>can anyone give me a summary
>of what happened with these
>2 in the bible?
>
>
>--Brown Thought

OK -- time to put on my rabbi hat. S'dom and 'Amora (that's the Hebrew pronunciation) were two cities that G-d decided to destroy when no righteousness could be found within their borders. Abraham and G-d have an argument on this point, showing that G-d listens to dissenting opinions (PAY ATTENTION, HOMOPHOBES) and sometimes changes the G-dmind accordingly. Not finding even 10 good folks in the cities, G-d decides they have to go, fire and brimstone and ABBA records raining down all the day long. (GENESIS 18:16 - 19:29)

Why? THE BIBLE DOESN'T TELL US. The ancient rabbis who put down in writing the Jewish Talmud noted the way in which the inhabitants treated strangers, attacking them rather than offering hospitality. To traditional Jewish sources then, the sins of S'dom and Amora were not sexual, but rather THEIR CRUELTY AND LACK OF HOSPITALITY TO STRANGERS. This makes RUDY GULIANI THE BIGGEST "SODOMOITE" IN NEW YORK.

I'm glad that we're all getting textual and biblical, but I always find it damn funny how thong-clad honies in Benzos are just fine and dandy, but when the subject is gay folks, suddenly all you Sir Mack-a-lots become preachers. Double standard anyone?

Meanwhile, does anyone here remember reading in their history books about how slave-owners used the bible to justify the shackles? (That tired old "sons of Noah" argument ? -- please....) Sound familiar?

Look -- Here's the deal. Use the bible to love and learn, and your best self will emerge. DON'T TAKE BIBLE FROM STRANGERS. Go and learn. Until we engage seriously in a discussion of our sacred texts and their significance for our lives, we will be forced to live by one view of the Bible – an impoverished, brittle view, characterized by intolerance and dishonor. But we have an alternative. Our alternative is to pursue a view of the bible that is respectful and infused with dignity, a Bible that tells us we are created in the image of G-d, a Bible that instructs us to be kind to the stranger, to plead for the orphan, to open our hands to the needy, a Bible that tells us that it is NOT acceptable for one group of people to enslave another, but rather redemption and freedom DO come, and THAT is G-d’s will. Our alternative is to emulate our heroes David and Jonathan (they did love each other -- yeah, like THAT) -- to stand tall for justice, to stand tall for our heritage, to stand tall for each other. If we truly do so, we can ONLY prevail. More respect, less playa-hating.

So there. That's what you get for asking a gay student rabbi who digs the Roots.

-- Mike (student, Academy for Jewish Religion)