Culture and religion may impact upon how a person sees themselves and how they feel about their sexual identity. Coming to terms with being gay or bisexual can be made more difficult depending upon the religious or cultural background from which someone comes.
What do some religions say about homosexuality?
Judaism
There is a general attitude among most of the traditional Jewish groups that says homosexuality is a sin against the order of nature. To understand why Judaism condemns homosexuality it is important to understand how and why the Jewish laws became written down. The Jews were a small tribe surrounded by large powerful neighbours. To protect themselves and prevent their culture being overtaken by the larger neighbours the Jews wrote a range of laws to emphasise their individuality. This included the ban of prostitutes in places of worship. With constant rewriting and translating of these laws the ban on male prostitutes became a ban on homosexuality.
Today the Jewish religion is divided into two major groups, Orthodox and Reform. The Orthodox Jews still generally oppose homosexuality while many reform Jews see that sin involves choice and if a person cannot do anything about their sexuality how can it be a sin. In the US there are gay temples while in Australia there are gay groups attached to some of the more progressive temples.
Though one might think statements in the Torah are clear-cut condemnations of homosexuality there is real disagreement about their significance. Homosexuality is hardly a major concern of the Torah.
Christianity
Christian Churches are also generally opposed to homosexuality. This situation, however, is slowly changing. The Uniting Church, for example, has gay and lesbian ministers and will allow their churches to be used by gay and lesbian groups. Quakers believe everyone is equal, and will perform committment ceremonies for same-sex couples. There is a strong movement among individual ministers and churches that supports homosexuals and argues for their acceptance into the church. Bishop Dr John Spong in his book Living In Sin? argues that to take the bible seriously you can’t take it literally. What he means by that is the message of the bible is love and respect. Anyone who attacks another for being gay is missing the point of the bible and of Christianity itself.
Just like the Torah, there is disagreement about the condemnation of homosexuality in the Old Testament of the Bible. The Ten Commandments do not mention it and neither Jesus nor the prophets ever talked about it. When it is specifically mentioned the references are short and of less importance than other concerns. When same-sex acts are mentioned they are always related to adultery, violence infidelity or promiscuity. So some say that homosexual rape, infidelity, promiscuity and prostitution are being condemned rather than homosexuality itself.
Islam
Though Muhammad warns against the abuse of sexuality, the Koran does not actually condemn homosexuality and does not recommend specific punishment for it. However, Islamic fundamentalists have used the Koran to justify harsh penalties including torture and death. There are few references to lesbianism in Islamic tradition but those that do exist appear to be harsher in judgement than the references to gay men.
Buddhism
When asked about his thoughts on homosexuality the Dalai Llama said that Buddhism is about finding balance and harmony. In the case of gays and lesbians this balance could be found with others of the same sex and, therefore, he could see nothing wrong with homosexuality.
Hinduism
In a letter to a Sydney gay newspaper the Australian Council of Hindu Clergy said, “According to Hindu teachings all souls in their cycle of reincarnation are born as male, female and homosexual. Therefore we believe in the right of the gay community to assume equal participation in the life of the Australian nation...”
What about culture?
Whilst culture and religion are usually inextricably linked, culture in and of itself usually has its own set of traditions and values, which can impact on how a person sees their sexual identity. Coming out and accepting a gay sexual identity can be difficult if you come from a conservative family or cultural background. There will often be a range of pressures impacting upon how comfortable you can become. For some people the extended family of many cultures means they have very little time to explore their own feelings without members of the family around, and there is often an expectation to marry and have children. Often there is pressure to not embarrass the family name.
Even being an only child can impact on coming out, especially with the expectation to carry on the family name.
All of us have our own cultural background, and often, religious background. How we feel about our sexual identity can be influenced by religion and culture, and often we need to find a way of resolving the conflict between our culture and religion and our sexual identity. Something that may help is to find out as much as you can about being gay or bisexual and what this means in your culture and/or religion, as well as to find support from friends, family or groups and services. You never know, your culture and/or religion may turn out to be the best support.