The relationship between religions like Islam, Judaism and Christianity and homosexuality can be complicated.
In modern times, there has been a lot of debate on this subject, and even members of the same religious groups often disagree on how their faith should view things like gay marriage and adoption by GLBT individuals.
For GLBT teens, the issue can be particularly complicated. If your family belongs to a religious group that opposes being gay, you might dread going to weekly services.
Some teens feel a lot of conflicts between wanting to remain part of their family's religious group and the fact that that group does not seem welcoming to gays. The author Alex Sanchex explores this very issue in his novel, The God Box.
It is important to realize that within Islam, Judaism and Christianity there are those who use their religions to justify discrimination against the GLBT community. But there are also groups within each of these religious traditions that welcome gay members.
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- A lot of people use the Bible to justify homophobia. "The Bible says it's wrong," you might hear. Or, "I'm a Christian, and my religion doesn't believe in homosexuality." You know what? These are just interpretations of ancient texts, and there are many people who are able to see a message in Christianity that welcomes everyone.
- Many of the views on homosexuality in Islam come from interpretations of the Qua'ran, the prominent text of the Muslim faith. Others are based on writings of the prophet Muhammad. However, there are Muslim groups that support and welcome GLBT members. One of these is the US based Al-Fatiha Foundation who "promotes the progressive Islamic notions of peace, equality and justice."
- The answer to the question of Judaism's view on same sex relationships will be different depending on the type of Judaism you are talking about. Reform, Conservative and Reconstructionist Judaism have allowed the ordination of openly gay and lesbian rabbis and many rabbis will perform same sex marriages.
