(יג) וְאִ֗ישׁ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִשְׁכַּ֤ב אֶת־זָכָר֙ מִשְׁכְּבֵ֣י אִשָּׁ֔ה תּוֹעֵבָ֥ה עָשׂ֖וּ שְׁנֵיהֶ֑ם מ֥וֹת יוּמָ֖תוּ דְּמֵיהֶ֥ם בָּֽם׃
(13) If a man lies with a male as one lies with a woman, the two of them have done an abhorrent thing; they shall be put to death—their bloodguilt is upon them.
Kushiya:
Is the apparent homophobia in this verse sourced from an actual lack of approval of gay men, or is the source sexism (not wanting men to act like women)?
Is the apparent homophobia in this verse sourced from an actual lack of approval of gay men, or is the source sexism (not wanting men to act like women)?
(יג) משכבי אשה. מַכְנִיס כְּמִכְחוֹל בִּשְׁפוֹפֶרֶת:
(13) משכבי אשה means he inserts as a brush into a tube [i.e. in the manner of marital intercourse].
Discussion Question: If Rashi's definition of משכבי אשה pertains to males engaging in intercourse in a penetrative fashion similar to heterosexual sex, do you think the Torah verse is suggesting one male is acting like a woman? If so, does this mean that the Torah is discouraging males acting like women, and if so, why?
מתני': ר' יהודה אומר: לא ירעה רווק בהמה, ולא יישנו שני רווקי בטלית אחת
KIDDUSHIN 82A
Mishna: Rabbi Judah said: An unmarried man must not tend cattle, nor may two unmarried men sleep together under the same cover.
Discussion Question: By juxtaposing farm work and sexual relations, do you think this is suggesting that, just as men would be farmers and should not be until they are married (presumably to a woman), men should also never be engaging in sexual actions as if they were women? What would that mean?
HOMOSEXUALITY, HUMAN DIGNITY & HALAKHAH: A COMBINED RESPONSUM FOR THE COMMITTEE ON JEWISH LAW AND STANDARDS (Conservative Movement Responsa, 2006)
by RABBIS ELLIOT N. DORFF, DANIEL S. NEVINS & AVRAM I. REISNER
Section V, Tractate A
by RABBIS ELLIOT N. DORFF, DANIEL S. NEVINS & AVRAM I. REISNER
Section V, Tractate A
- The explicit biblical ban on anal sex between men remains in effect. Gay men are instructed to refrain from anal sex.
Discussion Question: Even though gay men are now widely accepted in Conservative Judaism, is the fact that they are still told not to have anal sex (something defined earlier as an imitation of heterosexual sex) evidence of sexism even in the modern day?