Dear editor, In his letter to the March Anglican Journal Rev. M. J. J. Collier asks, “How can any church attempt to bless that which God himself has declared an abomination?” Modern scholarship has accepted the fact that the Bible was written in the light and understanding of the times. God was up there watching. Life was short, brutal, and often tragic. Tribes struggled to survive: famine, infectious diseases or neighbours could wipe them out. God was in charge and people had better behave. Mortality rates were high, and each couple had to produce five or more children just to replace themselves. Under those circumstances it is not surprising that homosexuality was regarded as an evasion of the responsibility to “Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth.” It was seen as a conscious choice of treason and heresy, a crime against the tribe and a crime against God. Have we taken the time to ask homosexuals about their life experiences? Did they actively choose to be homosexual? Could it be that in our day homosexuality is part of a divine plan to stop us self righteous and robust heterosexuals from over populating our fragile planet at the dawn of the twenty-first century? Galileo was pronounced a heretic and threatened with torture. His accusers quoted the Bible to prove their case too. God give us the humility to keep open minds and to learn more about something we neither know nor understand. Josie Newman Victoria
