Reconciling Islam with Homosexuality
What does Islam say about homosexuality? This website offers a perspective that differs from the conventional teaching.
Homosexuality is a thorny issue among Muslims, with many saying Islam is against homosexuality. They refer to Quranic verses found in the story of Prophet Lut (or Lot, as he is known in Jewish and Christian Bibles).
However, there are a number of ulemas and Muslim scholars who aim to reconcile this issue, including Indonesia’s own Musdah Mulia. These scholars argued that such a reading that condemns homosexuality fails to appreciate the context and linguistics, that the verses quoted have been stripped of their context.
The scholars say that Quran that the only acts of sexuality condemned by Islam are those done without the consent of the other.
Based on this idea, a website called islamandhomosexuality.com aims to discuss the issues surrounding Islam and sexuality, as well as gender and diversity. It offers diverse and positive perspectives, and cohesive information about issues affecting LGBT people in the Muslim world.
You can find intriguing articles on, for example, five queer Muslims in history, five imams who are openly gay or five Muslim nations where gay is legal (yup, Indonesia is one of them).
This website also lists organizations that support LGBT’s inclusion in the Muslim communities, and books related to LGBT Muslims or Islam and homosexuality.
Check out this following video of Imam Muhsin Hendricks, who is the first openly gay imam in South Africa, on how to reconcile homosexuality with religion:
