Q.
160
Who gets to decide which laws in the Bible are
irrefutable, which laws are out of date, and
which laws should be applied only in certain
situations?
Becky Garrison
A.
If we truly followed all the laws in the Bible, we’d be turning the
other cheek while gouging out our enemies’ eyes. So that Chris-
tians don’t get all theologically topsy-turvy here, Jesus gave Chris-
tians this simple guideline for fi guring out how to put biblical laws into their
proper perspective. “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with
all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the fi rst and greatest command-
ment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law
and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” ’Nuff said.Joshua Einsohn
A.
To be honest, I don’t have an answer to this question even though
it’s the one that riles me up most. From Muslim extremists who
encourage their people to blow themselves up in order to kill “hea-
thens” to evangelicals who preach “Love thy neighbor as thyself... unless
they’re a dirty homosexual,” there is so much abuse of religious power across
a broad spectrum of religions that it’s hard to fathom. Those who claim to be
doing God’s work have killed millions of people.
I recently heard a powerful Christian leader say that there are three kinds
of religious laws... the obvious and irrefutable (Thou shalt not kill), the laws
that are out of date (“Yeah, go ahead and have some bacon... it’s cool now”)
and the laws that need to be enforced from time to time.
When the interviewer asked who gets to decide which laws are which,
he said, “Oh, I do!” This is the same man who declared that homosexuals
were too immature to understand monogamy. As a gay man, I took plenty of
umbrage at the statement and was frankly scared. He pretty much demon-
strated that anyone with a chip on his or her shoulder about anything is free to
say, “Oh, I do!” and can then use religious law as a tool to perpetuate discrimi-
nation and persecution.
In order for any organization (religious or otherwise) to work, you need
leaders. I get it. But how do we protect everyone from the zealots who use reli-
gion as a weapon while supporting the wonderful people who use it as a tool
for love and peace? I know it’s pretty lame of me to answer a question with a