He cited, as supposed evidence, the decline of national church attendance and the rise of LGBTQ youth — the fact, Johnson lamented, that “one-in-four high school students identifies as something other than straight.”
He cited, as supposed evidence, the decline of national church attendance and the rise of LGBTQ youth — the fact, Johnson lamented, that “one-in-four high school students identifies as something other than straight.”
Funny enough, he doesn’t exactly get why Sodom was destroyed. They wanted to take a guest in their town and rape them. Lot offered his daughters instead of the guest, who was an angel, and they refused. (And for some reason, God said Lot was alright despite that.)
What brought down the divine retribution itself wasn’t being gay, but hostility and violence to guests. It wasn’t even sexual assault, since God found Lot to be upstanding and he was going to offer his daughters.
I feel like this interpretation jives pretty well with what Jesus actually said, and ironically enough for Johnson, that places him and his party squarely under God’s wrath. I mean it’s no surprise, but the dramatic irony is hilarious.
Yeah the story of Sodom is a pretty clean example of a hospitality myth. Basically don’t be an asshole to those showing you kindness.
I wonder if the reason these myths seem relatively universal in the eastern Mediterranean is due to the bronze age collapse and raiders. Basically raiders pretend to be refugees to get into a city which that cant easily take from without.
It’s definitely interesting, because the message is to be kind to guests, which runs counter to what you’ve described. Could be this is well enough after that early society has started to see it as unnecessary caution.
Now that I think about it, the story feels like a complete myth, you’re right. The people who refuse to be hospitable are from the worst town ever and they want to do horrible things to the guest, and so God destroyed them all – but spared the person who was kind to the guest. Everything is so exaggerated that it fits perfectly.