Polyamory & euthanasia

Dear Editor,

Thanks to Andrew Bunt for alerting us in the August issue of en to the rise and acceptance of polyamorous relationships.

In comparison to same-sex marriage, he rightly points out that we need to wrestle with the ‘why’ of God’s law as well as the ‘what’. I think that we have still not, as evangelicals, really succeeded in doing that with same-sex marriage (why is same-sex sexuality harmful) even though the Biblical facts are clear (that God does not permit it). Perhaps only time will tell. I wonder if the argument for why not polyamory might be easier.

The elephant in the room with polyamory is that some Biblical heroes, notably David, had polyamorous (polygamous) marriages and yet were clearly in close communion with God. He repented of adultery but not, as far as we know, of polygamy. How does that fit with 1 Corinthians 6:9-10? I ask genuinely seeking clarity.

However, isn’t euthanasia a more immediate frontier for us? It will be debated by this Parliament. We absolutely should be warning society of the dark possibilities of disregarding God’s care for the sanctity of life. But I do not think that the church is currently very vocal on this issue. It gets coverage in publications like en, but I do not see secular media picking up church voices on the matter. The most prominent anti-euthanasia campaigner in the UK is disabled actor Liz Carr. Her voice is a powerful antidote to the perception of many that this cause is simply a Conservative religious conviction. Can the church add its voice to hers, in a way that builds bridges and captures hearts?

Yours sincerely,
Christopher Barry
Birmingham

Andrew Bunt replies: Thinking through polygamy in the Old Testament is certainly another way we need to prepare for the rise of polyamory. In general, we can be confident that the Old Testament doesn’t show approval for polygamy. While some key men in ancient Israel’s history had multiple wives, the narrative accounts of these marriages offer a subtle condemnation of the practice through the negative consequences recorded. In the legal material, legislation relating to polygamy (most notably Deuteronomy 21:15-19) is designed to protect those left vulnerable, but such family set-ups do not endorse the practice. A very strong case can also be made that Leviticus 18:18 should be understood as an outright prohibition on polygamy. I’ve explored polygamy in the Old Testament in much more detail in an article at LivingOut.org.

How does the polygamy of someone like David sit with 1 Corinthians 6:9-10? Some scholars have argued that there is evidence of David (and Jacob) repenting of polygamy later in life (see 2 Samuel 20:3). We also have to consider the different periods of salvation history in which David lived and Paul wrote. Jesus’ interaction with the Pharisees on divorce is helpful here (see Matthew 19:8-9). Looking back to the time of the old covenant, Jesus acknowledges that God made concessions because of the hardness of human hearts. However, he then calls people to live out a tighter ethic in relation to divorce. The implication is that the problem of the hardness of human hearts has somehow changed, just as the prophets had promised would happen with the coming of the new covenant (e.g. Jeremiah 31:33; Ezekiel 36:26-27). With the coming of Jesus, God’s people are called to a higher ethical standard (e.g. also Matthew 5:27-30) because the work of Christ gives us a new ability to live in obedience to God. If there is a tension between David’s behaviour and Paul’s warning, this is the best way for us to understand it.