tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8856764.post6696606423134937291..comments2023-04-30T09:45:52.232+01:00Comments on Lost in the Heart of Somewhere: What does it mean to be Christian in the UK?Ian Matthewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16777033213615262701noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8856764.post-75373516914519033442009-07-15T20:09:21.645+01:002009-07-15T20:09:21.645+01:00I came over from Ship of Fools and saw this post. ...I came over from Ship of Fools and saw this post. If the word that makes you blush is "arsenokoitai" in 1 Corinthians 6:9: even if the word condemns what you think it comdemns, the Bible wasn't written in a vacuum - apart from textual or cultural context. <br /><br />St. Paul was writing to a fledgling congregation in Corinth Greece, which was a notorious seaport known for prostitution. Sailors from all over the Mediterranean come to this court for rest and recreation.<br /><br />Also, the type of homosexuality found in the ancient Greek culture he lived in was between man and young boys, not between adult men in the form of a monogamous relationship. Ancient Greek men were expected to act as mentors to boys and raise them in exchange for a sexual relationship, then these boys were expected to get married and repeat this relationship with another young boy.<br /><br />Secondly, you'd also have to look at the textual context. Paul's sin list reads:<br /><br />"Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor malakoi, nor arsenokoitai, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor swindlers shall inherit the Kingdom of God" <br /><br />"Malakoi" literally means "soft" but in this case is probably slang for young boy prostitutes. So the words malakoi and arsenokoitai may be juxtaposed for a reaon. Arsenokoitai may be the clients of these boys. Many older Biblical interpretations (like Martin Luther's translation of the NT) interpret it this way. It would make the most sense given the time and cultural milieu Paul wrote in.<br /><br />Furthermore, if this is a reference to male prostitution it would make more sense given that Paul says that the Corinthians essentially left their former lives in verse 11, and then makes another reference to prostitution in verse 15, though heterosexual prostitution isn't specifically mentioned in the sin list. <br /><br />So like any Biblical interpretation it is a mistake here to look at a word in a vacuum. <br /><br />Just a thought.toujoursdanhttp://dantoujours.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.com