Public Discourses About Homosexuality and Religion in Europe and Beyond

This volume addresses three things many people do not discuss candidly with strangers or mere acquaintances: God, sex, and politics. These can easily become topics of fierce debate, particularly when taken together, as has been the case with same-sex marriage legislation, the Vatican’s criticism of “gender ideology,” or the repeatedly asserted claim that Islam, homosexuality, and gender equality are essentially incompatible. This volume investigates what is at stake in these constructions of religion and homosexuality in public discourses. Starting with the Netherlands as a special case study, it proceeds with contributions on other predominantly postsecular countries in central, northern, and southern Europe as well as several postcommunist and postcolonial countries “beyond Europe.” Combining contemporary and historical perspectives and approaches from both the humanities and the social sciences, the contributors explore how national and European identities are constructed and contested in debates on religion and homosexuality. Chapter 2 and Chapter 8 of this book are available open access under a CC BY 4.0 license at link.springer.com. Acknowledgments Contents Notes on Contributors List of Figures 1 Public Discourses About Homosexuality and Religion in Europe and Beyond: An Introduction References 2 Hellish Evil, Heavenly Love: A Long-Term History of Same-Sex Sexuality and Religion in the Netherlands The Will to Know Decriminalization Recriminalization, and Emancipation “God Knows” “Great Sin, but Human, All Too Human” “Mental Rehabilitation” Pastors and the Homosexual Neighbor “Do Not Judge, but Be Outraged” Incorporation Homosexuality as a Confessional Issue “Either Gay, or a Christian” Equal Rites Before the Law Given Versus Choice Still Others Conclusion References 3 Sexuality, Religion, and Education: (Re)Production of Culturalist Discourse in Sexual Diversity Education in the Netherlands Introduction Dutch Political Investments in Sexual Diversity The Politics of Sexual Diversity Education Discourse and Reproduction in Sexual Diversity Education Discourse of Sexual Diversity Education: Six Sources Public Sexuality, Isolated Sexuality Race, Culture, and Sexuality Towards Antiracist and Inclusive Sexual Diversity Education References 4 A Postprogressive Nation: Homophobia, Islam, and the New Social Question in the Netherlands A Postprogressive Nation Social Democracy and the “New Social Question” Civil Islam: Sexuality and Liberal Muslims Lifting the Taboo on Homosexuality Conclusion References 5 Culture Wars About Sexuality: A Theological Proposal for Dialogue Introduction Stories About (Late) Modernity Interrelatedness of Both Groups Late-Modern Orthodox Christians “Emancipatory Liberals” Nourished by the Christian Past A Dialogue for Mutual Benefit What “Orthodox Christians” Can Learn from “Emancipatory Liberals” What “Emancipatory Liberals” Can Learn from “Orthodox Christians” Conclusion References 6 Queering Judaism and Masculinist Inventions: German Homonationalism Around 1900 Genealogies of Contemporary Discursive Struggles The Male Gender Crisis and the Protestant Moral Purity Movement “Third Sex” Versus Masculinism: The Inner Division in the Discourse on Homosexuality Excursus: Jews and Judaism as Models of the Other in Colonial Discourse Hans Blüher: Male Band Versus “Jewish Decadence” Male Band (Männerbund) as a Colonial Transfer Erotics of State and “Race” The Sacralization of the Male Society as Nucleus of a New Religion Conclusion References 7 Antisemitism and Homophobia in Polish Liberal Discourses: The Cultural Logic of Comparison and a Proposal for Intersectionality Introduction Analogies: Parallels and Bridges, Strategies and Problems Polish “Liberal” Framing of the Analogy Downplaying “False Friends” Fixation Movements and Intersections Intersectionality Thinking Through Intersections of Sexuality and Racism in Poland Conclusion References 8 The Changing Relation Between Sexual and Gender Minorities and Religion in Finland: Some Observations in the Light of Postsecularity In the Wake of the Postsecular Religion and Sexual and Gender Diversity in Finland Attitudes Affecting Lives Media and New Arenas Concluding Remarks References 9 Debating Homosexuality in Italy: Plural Religious Voices in the Public Sphere Introduction LGBT+ Rights in Italy LGBT+ Mobilization and Italian Politics Catholicism, Homosexuality, and the Public Sphere The Other Voices and the Voices of the Others: Complex Entanglements of Religion and Homosexuality Negotiating Boundaries References 10 The Ultraconservative Agenda Against Sexual Rights in Spain: A Catholic Repertoire of Contention to Reframe Public Concerns Public Religion, Private Religiosity Catholic Post-secularism and the Anti-gender Agenda Actors and Repertoires of Mobilizations Against Sexual Rights in Spain The Repertoire of Contention and the Secular/Religious Kaleidoscope References 11 The Catholic Opposition to Gender and Sexual Equality in France: Reviving the Traditional Condemnation of Homosexuality During the Debates on Marriage for All? Translating Religious Statements into Secular Statements A Mobilization in Line with the Teaching of the Magisterium The Mobilization of Some Bishops and Activists Resorting to Secular Arguments An Inflection in the Relationship to Homosexuality? An Eruption of Homophobia Dissenting Voices Within the Catholic Community Accommodation Conclusion References 12 Ecce Homo in Sweden and Serbia: State, Church, and Blasphemy Introduction Blasphemy Ecce Homo in Sweden Two Serbias Who Do You Think You Are? Opponents Who Do You Think I Am? Apologists The Role of Blasphemy Cases in Community Building “Whose Are Love, Faith and Hope?” the Provocation “Your Holiness, Tell Them Whose”: The Reassertion of Authority Conclusion: Community as Consensus on the Sacred References 13 “Gays as a Weapon of the Antichrist”: Religious Nationalism, Homosexuality, and the Antichrist on the Russian Internet Critical Discourse Analysis as a Set of “Conceptual Tools” Uniqueness of RuNet The Phenomenon of Religious Nationalism Orthodox Fundamentalism and Homosexuality Is the Antichrist Gay? Conclusion References 14 The Empire Speaks Back: Zambian Responses to European Union LGBTI Rights Diplomacy Introduction The Context of Zambia The EU Call for Proposals Local Opposition Speaking Back as Catachresis References 15 Conservative Islamic Forces, Global LGBT Rights, and Anticipatory Homophobia in Indonesia Introduction Homosexuality in the Early Postcolonial Period and New Order Era The Rise of Homophobia in the Democratic Regime Anticipatory Homophobia in the Age of Same-Sex Marriage Conclusion References Index