Happy New Year... Sorta

With everyone getting ready for New Years Eve, I thought it might be a good time to recognize the other New Years... perhaps we should celebrate them all... I'll bring the beer...

(Dates are New Years during 2006)

Gregorian Calendar - January 1 (January 1)
Indian National Calendar - Chaitra 1 (March 22)
Kurdish Calendar - Jezhnan 1 (March 21)
Persian Calendar - Farvardin 1 (March 21)
Islamic Calendar - 1 Muharram (January 31)
Chinese Calendar - Month 1, Day 1 (January 29)
Jewish Calendar - 1 Tishre (September 22)
Julian Calendar - January 1 (January 14)
Baha'i Calendar - Baha' 1 (March 20)
Bengali Calendar - Pôhela Boishakh (April 14)
Coptic Calendar - Thout 1 (September 11)
Ethiopian Calendar - Enkutatash (September 11)
Javanese Calendar - Mangsa Kaso 1 (June 23)
Nanakshahi calendar - Chet 1 (March 14)
Bikram Samwat - Baisakh 1 (April 13)


I'm sure there are a lot more I didn't include, but either way,

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The Secret War

The Gap Band - You Dropped The Bomb On Me

Channukah

Another Jewish holiday arrives, and with it, a new song by Israel Beer. So, grab your dreidel and start...

Spinnin' on Nun

Religion and Homosexuality

I prefer not to delve in to personal beliefs on homosexuality or other people's personal beliefs on it. Believe whatever you want. I do have a problem, however, with people taking things out of context and trying to rationalize their personal beliefs that way.

On the holiest day of the Jewish year, Yom Kippur, in the afternoon service, we read from Leviticus, Chapter 18. This is the section of the Torah (part of the old testament to Christians) that is most often quoted as showing what G-d thinks about homosexuality and how we should act towards it. Clearly the rabbis thought this was a very important section since it is read on such a holy day. The line that specifically speaks of homosexuality is:

18:22 Do not lie with a male as you would with a woman, since this is a disgusting perversion.

This clearly doesn't leave my wiggle room. Now, on the surface, it seems that what all of those preachers on TV are yelling about is correct, but look at the rest of the paragraph and you'll see that this sentence cannot be read alone. I'll highlight a passage I think is very interesting:

18:19 Do not come close to a woman who is ritually unclean because of her menstruation, since this is a sexual offense.

This verse is also very clear and gives very little wiggle room. I have never heard of any preacher disallowing this. How can someone be so incredibly passionate about one sentence and yet ignore other sentences just before it? It seems like those who preach so strongly against homosexuality need to either start preaching against sex during a woman's period until she has ritually bathed or they need to start viewing the bible as an entire, cohesive book. You cannot pick out the pieces you are passionate about and throw out the rest.

Now, I'm not saying I obey all the laws in the bible. VERY far from it. What I'm saying is that if you're going to use the bible as justification for ostracizing and hating a group of people, you need to also listen to everything else it has to say -- if not in the whole thing, at least take entire sections. Cherry picking sentences that fit your needs while ignoring others only shows a desire to prove ones point, not a desire to follow what you believe is the will of G-d. I know there are other passages that also speak of homosexuality, Wikipedia has an entire article on the topic, but this seems to be the one most often referenced and used.

Also, an interesting note: This passages specifically mentions men, not women. Like always, just something to think about. If I'm way off base here, tell me in the comments and I'll post updates and changes as necessary. I'm not a religion expert, just a casual observer.