Transcript Homosexuality Pt.4

Session 6 – Homosexuality Pt.2
Having spent a
week looking at
the Biblical case
against
homosexuality, we
will now look at
other areas that
support the view
that the Bible
presents us with
What about the claim that homosexuality is
genetic and they are born that way?
Brad Harrub, Ph.D. and Bert Thompson, Ph.D.
and Dave Miller, Ph.D.
On April 14, 2003, the International Human
Genome Consortium announced the successful
completion of the Human Genome Project—two
years ahead of schedule. The press report read:
“The human genome is complete and the Human
Genome Project is over” (see “Human Genome
Report...,” 2003, emp. added).
What did they discover about a “gay” gene?
Evan S. Balaban, a neurobiologist at the
Neurosciences Institute in San Diego, noted that
“The search for the biological underpinnings of
complex human traits has a sorry history of late. In
recent years, researchers and the media have
proclaimed the “discovery” of genes linked to
alcoholism and mental illness as well as to
homosexuality. None of the claims...has been
confirmed (as quoted in Horgan, 1995).”
The human X and Y chromosomes (the two “sex”
chromosomes) have been completely
sequenced. Thanks to work carried out by labs all
across the globe, we know that the X chromosome
contains 153 million base pairs, and harbors a total
of 1168 genes (see NCBI, 2004). The National
Center for Biotechnology Information reports that
the Y chromosome—which is much smaller—
contains “only” 50 million base pairs, and is
estimated to contain a mere 251 genes.
Educational institutions such as Baylor University,
the Max Planck Institute, the Sanger Institute,
Washington University in St. Louis, and others have
spent countless hours and millions of research
dollars analyzing these unique chromosomes. As
the data began to pour in, they allowed scientists
to construct gene maps—using actual sequences
from the Human Genome Project. And
yet, neither the map for the X nor the Y
chromosome contains any “gay gene.”
But occasionally you’ll hear the claim that
they’ve found the “gay” gene
LeVay reported that clusters of these neurons
(INAH) in homosexual men were the same size as
clusters in women, both of which were significantly
smaller than clusters in heterosexual men. LeVay
reported that the nuclei in INAH 3 were “more
than twice as large in the heterosexual men as in
the women. It was also, however, more than twice
as large in the heterosexual men as in the
homosexual men” (1991, 253:1034).
We’ve found the gay gene then? This proves
it’s genetically based?
Simon LeVay—Brain Differences
In 1991, Dr. LeVay reported subtle differences
between the brains of homosexual and
heterosexual men (1991). LeVay measured a
particular region of the brain (the interstitial nuclei
of the anterior hypothalamus—INAH) in
postmortem tissue of three distinct groups: (1)
women; (2) men who were presumed to be
heterosexual; (3) and homosexual men.
Study has never been reproduced. As William
Byne noted, LeVay’s work…“Has not been
replicated, and human neuroanatomical studies of
this kind have a very poor track record for
reproducibility. Indeed, procedures similar to
those LeVay used to identify nuclei have
previously led researchers astray
Problem: Additionally, of nineteen homosexual
subjects used in the study, all had died of
complications of acquired immunodeficiency
syndrome (AIDS).
AIDS has been shown to decrease testosterone
levels, so it should be expected that those who
suffered from that condition would have
smaller INAH
LeVay has admitted: “It’s important to stress what
I didn’t find. I did not prove that homosexuality is
genetic, or find a genetic cause for being gay. I
didn’t show that gay men are born that way, the
most common mistake people make in
interpreting my work. Nor did I locate a gay
center in the brain” (as quoted in Byrd, et al.,
2001, emp. added).
Bailey and Pillard
1952 study by Kallmann. In this famous work, he
reported a concordance rate (or genetic
association) of 100% for sexual orientation among
monozygotic (identical) twins (1952, 115:283).
•52% of identica twins of homosexual
•men were homosexual
•22% of fraternal (dizygotic) twins were
•likewise homosexual
•11% of adoptive brothers of homosexual
•men were homosexual
Dean Hamer—The Gay Gene
on the X Chromosome
In many families, gay
men had gay relatives
through maternal
lines. Thus, they
concluded that a gene
for homosexuality
might be found on the X
chromosome
•9.2% of non-twin biological siblings reported
homosexual orientations (Bailey and Pillard, 1991,
“A Genetic Study of Male Sexual Orientation”)
•48% of identical twins of homosexual women
were likewise
•16% of fraternal (dizygotic) twins were likewise
homosexual
If there was, in fact, a “gay gene,” then all of the
identical twins should have reported a
homosexual orientation.
