Abstract
This article presents a critique of three hermeneutical strategies com monly used by gay men to deflect anti-homosexual attacks. The first, labelled 'The Pissing Contest', involves the massing of evidence to demonstrate a superior interpretative perspective than those who claim the Bible condemns homosexuality. The second, 'Jesus Is My Trump Card', places practice of the historical Jesus in contrast to the assump tions of the dominant tradition. The third, 'I Can Fit the Glass Slipper Too', searches the scriptural texts to uncover the active presence of the 'queer tribe' within the foundational narratives of the Church.
It is argued that all these strategies are inadequate. They are primar ily defensive and seek legitimation from external sources rather than through harnessing the power to be found within the erotic knowledge of gay men themselves. In contrast, a homoerotic reading of Scripture is offered which 'cruises' the Bible for pleasure and moments of delightful encounter with those characters and stories which offer moments of identification, points of connection and the possibility of transformation.
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