The Unhappy Gays by Tim LaHaye (Tyndale House, 1978, 206 pp.).
Jonathan Loved David by Tom Horner (Westminster Press, 1978, 161 pp.).
“Homosexuality” by Harold I. Haas, Currents in Theology and Mission, April 1978.
by Dr. Ralph Blair
LaHaye’s previous publications were evaluated well by the book editor of Christianity Today as “cutesy style, sweeping generalizations, quirky analysis of human nature, and imprecise exegesis” and this should have forewarned readers to beware of more of the same. Mor of the same, and worse, is what he offers in his latest book. The entire cover of the book is a full-color photo of chains, and if his ignorance is not clearly enough conveyed by this picture, surely his unrealistic title will do that. He has the audacity to belittle Kinsey’s work by saying that Kinsey was not a trained authority on sexual behavior, (who was, before Kinsey?), and goes on to prove that he himself does not even understand Kinsey’s pioneering work, much less have a cognizance of the latest broad-based ethnographic research from Indiana University’s Kinsey Institute. These extensive Kinsey studies conclude that, “homosexual adults who have come to terms with their homosexuality … are no more distressed psychologically than are heterosexual men and women”. Of course, LaHaye’s homosexuals are unhappy, and they will remain unhappy if they take no more realistic view of themselves than LaHaye takes. From cover to cover, his book is filled with all of the twisted false witness bearing, “god and country” rhetoric, and cruel hoax promises of “cure” that continue to make life so unhappy for those homosexuals and their families who foolishly believe that LaHaye knows what he’s talking about.
Basically a respectable work, and certainly in an altogether different league than LaHaye’s book, Horner’s is nonetheless marred by certain questionable generalities upon which he attempts to hang an argument and sometimes succeeds in hanging both his argument and history itself. Seemingly unaware that exaggeration can weaken an argument, Horner not only intimates a homosexual relationship between Jonathan and David, he spotlights one. Even more far-fetched is his devoting a whole chapter (evidently his attempt to avoid charges of sexism) to implications that Ruth and Naomi were lesbian lovers. Fan magazines may get away with this sort of thing but it is inappropriate in a book otherwise bearing fine marks of scholarly research. Horner’s treatments of Sodom and Gibeah and the New Testament texts are quite good, and better still are his analyses of the “dogs” or “holy men” and “all these abominations” in the Old Testament. In spite of the noted weaknesses of anachronism, Horner’s is a well-researched and referenced book that serious readers should not be without.
Haas is professor of psychology, sociology and theology at Valparaiso University and is a Lutheran clergyman. He has written a superb article covering basic matters of etiology, Scripture, theology, and pastoral concerns. He concludes: “The church has not understood the destructiveness of its own position or how much of it has derived from prejudice rather than the Bible”. Much of what he says has been said elsewhere by others, but it has not been said better, especially considering the relative brevity (23 pages) of this effort. One point he makes should jolt homophobic Fundamentalists such as LaHaye and others. Haas writes: “Since the evidence is abundant that homosexuals feel ostracized [from the church], there is risk that the Gospel will not be effectively preached and souls will be lost because the church based its ministry on human attitudes and emotions. And impeding the work of the Holy Spirit through interference with the Gospel is the most serious offense the Scripture knows. The issue is as stark as that!”