More adoptive brothers shared homosexuality
than non-twin biological brothers.
Of the 40 pairs of homosexual brothers he
analyzed, Hamer found that 33 exhibited a
matching DNA region called q28—a gene located
at the tip of the long arm of the X chromosome. In
summarizing their findings, Hamer and colleagues
noted: “Our experiments suggest that a locus (or
loci) related to sexual orientation lies within
approximately 4 million base pairs of DNA on the
tip of the long arm of the X chromosome” (1993,
261:326, parenthetical item in orig.).
One of the most significant problems with Hamer’s
approach is that he and his colleagues did not feel
that it was necessary to check whether any of the
heterosexual men in these families shared the
marker in question!
Obviously if they possessed it the theory
would fall apart
Additionally, Hamer never explained why the
other seven pairs of brothers did not display the
same genetic marker
Someone else checked out the
Xq28 chromosome
George Rice and his colleagues from Canada
looked intently at the gene Xq28. They then
observed: “Allele and halotype sharing for these
markers was not increased over
expectation. These results do not support an Xlinked gene underlying male homosexuality”
(1999, 284:665, emp. added). Rice, et al., included
182 families in their study. They noted:
“It is unclear why our results are so discrepant
from Hamer’s original study. Because our study
was larger than that of Hamer et al., we certainly
had adequate power to detect a genetic effect as
large as was reported in that study. Nonetheless,
our data do not support the presence of a gene of
large effect influencing sexual orientation at
position Xq28 (284:667).”
Other studies have also been done and do not
agree University of Chicago psychiatrist
Alan Sanders
A bigger problem with this idea of homosexuality
and gay orientation being genetic
A child born with Down’s syndrome will carry that
chromosomal abnormality throughout
his or her life.
Problem: Many people have been able to
successfully change their sexual orientation from
homosexual to heterosexual
How to you change your genetics?
The National Association for Research and
Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) released the
results of a two-year study stating:
“Before treatment, 68 percent of the respondents
perceived themselves as exclusively or almost
entirely homosexual, with another 22 percent
stating that they were more homosexual than
heterosexual. After treatment, only 13 percent
perceived themselves as exclusively or almost
entirely homosexual, while 33 percent described
themselves as either exclusively or almost entirely
heterosexual (see Nicolosi, 2000, 86:1071).”
“Although 83 percent of respondents indicated that
they entered therapy primarily because of
homosexuality, 99 percent of those who participated
in the survey said they now believe treatment to
change homosexuality can be effective and valuable”
One more interesting problem…
“Individuals who have partners of the same sex are
biologically unable to reproduce (without resorting to
artificial means). Therefore, if an alleged “gay gene”
did exist, the homosexual population eventually
would disappear altogether.”
Paul Cameron, Ph. D. “Two large studies asked
homosexual respondents to explain the origins of their
desires and behaviors - how they "got that way." The first
of these studies was conducted by Kinsey in the 1940s
and involved 1700 homosexuals. The second, in
1970, involved 979 homosexuals.
Both were conducted prior to the period when the "gay
rights" movement started to politicize the issue of
homosexual origins. Both reported essentially the same
findings: Homosexuals overwhelmingly believed their
feelings and behavior were the result of social or
environmental influences.”
Should we impose our views on other?
Where is the argument at? Defining marriage
Should homosexuals have the same “rights” as
heterosexuals do in marriage?
They do have the same rights as heterosexuals do!
Everyone has the same rights in this country…
Every male can marry a female, every female can
marry a male
They want to change and create new rights
They say they want the same benefits as we get in
heterosexual relationships?
Why though does the government give incentives
for two heterosexuals to get married?
The primary reason is procreation!
It’s good for the country
Other reasons have to do with family structures
being a healthy environment for
children to be raised
What’s the problem with changing the
definition of marriage?
The arguments (like with abortion) can not be
consistently applied to other areas of life
If we should redefine marriage to mean one man
and one man, what is the problem with continuing
to define it?
Should we make it legal to marry your siblings? Or
for a father to marry his son? Just as long as they
can’t reproduce and cause problems in offspring?
What about those who are interested in marrying
and having relations with animals?
What about those
who want to legally
practice polygamy?
