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Re: arsenoikoites





On Mon, 5 Sep 1994, Gregory Jordan (ENG) wrote:

>  BAG give related words: arsenikos, arsenokoitein, with an important but 
> dated reference to D.S. Bailey.  The translation, "a male who practices 
> homosexuality, pederast, sodomite" is not much better than Liddell & 
> Scott's ("sodomite"), but L&S  provide a much greater wealth of 
> references for all arsen- compounds, including those that might be 
> considered semantically related to arsenokoites, under the Attic arren-: 
> arrenomanes "mad after males (of men)", arrenomiktes "arrenokoites", 
> arrenomixia "sodomy", arrenopiptes "one who looks lewdly on males", 
> arrenothelus "hermaphrodite, of both sexes".  Larry Hurtado is right that 
> L&S 9th ed. w/supplement 1968 is dated, but only in needing updated 
> additions. Dan McDonald points out that L&S is "primarily a classical 
> lexicon" but one should notice, for example, that in the above entries 
> there was at least one 11th century A.D. reference!

First of all, are you claiming that BAG is also a "dated" source?  
Second, I did not see any reference to Louw and Nida's lexicon.  Is it 
too dated (tongue in cheek, of course!)  Thirdly, you mention the need of 
seeking original sources, yet I did not notice any original sources 
collaborating your severely flawed presupposition. 

> 
> Boswell, J. Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality. (Chicago, 
> U of Chicago P, 1980).  The original statement by Boswell.
> 
> Boswell, J. Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe. (New York: Villard, 
> 1994). Pp. 219-220 n4 contains a brief rebuttal to some of the criticisms 
> below.
> 
> J. Wright, "Homosexuals or Prostitutes: The Meaning of ARSENOKOITAI [1 
> Cor. 6:9, 1 Tim. 1:10], Vigiliae Christianae 38 (1984), 125-53.
> 
    Fourthly, and I do not intend to be crass, but I denote an incredible 
amount of bias here.  Does "usf" in your address stand for "University of 
San Francisco?"  Do not be mistaken, I understand the genetic fallacy in 
argument, however, I cannot come to any other conclusion based on your 
total neglect to proper scholarship than to assume that you have either 
been effected by presuppositional (and unfounded) arguments of the 
homosexual community, or you are indeed a homosexual.  If it is the 
latter of the two, I indeed pray for you.  I can then see that your poor 
scholarship is accounted for by an attempt to justify an unjustifyable 
sin (apart from the sacrifice of Christ and the natural repentance that 
follows.)
     Do not even think of addressing me as a "homophobic" either.  I, 
by the actions of Christ, have learned to love the repentant sinner, yet 
the sin.
     The following demonstrates how a growing number of the uneducated 
(or "dumbed down") populace have fallen to the word games of homosexual 
community:

> 
> 
> The word koitE often renders "marriage bed."  It is unmistakeable that 
> Lev. 18:22 is contrasting the use of "arsenos" (not andros) with that of 
> "gunaikos" (not thElus).  It is forbidding a husband to sleep with a 
> *male* on the bed of his wife, a specification of adultery, not a general 
> condemnation of homosexual behavior.
> 

     This is nothing short of nonsense!  To those reading on in 
disbelief, as if I am being intolerant, the stakes are high.  If the 
Bible and/or God detests and convicts the act of homosexuality (and all who 
study it honestly must attest both do), and then we as Christians accept 
homosexuality as a decent act; we have done none other than to deny God's 
word and have allowed all the more people to join into this damning (and 
I do not take that word lightly) sin.
     PLEASE, let us not give into this onslaught of intellectual 
suicide.  Have compassion for those wanting to make a change for Christ, 
but for the sake of our sons and daughters, do not give ground and turn 
from the words of our Lord!

Michael Lipsey (lipsey@metronet.com)
Head of the Apologetics Dept. (Tyndale Theological Seminary, Ft. Worth)



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