Joe Bellucci / Sun Staff Leviticus 20 reads, “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination.” For 10 years, on Yom Kippur, as Orthodox Rabbi Steven Greenberg heard these words beam from the podium, he wept. The rabbi, who had discovered his homosexuality at age 20 in rabbinical school, knew these words were directed at him, and he felt powerless in their presence.

Then, on his 11th Yom Kippur as a gay rabbi, Steven Greenberg decided to confront the words head-on. The rabbi opted to stand alone on the podium and read the words out loud. As he did, an “immense sense of calm” came over him. In this moment, Rabbi Steven Greenberg said that if he, whom these words directly affected stood silent, then the words would forever stand as an unchallenged tyrant.

“People that bear the weight of this verse … have been crushed by this verse … if they aren’t present to discuss what it means and how it applies, nobody knows what it means,” Greenberg said.

Thus, it became Greenberg’s mission to discuss his sexuality openly and help himself and others like him understand their place in the Jewish religion. Greenberg discussed what it means to be “Orthodox, Outspoken and Out of the Closet” last night in Rockefeller.

He first realized the extent of his belonging in the Orthodox community at age 16. An elderly woman in his community had passed away, and because Jewish law forbids a dead body to be left alone, Greenberg’s rabbi asked him to sit with the deceased lady for three hours, and read psalms to her.

It was at rabbinical school that Greenberg realized he belonged to another community in addition to the orthodox one. Greenberg became conscious of the fact that he awoke eagerly every morning in hopes of seeing one of his fellow male peers in the shower. At this time, Greenberg first recognized his sexuality.

In search of solace, or at least an understanding, Greenberg traveled to see one of the country’s most conservative rabbis. Greenberg explained to the rabbi that he was attracted to both “men and women” for as, Greenberg explains, most homosexuals start initially believe they are attracted to both sexes. The rabbi responded with words that still today clearly resonate in Greenberg’s heart.

Although the words offered Greenberg a poetic take on his life, they were unable to provide him with a clear path of how to balance his homosexuality and his Judaism. This path became clear to Greenberg on the aforementioned Yom Kippur, when Greenberg realized that his duty was to present to the Jewish community the gay view on the words that had been interpreted to alienate him.

Once public, Greenberg continued to write and speak publicly about the nature of homosexuality within the context of Orthodox Judaism. His new book, Wrestling with God and Men: Homosexuality in the Jewish Tradition deals with many of the issues.

In the book, Greenberg discusses four main reasons why Judaism forbids homosexuality. The first is that it stands in the way of reproduction, the second is that it provides temptation for a man to cheat on his wife, the third is that it confuses clarity of gender and the fourth is that it is “fundamentally and structurally violent,” Greenberg said.

This fourth reason is the one that Greenberg detailed the most in his lecture. According to Greenberg, due to the patriarchal nature of society and thus religion, many see sex as an act in which a man subjugates a woman. Such is the case, because both society and religion see men as more powerful than women.

This interpretation has two implications. First, Greenberg said, it implies that anti-gay attitudes are, in truth, products of a misogynistic culture. If people did not view sex as an act of oppression, but rather of equal input, people would not see gay sex as an act of degradation, he argued.

Second, he said, this interpretation allows gays to find some degree of acceptance in the Jewish faith. For if in condemning homosexuality the Torah is really saying, “do not use sex to humiliate, demean or undermine a person,” then gays do not need to feel like such outcasts, according to Greenberg.

Although Greenberg offered new interpretations in which gays can find their place in the Jewish religion, he did not profess a desire to radically alter the standing of Orthodox Judaism.

As Greenberg explained, his goal is not for gays and the orthodox establishment to interpret the text in the exact same way, for that will never happen. Rather, Greenberg hopes that both sides can arrive at the same place, which is acceptance of gays and lesbians into the Orthodox Jewish community, whether or not their reasoning is the same.

“There must be a way to read the text to mean what it has meant for thousands of years and still welcome gays and lesbians,” explained Greenberg.

This idea of working with, and not against tradition, is one that apparently not only applies to Judaism. John Phan grad, a Catholic who attended the lecture, found Greenberg’s arguments applicable to his religion as well.

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