Nothing is
genetically wrong
with the practice, so
should we legal that
practice as well?
Where do we draw the line and say “That’s not marriage”?
Homosexual activists argue that same-sex
“marriage” is a civil rights issue similar to the
struggle for racial equality in the 1960s.
First of all, sexual behavior and race are essentially
different realities. A man and a woman wanting to
marry may be different in their characteristics: one
may be black, the other white; one rich, the other
poor; or one tall, the other short. None of these
differences are insurmountable obstacles to marriage.
The two individuals are still man and woman, and
thus the requirements of nature are respected.
Same-sex “marriage” opposes nature. Two
individuals of the same sex, regardless of their
race, wealth, stature, erudition or fame, will never
be able to marry because of an insurmountable
biological impossibility.
Secondly, inherited and unchangeable racial traits
cannot be compared with non-genetic and
changeable behavior. There is simply no analogy
between the interracial marriage of a man and a
woman and the “marriage” between two
individuals of the same sex.
Gay couples adopting
The number of children raised by lesbian and gay
parents has skyrocketed in the last two decades.
According to 2000 census data, nearly 600,000
American households are anchored by a same-sex
couple, and nearly a quarter of them
are raising children.
Not the Biblical environment for children
Doesn’t give the child the aspects of a
caring/loving mother, and a strong/leading father
figure like the Bible speaks of
Health problems with a homosexual lifestyle
Lower life expectancy
Gay men lifespan shorter than non gay men: "The
life expectancy for gay and bisexual men is 8 to 20
years less than for men in general. Robert S. Hogg
et al., "Modeling the Impact of HIV Disease on
Mortality in Gay and Bisexual Men," International
Journal of Epidemiology 26 (1997): 657.“
(Exodus Global Alliance)
Sex of women with women at greater health risk
than women with men: "For women, a history of
sex with women may be a marker for increased
risk of adverse sexual, reproductive, and general
health outcomes compared with women who
reported sex exclusively with men."
Breast Cancer higher among Lesbians: "Breast
cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed
among women and is the leading cause of cancer
death among women in the United States,
following cancers of the skin and lung.
Recent research has
identified risk factors for
breast cancer that may
differentially affect lesbian
and bisexual women,
including nulliparity and
higher rates of alcohol
consumption and
overweight, that may
place this population at
geater [sic] risk than
heterosexual women of
developing breast cancer."
HIV problems
2% of U.S. population is gay yet it accounts for 61% of
HIV infection: "Men who have sex with men remain
the group most heavily affected by new HIV
infections. While CDC estimates that MSM represent
only 2 percent of the U.S. population, they accounted
for the majority (61 percent; 29,300) of all new HIV
infections in 2009. Young MSM (ages 13 to 29) were
most severely affected, representing more than one
quarter of all new HIV infections nationally (27
percent; 12,900 in 2009)."
What if they are monogamous through life?
"In their study of the sexual profiles of 2,583 older
homosexuals published in Journal of Sex Research,
Paul Van de Ven et al. found that "the modal range
for number of sexual partners ever [of
homosexuals] was 101–500." In addition, 10.2
percent to 15.7 percent had between 501 and
1000 partners. A further 10.2 percent to 15.7
percent reported having had more than 1000
lifetime sexual partners. Paul Van de Ven et al., "A
Comparative Demographic and Sexual Profile of
Older Homosexually Active Men," Journal of Sex
Research 34 (1997): 354."
For wanting to be accepted, the homosexual
community sure doesn’t accept others beliefs
Christians running a
bed and breakfast only
allowed married
couples to stay at their
B&B, and instead of just
finding somewhere
else, what does the
LGBT movement do?
Sue them.
Churches can be sued
or in a lot of legal
trouble if they decide
to not perform a
homosexual
wedding! The
homosexuals don’t
want tolerance
between different
beliefs, they want
everyone to agree
with them.
Vocalizing your beliefs on
homosexuality is called
hate speech now… while
homosexuals can cuss out
Christianity with no
consequences
What should our goals be politically?
Banning homosexual marriage is what Christians
should vote for because:
1: God created marriage between
one man and one women
2: There is no economic benefit to homosexual
marriages like with heterosexuals
3: Homosexuals are at risk for great health problems
4: If they adopt or have kids unnaturally, the children
always lack father or mother
Memory verse
1 Thessalonians 4:3:
“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that
you should abstain from sexual immorality;”