Bible Publishers Sued for Anti-Gay References

Bible Publishers Sued for Anti-Gay References

Thursday, July 10, 2008 10:51 AM

By: Rick Pedraza Article Font Size




A Michigan man is seeking $70 million from two Christian publishers for emotional distress and mental instability he received during the past 20 years from versions of the Bible that refer to homosexuality as a sin.


Bradley LaShawn Fowler, a gay man, claims his constitutional rights were infringed upon by Zondervan Publishing Co. and Thomas Nelson Publishing, both of which, he claims, deliberately caused homosexuals to suffer by misinterpretation of the Bible.

Fowler, 39, is seeking $60 million from Zondervan and another $10 million from Thomas Nelson.

According to a USA Today report, Fowler’s two separate suits against the publishers claim the intent of the Bible revisions that refer to homosexuals as sinners reflect an individual opinion or a group's conclusion.

Fowler says the deliberate changes made to first Corinthians, chapter six, verse nine caused him "or anyone who is a homosexual to endure verbal abuse, discrimination, episodes of hate, and physical violence ... including murder."

Fowler, who is representing himself in both lawsuits, claims the publishers are misinterpreting the Bible by specifically using the word homosexuals, which made him an outcast from his family and contributed to physical discomfort and periods of demoralization, chaos and bewilderment.

“These are opinions based on the publishers and they are being embedded in the religious structure as a way of life," he tells a local NBC TV station affiliate in Grand Rapids.

Fowler admits that every Bible printed is a translation that can be interpreted in many ways, but he says specifically using the word “homosexual” is not a translation but a change.

Fowler says Zondervan Bibles published in the ‘80s used the word homosexuals among a list of those who are “wicked' or unrighteous and won't inherit the kingdom of heaven.”

Zondervan, for its part, issued a statement to the Grand Rapids press stating it does not translate the Bible or own the copyright for any of the translations it publishes

“We rely on the scholarly judgment of the highly respected and credible translation committees behind each translation and never alter the text of the translations we are licensed to publish,” the statement reads.

“We only publish credible translations produced by credible Biblical scholars.”

U.S. District Judge Julian Abele Cook Jr., who will hear Fowler’s case against Thomas Nelson, says the court “has some very genuine concerns about the nature and efficacy of [Fowler’s] claims."




© 2008 Newsmax. All rights reserved.





good Lord, people will do anything for money.

superman said:

The only book I think that should be burned and banned.

good for him, hope he wins.

I hope he wins too. Not for the money as much as the moral victory.
But if the money keeps them from publishing more hatred, then good,

I'm going to have to co-sign on this hoping he wins thing.

We can argue until the cows come home about whether or not the physical act of gay sex is considered a sin and why, but it's an undeniable fact that the word homosexual was deliberately added to some translations in recent years to vilify gay people as a whole and to further an anti-gay agenda. The word did not even exist until about 150 years ago, and the concept of a seperate sexual orientation did not exist until that time either. It is impossible that the Bible as it was originally intended singled out gay people in the way certain modern translations suggest. This is true whether you believe the Bible is literally the Word of God, inspired by God and transcribed by humans, or an entirely human invention.

It's not that The Joker's gay. What he is, is Batsexual. He'd be whacking it to Batsy whether our hero had girl parts or boy parts underneath that rubber.

superman said:

superman said:

So words in a book caused him emotional distress and mental instability?
that makes no sense.

the more i think on it the more i believe i should gift the world with my own 'translation' of the bible

superman said:

thepope2the9s said:

thepope2the9s said:

It's not that The Joker's gay. What he is, is Batsexual. He'd be whacking it to Batsy whether our hero had girl parts or boy parts underneath that rubber.

Oh come on lol ...

And if you're REALLY concerned about all the acts people have done in reaction to words that have been written, sue the dozens of white supremacy groups that are in existence, because THEIR literature literally DOES advocate the killing of minorities and gays. At least it's a stronger case.

And what about all the people who are against things like the Patriot Act because "our safety should not be at the expense of our civil liberties"? Does NOT that same logic and argument apply here? Or are freedom of speech and freedom of expression not civil liberties worth protecting, even if it means we may be less safe?

Come on, you can't possibly hope this wins lol...

I can't agree with Fowler on this one. Bibles in general refer to "homosexuality" as a sin (along with many other sins)... not just those under the publishers of Zondervan and Thoman Nelson.

*God is no more against homosexuality, than the sins I or anyone else struggle with personally.
(In God's eyes sin is sin; none is greater than another)

My Point: He's gonna' have to sue a lot more companies!

meow85 said:

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

superman said:

Bible Publishers Sued for Anti-Gay References

Thursday, July 10, 2008 10:51 AM

By: Rick Pedraza Article Font Size




A Michigan man is seeking $70 million from two Christian publishers for emotional distress and mental instability he received during the past 20 years from versions of the Bible that refer to homosexuality as a sin.


