lethal to the denominational body.
In your packet of materials you will find the video and supporting documents. The dialogue is divided into three segments, each with a ten-minute discussion by each presenter on the same set of relevant biblical texts. That format allows a group to plan three sessions around the video, each time viewing a twenty-minute segment of the video and then engaging in their own discussion of the texts.
The printed material includes complete manuscripts from both presenters, as well as a brief discussion guide. When Dr. Herzog references a hand-out in his presentations, please note that it is included within the body of his manuscript and is helpful for viewers to have in hand. You may photocopy any of the printed materials in the packet.
The Ministers Council is eager for feedback from groups and individuals who have viewed, reflected on and discussed the video.
Kate Harvey
Ministers Council
American Baptist Churches USA
DISCUSSION GUIDE
1. |
“Why does the Holiness Code say the things it does? Or, what is the logic and purpose of a purity system?...How do Jesus and Paul, who claim central importance for our interpretation of Scripture, handle the purity code?” - William Herzog, (p1)
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II. |
“…Is Paul addressing homosexuality as we know it today…Or is Paul condemning homosexual acts committed by heterosexual people, who thus contradict their own ‘true nature?’ Is Paul’s understanding of ‘nature’ in tension with our contemporary understanding of ‘homosexual orientation’ as a given, rather than as freely chosen?” - Manfred Brauch (p6)
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III |
“Paul’s use of this term [arsenokoitai] (whether or not originally coined by him) presupposes and reaffirms the judgment of the Levitical Holiness Code and all of Judaism and early Christianity, that same-sex relations are contrary to God’s will.” - Manfred Brauch (12)
“In other words, the three words [pornoi, arsenokoitai, and andrapodistai], taken together, describe in short hand a social system, and oppressive and exploitive system in which some human kings enslave and degrade others.” -William Herzog (III, p2)
A. Do the two participants agree on the meaning of arsenokoitai? B. How do they disagree on its use?
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IV. |
“How does one discern what in Scripture is culturally or historically conditioned, and thus belongs only to the time of the writer, from what is transcultural and transhistorical and is authoritiative for Christian life and faith at all times and in all places?” - Manfred Brauch (p2)
“…it is one thing to know what the Bible says but quite another thing to know what it means. Indeed, the greatest barrier to learning what the Bible means may be knowing what the Bible says.” - William Herzog (I, p1)
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Presented by The Ministers Council, American Baptist Churches, USA in partnership with The Board of National Ministries.
August 26, 1996