Christian Theology and the LGBT Community: Why the Church Should Lead by Example

Introduction

In contemporary times, the question of whether homosexuality should continue to be an abomination as portrayed in traditional Christian theology in a modern era has gained so much attention. Whilst the liberal churches of Western nations have accepted the LGBT community into their fold, the Church in Africa, for example, continues to be recalcitrant about having anything to do with the LGBT community. In May 2019, the Anglican Church of Nigeria (ACN) dismissed four ‘gay pastors’ (BBC News, 2019). The ACN continues to maintain its stand of zero-tolerance for the LGBT community within its fold, the Anglican Communion of England, which is the mother of the Nigerian Communion, recently condemned a statement made by the Anglican primate of Nigeria, Archbishop Henry Ndukuba. According to the archbishop of Canterbury, the comments made by the leader of the Anglican Church in Nigeria to the effect that homosexuality is a ‘deadly virus’ which should be ‘radically expunged and excised’ are unacceptable and dehumanising (Sherwood, 2021). This chapter examines both sides of the debate on the LGBT community within the Christian fold intending to establish the common ground that supports love and inclusion.

LGBT is an acronym for gay, bisexual, and transgender. It is now considered to be a better word instead of using ‘homosexual’. However, in this chapter, both terms are used interchangeably. The term ‘queer’ is now used in some circles to refer to the LGBT community. These terms are synonymous with the biblical ‘sodomy’ which has its origin in the Old Testament story of Sodom and Gomorrah.

It is not new that one of the main reasons for the continued criminalisation of homosexuality in Africa for instance is the influence of the Abrahamic faiths (Arimoro, 2021). The first step towards decriminalisation would have to involve an acceptance by the Church, especially in Africa that the LGBT community can be a part of the Church and loved as a part of the Church. The predominant view that ‘homosexuality is against God’ (BBC News Pidgin, 2021) or that it is ‘unnatural’ and ‘sinful’ (Arimoro, 2018) is preached and upheld by church leaders in Africa and is a strong reason why the policymakers may find it difficult to review the anti-gay laws in several countries on the continent.

This chapter begins with a review of the influence of the Church in the politics and local making process in several countries where being gay is criminalised. Next, traditional texts and theology that exclude and condemn the LGBT community will be analysed. Since the chapter aims to promote inclusion in the Church, the modern liberal theological school of thought is discussed before a conclusion on what the Church must do to resolve the problem that the Church currently has to deal with because of the anti-homosexuality theology. The chapter looks at the influence of the church in the support of the criminalisation of sexual activity amongst persons of the same gender as well as persons who identify as gender non-conformist (Wernik, 2015).