Modern Judaism: Marriage and Gay Marriage

The Authorized Daily Prayer Book:

Here, Joseph Hertz discussed the importance of marriage in Jewish tradition. He claimed that marriage was apart of "the scheme of Creation," intended for all human beings. He then stated that the two purposes of marriage were "posterity and companionship." He discussed each of these in detail. He elucidated that posterity originated from Genesis, in which God commanded humans to be fruitful and multiply. He then pointed out the importance of children in the bible. For instance, when Abraham's wife had not yet bore a son at such an old age, he claimed that his marriage failed. In other words, without children, a man could not have someone carry on his work. It was through the children of couples that they would be able to make an impact on history. They would be unrecognized, and could not influence the future. As such, bearing children and having them carry on traditions and work of their parents was a form of immortality. Without Abraham's son, Abraham could not pass on his knowledge and work of God, and thus, would not be remembered.

Next, Hertz discussed companionship, which he also claimed originated from the book of Genesis, in which women are described as the man's helpmate. In fact, since women were created from man's rib, without women, men were incomplete. This also originated from Genesis 1, in which male and female were created together. Thus, if a man did not have a women, he would be lacking in completeness of body, soul, and spirit. Because of this, any sexual activity outside of marriage was considered an abomination in Judaism, which included homosexuality, bestiality, etc. Another important concept arising from this notion of companionship was monogamy. According to Hertz, the Creation story clearly demonstrated that men should establish union with one woman, since Adam's sole companion was Eve.

Furthermore, Hertz claimed that because male and female were created together and both in the image of God, both male and female shared equal dominion over the earth. Because of this, the wives of the Patriarchs all were equal to their husbands. This was also why, in the Ten Commandments, both the father and the mother were supposed to be honored by their offspring.

Homosexuality and the Order of Creation:

Samuel Dresner compared homosexuality to incest and sex with a beast. He claimed that homosexuality was a violation of the order of creation. His first argument was that since male and female were created together, male and female must find companions in one another. Furthermore, because it was not good for Adam to be alone, it was necessary for him to have a companion. He tried this with beasts, and only found completion through Eve. Thus, because of this, heterosexuality is the only accepted sexual act. However, just because one is homosexual, it does not mean they cannot have a companion. And on the other note, Adam was never given the choice of a male companion like he was given the option of animal companions. Thus, there was no point in Genesis in which Adam decided that sex with a member of the same sex was against nature. As such, homosexuality does not qualify to be on the same level as sex with beasts.

Dresner then pointed out that God commanded humans to reproduce, which is obviously impossible through sexual intercourse between members of the same sex. However, today, reproduction is possible through acts other than coitus. Many gay and lesbian couples have joined forces and contributed sperm and egg, and conception takes place in vitro. Thus, science and technology has allowed for reproduction amongst gay couples to occur.

He elucidated further that Genesis established the husband-wife relationship as apart of natural order, which can only be established through a heterosexual couple. However, as studies have shown, individuals in homosexual relationships can take on divergent gender roles. One member of the homosexual relationship takes on the "Wife" role, while another takes on the "husband." Thus, this relationship established in Genesis can still be fulfilled in homosexual couples.

Furthermore, because male and female were created together, Dresner explained that men were not fully human until they had a female mate. However, does this mean that anyone not having sex, including priests and other celibates, were not complete or less holy than others. Thus, Dresner's statement contradicts Christian doctrines, in which priests make a commitment to God and become celibate.

Dresner also stated that because God cursed the generations after Adam with a flood because of sexual deviation, this meant that homosexuality was an abomination. In fact, Dresner once again compared homosexuality with sexual deviations as whoredom, incest, and sex with beasts. He then stated that before the flood, Noah, his sons, and all male species of beasts were grouped with a female, and thus, because of this, heterosexuality was the only accepted sexual orientation. However, there was no statement in the Bible explaining this interpretation. From the text mentioned, there was no mention of sex between members of the same sex. Thus, homosexuality was merely interpreted as being apart of the sexual deviations spoken about in the Bible. Furthermore, the grouping of males and females in the story of Noah's ark was merely for the survival of all living species on Earth.

