Tuesday 25 March 2014

WAS JESUS GAY?

WAS JESUS GAY?

Bishop Pat Buckley

JESUS AND HIS BELOVED JOHN
It is perfectly acceptable to ask the question: WAS JESUS GAY? There should be no question in the whole world that cannot be asked.

This question often has its origin the the special relationship that Jesus had with his disciple John who in the Scriptures is called: "THE DISCIPLE THAT JESUS LOVED". 

The question has often been posed by gay people because if Jesus was gay, and loved John in that way, and because Jesus was The Sinless One, then it cannot be a sin to be gay or make gay love.

We know from the Scriptural accounts of The Last Supper that during that last meal John lay on the breast of Jesus. 

To lie on someone's breast is undoubtedly an act of great intimacy. How many people have lain on out breasts? How many times have we lain on the breast of another?

A number of years ago I toured Irish universities giving a talk entitled: WAS JESUS GAY". The universities involved, including the university at Maynooth in Ireland, which is close to the Roman Catholic Church, advertised my talks with big posters with the question on them WAS JESUS GAY? 

In the university at Maynooth these posters were torn down by the student priests. For them just asking the question was already BLASPHEMY.

These people reminded me of fanatical Muslims who go crazy if you say anything even slightly negative about Islam of their prophet. 

During my talk I made it very clear that Jesus was capable of great emotional and physical intimacy with men:

1. John lay on his breast at the Last Supper.

2. Jesus cried when his male friend Lazarus died.

3. Jesus looked at The Rich Young Man and the Gospel tells us that HE LOVED HIM.

4. Jesus called Zacchaeus down from the tree and went to eat with him in his house - probably reclining beside him on a couch.

5. When Jesus cured the blind man he intimately rubbed his saliva into his eyes.

6. Jesus loved the Roman Centurian whose faith was greater than any he found among his fellow Jews. 

Jesus was also capable of great emotional and physical intimacy with women.

1. He let Mary of Magdala wash his feet with her tears and dry them with her hair.

2. When he appeared to Mary Magdala after the Resurrection he said to her: "Do not cling to me as I have not yet ascended to the Father". That suggests to me that they must have been in the habit of clinging to each other?

3. Jesus loved Mary and Martha, Lazarus' two sisters. Martha cooked for him and Mary sat adoringly at his feet.

4. Jesus sat and had water and an intimate conversation at Jacob's well with the Samaritan woman.

5. Jesus had a band of faithful women who "looked after him out of their own money". He was a "kept man".

6. Jesus presented Veronica's with his own image on her towel.

So really what we must say is that Jesus was capable of great emotional and physical intimacy with men and women. 

We do not know if Jesus was ever sexually active - in spite of the belief that he and Mary Magdala may have been "lovers".

We know NOTHING about Jesus' genital sexuality. We do know that as well as being FULLY GOD he was also FULLY MAN. That means that he DID have a sexuality. It means that he did have a sexual imagination. It means that he did have genitalia - and he never was sexually aroused how can we say that he was FULLY MAN? As a full man he had to have semen. As a full man his body had to expel that semen in some way? 

People who claim that Jesus was not fully man are actually HERETICS according to the Christian Church.

So the honest answer to the question WAS JESUS GAY? is that we do not know!

And that's great - because we can all identify with him whether we are gay, straight, bisexual or trans-gendered.  

It makes him in another way - A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS - A MAN FOR ALL SEXES - A MAN FOR ALL ORIENTATIONS.

No sexual community OWNS him. And I have a strong feeling that this is exactly the way HE would want it.





8 comments:

  1. Pat,

    Another thought provoking blog. And what a lovely answer to the question: Was Jesus Gay? Would love to read this at Mass on Sunday. But I don't think that I have the courage.

    PP - D&C

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    1. Thank you F'ar,

      But you could give it to the next person you meet who is feeling "guilty" about their sexuality.

      Pat :-)

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  2. I would love to go to Mass in a church where this was read!

    Young Gay Man - Ballymena

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  3. You can - its called THE ORATORY, LARNE, BT401RQ

    Pat :-)

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  4. Pat,

    You did a Blessing for Stewart and I twenty eight years ago in Glasgow. Maybe you remember us? We are still together. Thank you for making us feel that God was with us. We would love to meet you sometime you are in Scotland. Will send our contact details via your web site

    Malcolm xx

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    1. Good Man Malcolm-Good wishes and prayers to you both-Sean

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  5. Pat if I had a spoon I'd send it to you for stirring the pot! When people speak about Jesus' sexuality all sorts of presuppositions superstitions & magnified notions of what is, is not or might be a sin come to the surface. Jesus expressed his sexuality as a human male as all of us alleged men do. Although the genetics of the willy influence how males express ourselves not every male expression involves use of the said willy. Jesus truly Man and truly God expressed himself to those around him via the medium of his human male personality which he fully embraced. My poor auld granny would turn in her grave if she were not dead at the thought of me expressing such thoughts on the world wide internet-an invention of the Divil fek him. Sean

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  6. Valid question and good response. Good to see some logical reasoned thinking rather than traditional wishy washy romanticised Pauline dominated misogynism. Keep stirring Pat.
    MournemanMichael

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