The author presents a viewpoint not often heard in the current cacophony of Christian debate over the place of people with alternative sexuality. She writes to a religious audience struggling to get beyond the sin model, which views non-heterosexuals as "evil" due to freely made choices. She opposes the illness model, which connotes a psychological problem needing to be "fixed" or "cured." She presents poignant vignettes of people from various parts of the gay/lesbian community and chronicles her own evolution from ignorance, to visceral avoidance, to active advocacy. 

No issue more polarizes American Protestants today than the church's stance on homosexuality. A number of denominations have engaged in prolonged and divisive debate on the subject in recent years, and it appears that it will occupy their attention for some time to come. While numerous attempts have been made to change these denominations' official stance on the issue, most have failed to do so. This leaves those who favor full inclusion of persons  of gay and lesbian orientation into the life of the church with difficult choices. Should they remain within their denomination and keep silent, or should they leave it in protest? The answer, say contributors to this book, is neither. Those whose conscience leads them to disagree with their church must continue to work for change, forming a "loyal opposition" within the denomination. The authors call for a principled and disciplined response to the official condemnations of homosexuals, one that is serious in its commitment to the difficult process of reconciliation and forgiveness. Faithfulness to the gospel, they remind us, requires nothing less than that we be committed to the full inclusion of all persons in the Body of Christ - not least of all those who disagree with us. 

Contributors to this book, all members of the Princeton Theological Seminary faculty, address the various exegetical, interpretive, and practical issues pertaining to the issue of homosexuality in the church. As theological educators, ministers, and committed Christians, they ask, What do the scriptures say about homosexuality and related issues? How should the scriptures inform our theological reflection? How do we live faithfully in regard to this matter? Like the Christian community at large, the contributors are not of one mind on any of these issues; many times they are in considerable disagreement. This book will help the reader think more clearly about this important issue. 

A basic text for those who affirm committed gay/lesbian relationships. Winner of the 1981 American Book Award for History, Boswell's work is seen by many as being both objective and scholarly. Of particular interest are his  exhaustive word studies on specific disputed terms.

This is an important foundational book and I suggest that it be one of the first books you read. The author summarizes six representative viewpoints which cover the spectrum of current Christian thought on homosexuality. He does not try to convince you that any one viewpoint is correct, but presents the arguments for each in an unbiased manner, shows how it has been criticized, and explains how the proponents of that viewpoint answer their critics. The author's stated goal is to "synthesize and popularize the extensive scholarly and theological work that has been done on the question of Christian faith and the homosexual person and to render the complexity and breadth of that material accessible to others who, for pastoral or personal reasons, seek to move beyond polemics and absolutist pronouncements to a thoughtful consideration of the scope of Christian thinking on this issue."

The chapter "Grace-Healed Eyes," chronicles the author's friendship with Mel White, a former pastor, a teacher at Fuller Seminary and a ghostwriter for such evangelical leaders as Billy Graham, Pat Robertson, Francis Schaeffer, Oliver North and Jerry Falwell. When Mel finally admitted his lifelong struggles with homosexuality, many of these former colleagues distanced themselves from him, but Yancy remained his friend, even though disagreeing with his choices. 

McNeill, a Jesuit priest at the time the book was published, articulates his view from the perspective of traditional Roman Catholic moral theology. This work, for which he was expelled from his order, has had wide influence. McNeill was one of the founders of Dignity, the national organization for gay and lesbian Catholics.

The author, a sociologist and ethnographer, spent over three years volunteering in the New Hope residential program and conducting many interviews with participants and leaders, as well as those from other ministries and religions, attempting to uncover the various theories and methods of therapy that underlie them.

Johnson looks at SGRs from both a religious perspective and a social one. The religious view comes first because he writes as a PC(USA) member. He describes 7 approaches to SGRs and same-sexuality, and explains why he thinks his is the soundest of them all. Then he reviews recent American legal cases and political changes that affect the conversation in this country. He frames it as being about equality, and predicts that the climate will shift over time in favor of full equitable inclusion.

Martin looks at different models of reading scriptures (hermeneutics), critiques the traditional hermeneutic of "the Bible says,” and then applies a postmodern historicist hermeneutic to singlehood, gender, marriage, divorce, and homosexuality.

This is the memoir of a former Jesuit who was expelled from the SoJ by the Vatican under Ratzinger (now Benedict) because of his teachings on sexuality and ministry to the gay community. It starts out dry -- he probably wouldn't write good novels -- but once you get into his style, his story becomes more compelling and shows how his personality and theology evolved through his experiences with the Church.

McNeill also has some solid work available for limited preview/reading on Google books. Taking a Chance on God: Liberating Theology for Gays, Lesbians, and their Lovers, Families, and Friends has some lovely comments on pathological vs healthy religion and how someone might begin the process of reevaluating their religious heritage, taking the good forward, and leaving the dehumanizing stuff behind. McNeill was a Jesuit who was expelled from the order after the Vatican pushed back hard against his teachings on sexuality and the Christian experience of GL believers.

The German author was a Catholic researcher who describes the church's long history with sexual taboos from menstruation through celibacy, the monk/nun tradition, coitus reservatus, theologies of sex and chastity, and divorce. Homosexuality gets a brief chapter at the end in the context of the preceding.

White’s memoir covers his experience as a young and active evangelical Christian, discovering his orientation, marrying a woman, and his emotional turmoil around coming out, divorcing, and starting his life over. It strikes a fair balance between being dominated by his perspective and trying to be fair to the people with whom he strongly disagrees and who he at that time felt very hurt by.