Dresner then explained that the frequent motif of family and the Patriarch and Matriarch relationship established in the Bible was a clear indication of the only acceptable form of human sexuality as being heterosexual. He explained that the concept of family was the only acceptable form of marriage, and the four features of the family were "home, permanence, fidelity, and mutuality." All four of these features, however, are also possible in homosexual relationships. Thus, Dresner clearly only assumes that heterosexuality is acceptable, when the fact is, homosexual relationships can be just as successfully monogamous and compassion as heterosexual ones.

Dresner contradicted himself numerous times in the text. He explained that the Greek tragedy of Oedipus was an indication of Greeks belief that homosexuality was a form of sexual confusion and could lead to tragedy. However, it was the Greeks that were notably acceptable of homosexual activity. One famous homosexual in Greek history was Alexander the Great, arguably one of the most celebrated Greek leaders in all history. Furthermore, this tragedy was merely fiction, and had no historical context. It's sole purpose was drama and entertainment. Furthermore, he compared the "disease" of homosexuality to the blind and deaf. In other words, homosexuality disables a gay man, and the gay man has no choice in the matter. However, he then claimed that homosexuality was a choice. Thus, he clearly contradicted himself, further deteriorating any authority he has in the concept of homosexuality and marriage.

Ever Since Adam and Eve:

This collection explained the multifarious attributes of human sexuality, how it was analogous and divergent to other species'. It began with a brief description of the general sexual activities between mammals. Men usually are polygamous, while females are usually monogamous. Males tend to compete for their wives. The author even noted that humans probably should be polygamous according the rest of nature, but the institution of marriage established by humans complicates this matter. The author then attempted to elucidate what makes humans different from the rest of the creatures on earth in this aspect of life.

Then, the author noted various instances of monogamy in nature. Female animals, especially as they become further along in evolution, tend to be more selective than males. This of course is because pregnancy and lactation require much more energy from the female. Thus, bearing children has much more energy costs for females than males, and thus a female has to be more selective. She also preferrably should have some sort of bond with her male mate, so that he can provide her with the protection and food during pregnancy and shortly after, a very vulnerable time for the female.

Also, where men produce 150 million sperm per day, women only produce about 450 eggs in an entire life time. Thus, men can father many more children than a women can bear. This is not just because of the costs of pregnancy for females, but because females only have a limited amount of eggs for only a fertile period in their life, whereas the males produce sperm their entire life. The author also noted that monogamy existed as apart of the natural selection mentioned by Darwin. The males compete for their wives in many species, and the female usually has not choice but to allow the physically strongest animal copulate with her, since he usually wins the battle. Thus, the "better genes" get passed on to the offspring of the two. Thus, monogamy is nature's way of preserving the good genes, and ridding nature of "bad genes." For instance, in humans, men and women usually choose their mates based on their appearance. What usually is most attractive to humans is a sign of health and fertility, since youth is usually associated with beauty. Thus, good genes will be passed on.

The author also noted that evolution has separated humans from the rest of the animal kingdom in their inclination to raise families and put much more time into the upbringing of children. Furthermore, humans and many primates have established the notion of infertile sex, in which sex is not just for procreation, but for the mere sexual pleasure associated with it.

Sexual jealous, according to the author, drives much of human monogamy. This appeared to be a purely human trait. Women of course tended to become more jealous when men were more emotionally involved, while men tended to be more jealous when their female mate was sexually involved with another. This of course leads to the idea of keeping sex private. If sex was not private, humans would all be extremely jealous of one another. Thus, monogamous and private sex were clearly and purely human.

According to studies, men had much more sexual partners than women. They usually went after younger women. This of course has its roots in science. Men choose the more attractive, which usually means youthful looking, mate because they appear to be fertile and to possess the best genes. Men are fertile until death, while women are only fertile for a limited time. Thus, women are much more selective of their mates.