Bradley LaShawn Fowler, a gay man, claims his constitutional rights were infringed upon by Zondervan Publishing Co. and Thomas Nelson Publishing, both of which, he claims, deliberately caused homosexuals to suffer by misinterpretation of the Bible.

Fowler, 39, is seeking $60 million from Zondervan and another $10 million from Thomas Nelson.

According to a USA Today report, Fowler’s two separate suits against the publishers claim the intent of the Bible revisions that refer to homosexuals as sinners reflect an individual opinion or a group's conclusion.

Fowler says the deliberate changes made to first Corinthians, chapter six, verse nine caused him "or anyone who is a homosexual to endure verbal abuse, discrimination, episodes of hate, and physical violence ... including murder."

Fowler, who is representing himself in both lawsuits, claims the publishers are misinterpreting the Bible by specifically using the word homosexuals, which made him an outcast from his family and contributed to physical discomfort and periods of demoralization, chaos and bewilderment.

“These are opinions based on the publishers and they are being embedded in the religious structure as a way of life," he tells a local NBC TV station affiliate in Grand Rapids.

Fowler admits that every Bible printed is a translation that can be interpreted in many ways, but he says specifically using the word “homosexual” is not a translation but a change.

Fowler says Zondervan Bibles published in the ‘80s used the word homosexuals among a list of those who are “wicked' or unrighteous and won't inherit the kingdom of heaven.”

Zondervan, for its part, issued a statement to the Grand Rapids press stating it does not translate the Bible or own the copyright for any of the translations it publishes

“We rely on the scholarly judgment of the highly respected and credible translation committees behind each translation and never alter the text of the translations we are licensed to publish,” the statement reads.

“We only publish credible translations produced by credible Biblical scholars.”

U.S. District Judge Julian Abele Cook Jr., who will hear Fowler’s case against Thomas Nelson, says the court “has some very genuine concerns about the nature and efficacy of [Fowler’s] claims."




© 2008 Newsmax. All rights reserved.





good Lord, people will do anything for money.

Hope he wins 70 million is nothing compared to the damage the church has done to people around this planet for centuries.

Maybe I should sue them, too. I mean, the whole prohibition against sex outside of marriage puts a pretty negative spin on some of the choices I made and would have made with the women I dated.

He's right: It's so unfair when someone says something that comes so naturally is wrong.

I wonder why he's stopping with Bible publishers, though. I mean, if he travels to other parts of the world, surely -- say, in Muslim countries -- the assessment of his lifestyle would be even more extreme.

Bottom line: Everyone can and probably does find a prohibition against their sins, even their "chief sin," in the Bible. As sin, it's labeled a bad thing. It's the whole point.

I wonder how many times this suit will bounce in the street, the day it's thrown out by the judge.

"...and, if it was good in the past, it's still good." -- Sly Stone, Woodstock

thepope2the9s said:

Fritzy said:

this is a ridiculous law suit, lol.

i think any adulterer, any thief, any person who engages in unwed sex...they should all sue any/all publishers of the bible, the q'uran, and the torah because, after all, these books condemn them as sinners.

in fact, any person of any religion should sue the publishers of religious books outside their own faith because, hey, being told you must believe X in order to get to heaven is incredibly stressful.



i'm sorry, this is crazy talk. so a book says you're evil. so stupid people believe you're evil because this book says so. get over it. don't clog the already strained judicial system up with yet another frivolous lawsuit sucking up the state's money.

I am very worried of any government intrusion into any aspect of religion or free speech. This is going to be a very hard case to prove.

FYI: The first part of I Corinthians chapter 6 is about not 'Christians' suing other 'Christians' in worldly courts.

The verse in question dose, in many translations, list 'homosexuality' as a sin that will keep one out of heaven unless they seek salvation and forgivness from Jesus. But I do not think that ANY legitimate translation has anything about killing or attacking them (well not in the New Testament) just that 'the wicked' will not get into heaven.

Now the OT calls for killing people at the drop of a hat. Kid talks back to his parents, gets killed. A unwed woman turns up pregnant she is to be burned (so much for being pro-life).

So if the claim is they made up text beyond the source then they may have a case--even if they get past first amendment issues. But it is going to be hard to prove damages and harder to prove those damages came specifically from the application of the specific texts said to be altered.

An environment of hate towards homosexuals in general is not going to be enough. They are going to have to show that the people that discriminated against him got the idea from on of the bibles in question.

sassybritches said:

WellInever said:

In 1970, I Corinthians 6:9 read as followed-
Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulteres, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effiminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind.

In 1982 ,the same scripture read like this-

Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodimites.

In 2001 the same scripture reads like this-

Surely you know that the people who do wrong will not inherit God’s kingdom. Do not be fooled, those who sin sexually, worship idols, take part in adultery, those who are male prostitutes, or men who have sexual relations with other men, those who steal, are greedy, get drunk, lie about others, or rob thses people will not inherit God’s kingdom.

ehuffnsd said:

sassybritches said:

How silly.

Why get upset over a fictional fairy tale book?

truefunksoldier said:

ehuffnsd said: