WAS JESUS GAY?

 You know that The Religious Curmudgeon, and indeed, all of The Curmudgeons in The Curmudgeons Inc.ⓒ brings interesting bits of news, fact and fiction to you unencumbered by the need for exactitude. "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story" is our motto borrowed from that great raconteur Samual Clement.

Every now and then I come across some items that will be of interest to the many blog followers - in this case Robert the irreverent sanctimonious sinner and toilet cleaner will be pleased to hear of my findings.

Was Jesus a gay?

Before we analyse the data that has come to hand (no distasteful jokes please Richard) it's worth noting that if Jesus had been gay - or homosexual as 'gay' as a term is only of 20th century origin - then that could only be a good thing for millions of oppressed and repressed people around the world. The Catholic Church for a start could open its doors (and closets) to let in (and out) a multitude of new members (no pun intended) and free up its own clergy to allow them to live normal lifestyles or at least normal to the LGBQT community. Who knows, it could even lead to The Catholic Church admitting that women too are normal and can function in society like men and be admitted to the clergy. Marriage between clergy, whether male of female could at last be sanctioned and everyone (especially pre-teen boys and girls in convent schools) can breathe a sigh of relief.

But, let's not get ahead of ourselves and let's look at the 'data'.

At the crucifixion of Jesus, we are told that all of the disciples (apostles included) had buggered off leaving only Jesus's mum and his 'special friend' John.

 "When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, 'Woman behold your son!' Then he said to the disciple. 'Behold your mother!' And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home."

The Gospels tell us that Jesus loved John  in a special way.  In all images of the Last Supper John is next to Jesus, very close and sometimes holding his hand, kissing him or resting his head on Jesus's breast. 

As a  Hebrew rabbi, it was unusual that Jesus hadn't married particularly that, in his 30s it would have been considered his middle age at the time. In past posts I've suggested that Jesus had been having some kind of affair or relationship with Mary Magdalene but this could just be romantic fiction put about by Jesus's spin doctors as there is no evidence in the Bible that it was so. There is very strong evidence however that Jesus was gay or bisexual. John the Apostle himself said in his Gospel that he was:

"The "disciple whom Jesus loved" (John 21:24) 

 Saint Aelred of Rievaulx in De spiritali amicitia ("Spiritual Friendship"), referred to the relationship of Jesus and John the Apostle as a "marriage" and held it out as an example sanctioning friendships between clerics.

The Gospel of Mark describes how in the Garden of Gethsemane, "A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When the temple guards seized Jesus, he fled naked, leaving his garment behind." (Mark 14:51–52). It reminds me of that scene in Something about Mary when the cops busted up  the rest-stop:

And you remember how that turned out:

Remember that Jesus hung out with sailors a lot. I'm not suggesting that all sailors are gay - I'm not some sort of bigot and, you know me, I don't jump to conclusions but I'm just saying that a lot of those apostles and disciples that Jesus hung out with were 'fishermen'. It gets lonely in a boat out on the water OK?

Jesus liked to wash feet:

OK, not necessarily anything to see here but .....

Just so you don't get the idea that it's just me raising the possibility that Jesus was gay I looked on-line and there has been a lot of discussion of this both in and without the Christian Churches. The Anglicans more so than the Catholics but then they are more open-minded and reasonable people. I like what  Jules Suzdaltsev wrote in VICE back on 6th July 2015:

"After the Supreme Court's historic ruling on gay marriage, it seemed like all the proudly homophobic Christians came out of the woodwork to talk about how much they still hate gay people. As a straight Jew, the homophobia amongst Jesus's followers has always struck me as a bit of a surprise: Worshipping at the feet of a ripped, hung man, seems at least a little homoerotic. But it's Jesus himself who lights up my gaydar like a Christmas tree. He's a skinny young otter-like guy, flocked by a mess of dudes, telling everyone to love and care about each other, who later gets the shit beaten out of him by a bunch of closed-minded conservatives who are terrified of change."

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In his Guardian article, 'Was Jesus gay? Probably', Paul Oestreicher (The Guardian 20th April 2012) summed it up nicely:

"Heterosexual, bisexual, homosexual: Jesus could have been any of these. There can be no certainty which. The homosexual option simply seems the most likely. The intimate relationship with the beloved disciple points in that direction. It would be so interpreted in any person today. Although there is no rabbinic tradition of celibacy, Jesus could well have chosen to refrain from sexual activity, whether he was gay or not. Many Christians will wish to assume it, but I see no theological need to. The physical expression of faithful love is godly. To suggest otherwise is to buy into a kind of puritanism that has long tainted the churches. 

Whether Jesus was gay or straight in no way affects who he was and what he means for the world today. Spiritually it is immaterial. What matters in this context is that there are many gay and lesbian followers of Jesus – ordained and lay – who, despite the church, remarkably and humbly remain its faithful members. Would the Christian churches in their many guises more openly accept, embrace and love them, there would be many more disciples. "