A QUESTION OF LOVE - HOMOSEXUALITY - A BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE
By Dr. Angelo Grazioli
Crusade for World Revival 1998
These two videos, lasting around an hour each, comprise a very useful overview of homosexuality for both church leaders, those with homosexual friends or relatives and anyone struggling personally with homosexual desires.
The tapes appropriately begin and conclude with some helpful personal testimony from two male and one female homosexuals. The major part of the presentation, however, is given by Dr. Angelo Grazioli, Director of the Sex Education and Sexual Dysfunction Unit of South Africa. He is qualified in both medicine and theology and is able to speak with considerable authority on the subject.
His opening section is on the various meanings of love in general, and from there he moves into discussion of what constitutes homosexuality (genital acts between those of the same sex), reasons for homosexual development and the problems faced by homosexuals in society. Some of Grazioli's definitions and terminology are very helpful, such as that between the homophyllic and the homosexual. In other areas though, there is potential for great confusion - for example, he defines sexual intercourse as any interchange between men and women that is influenced by their sexuality. Most UK sex therapists would refer to this as 'sexual outercourse'. He also rather perfunctorily dismisses a genetic basis for homosexuality on the grounds that genes could not possibly determine behaviour such as masturbation. However, this ignores the considerable weight of evidence for a genetic component to both drinking and smoking behaviour, for example, and does not do the subject justice.
The next section on what the Bible says is, however, a concise and lucid synopsis of all the relevant Scriptures, together with a cogent rebuttal of the interpretation of gay theologians. This section would be a very useful discussion starter for a Bible study group.
The final section consists of answers to questions from the live audience. In his responses to such questions as: 'What factors influence choice of a gay lifestyle?', 'Can a homosexual change his sexual identity?' and 'What advice would you give for parents with gay children?', Grazioli covers some key areas as sexual scripting and formation of core gender identity in a way that those new to the subject can readily understand.
The videos are overall professionally produced and presented. However, not all the questions and answers on the synopsis card are actually dealt with on the video, and were presumably edited out after the accompanying material was already printed. In spite of such minor criticisms, however, these tapes are well worth acquiring by anyone seeking to gain greater understanding of this important topic, and they will do much to counter the prejudice against gay and lesbian people which is still very prevalent in the church today.
