Our purpose for this article is to explore the Biblical and spiritual dynamics of “cross dressing”. In part one we’ll examine from a Judeo-Christian worldview and on part two we will examine the spiritual dynamics behind this broken image phenomena.
In April 2010 GCM Watch told you about so called “Transgender women” and the Bible” . Among the widening spectrum of gender confusion are pre-operation “transgenders”, “drag kings” ,”drag queens” ,transvestic fetishism , and lesbians portray male personas i.e. butch; stud. From some professional sociologist and psychologist standpoints not every person that cross dresses is homosexual, however crossdressing/drag has been part of western gay culture. But does God approve of such actions?
A mainstream drag
Now days drag has gone mainstream in today society on the most part socially accepted.
Recently at the MTV Video Music Awards Lady Gaga appeared in drag as her male alter-ego Joe Calderone.
Female impersonator RuPaul’s VH1 reality show contest has lasted four seasons.
Some Hollywood male stars have taken on roles in drag. For example the late Tony Curtis in “Some Like it Hot”, Robin Williams in “Mrs. Doubtfire”, Flip Wilson as “Geraldine”, Eddie Murphy in “Norbit”, Martin Lawrence in “Big Momma’s House”, and Tyler Perry as “Madea”, a gun toting, loud mouth cussing, scripture misquoting scriptures, marijuana smoking elderly woman. All Murphy, Lawrence, and Perry playing female characters that are made in the image of the black mammy type, have made $100s million dollars on these types of movies, laughing all the way to the bank.
Female caricatures are seen as marketable, and socially acceptable, no longer the underground taboo it once was.
Religion puts on a dress
Gcmwatch posted an article called UFCM Convocation reprise Canaanite religious abomination on September 4, 2010 last year, in which Unity Fellowship Church Movement sponsored a drag queen contest. The contest was called “Bright Life: The Illumination”, which was headlined by Bebe Zahara Benet(pictured on the right) the 2009 winner of Rupaul’s Drag Race reality television show. Benetwho real name is Nea Marshall Kudi is a former male model from Cameroon, who got his first taste of drag while in Paris at a fashion show, when he asked to dress and walk the runway as a female at the last minute when a female model didn’t show up, it was the birth of him becoming a drag queen. Kudi describes his female persona as Bebe. As Gcmwatch touched on is that Unity Fellowship Church Movement had enter into religious sexual idolatry of the Canaanites.
Old Testament View of Cross dressing
Deuteronomy 22:5 says, “The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto man, neither shall a man put on a woman garments: for all that do so are abomination unto the Lord thy God.” This scripture enjoins the children of Israel against engaging in the perverse religious practice of Baal and Asherah worship. Baal worship incorporated men dressed as woman and take on the sexual role of female, and woman would dress as men and take on the sexual role of a male. Sexual orgies ensued as they believed this pleased their idols.
In Maimonides in his law code Mishneh Torah, had list cross-dressing prohibited by Deuteronomy 22:5, which forbid a man to wear clothes normally for a woman, and clothes normally worn by men shouldn’t be worn by women.
The Jewish Sages understood also the prohibition not just to clothing, but also cosmetic activities that maybe feminine in nature, therefore could not be practice by men, which is found in Nazir, ibid.; Code of Jewish Law Yoreh Deah 182.
Now some in branches of Judaism believe that during Feast of Purim, people can cross-dress for entertainment only for this celebration only, and not the use of promiscuity. However, majority of conservative Orthodox Jewish Rabbi’s and synagogues believe that cross-dressing for Purim is prohibited, and even a drag queen in today time would violate this prohibition(here).
In all cases the Old Testament and in Judaism forbids cross-dressing, and nowhere it could be found this practice acceptable in the Old Testament or in Judaism. But is the prohibition just a matter of Old Testament law no longer applicable?
The New Testament view
Although the Apostle Paul addresses this issue in 1 Corinthians 11:1-16, it is often misinterpreted. Most theologians are ignore this as a prominent strain in the Greco-Roman culture that influenced the Gentiles of that era.
Many of the new converts at the Church of Corinth were former devotees of mythological deities Venus, Poseidon, Apollo, and Dionysus. The issue was that some of the new converts in Corinth were coming into the church leaving there pagan gods, but were keeping their perverse behavior was associated with these gods. Some of the new male converts that worshipped Poseidon were still wearing there hair long in a feminine way and wearing veil to cover their head and face, which was connected to their former religion of Poseidon which promoted homosexuality(source).
With some of the new female converts at Corinthian Church, they were still cutting or shaving all their off hair and being unveiled to look like a man as they had done in their previous religion of Apollo and Dionysos; this practiced promoted lesbianism. In rare vase painting from Corinth it shows a woman dressed in satyr pants equipped with a male organ. The women who worshipped Dionysus would dance before this deity who had been raised as a girl and was himself called male-female and sham man( see here and here).
Apostle Paul is addressing issues that were more dominant in with the Gentile culture, than that of the Jewish culture. Paul in his evangelistic travels and planting churches among the Gentiles, finds homosexuality, lesbianism, cross-dressing, and sexual immorality more prevalent among the Gentiles than that of the Jews.
Paul was commissioned by Jesus Christ Himself to be an Apostle to the Gentile nations, to carry the Gospel to the Gentile world. Acts 26: 16-18 Jesus said to Paul on the road to Damascus, “But arise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.
Robert
Posted September 21, 2011 at 12:45 AM
If you see Gaga doing it, you know its the devil, that would be a huge indicator. But you know some “Christians” will defend Gaga more than Christ because they don’t want to delete her songs off their iPhone.
I have heard many homosexuals make the argument that since they are not temple prostitutes that certain Scriptural references condemning effeminate and homosexual behavior don’t apply to them. But the only problem is the Bible calls our body a temple for the dwelling place for the Father and the Son, therefore we are to keep it holy. The only sex allowed is man + women and marriage anything else defiles the body (temple). Also gender bending and wearing clothing designed for the other sex is also a form of worship to the false god baal peor.
by gcm
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