General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Leviticus [View all]unblock
(56,085 posts)i've NEVER heard religious christians talk about sex in unambiguously positive terms. at best it seems to be a shameful deed necessary for procreation. procreation is talked about glowingly, but the sex that brings it about is not talked about positively at all.
judaism, on the other hand, views sex as a mitzvah (a good thing) and sex on shabbat in fact is considered a double mitzvah! i've never heard jews, not even orthodox jews, speak of any guilt or shame regarding sex purely for mutual pleasure.
where the jewish sects differ is once you talk about sex outside of marriage, which spills over into discussions of homosexual relations. the orthodox tend to view sex as forbidden prior to marriage, whereas reform jews tend not to be bothered much by premarital sex, at least not on religious grounds.
in terms of gay marriage, again, outside of the orthodox, most jews tend to look past the genitals and just see couples in committed love and what's wrong with that?
