Revisiting a project I
began many moons ago - refuting revisionist theology on
homosexuality.
Looking now at the
writings of select church fathers,in order to learn how they preached on the
subject of human sexuality.
Justin Martyr (100 - 165AD) was born in the Roman city of Flavia
Neapolis. Raised by pagan parents, he sought to
find life's meaning in the philosophies of his day.
One of Justin's tactics was to contrast what the
Christians were falsely charged with doing with what the Romans did with
impunity. For example, Christians were charged with killing babies in worship
services and then consuming them. Justin countered that it was the worshipers of
Saturn who engaged in homicide and in drinking blood and other pagans who
sprinkled the blood of men and animals on their idols. Christians were accused
of sexual immorality, but it was their critics, Justin said, who imitated
"Jupiter and the other gods in sodomy and sinful relations with
women."
"And imitating Jupiter and the other gods in
sodomy and shameless intercourse with woman, might we not bring as our apology the writings of Epicurus and the
poets? But because we persuade men to avoid such instruction, and all who
practise them and imitate such examples, as now in this discourse we have
striven to persuade you, we are assailed in every kind of way."
