I was in my mid-teens when I first started properly exploring what the Bible says about same-sex sexuality. My own experience of same-sex attraction had started in my early teens. At first, I largely ignored it. That was partly because I initially wasn’t really sure what was going on (I’d had a very sheltered Christian upbringing and the world was a different place 20 years ago!), and partly because it wasn’t something I thought Christians talked about. But by my mid-teens I’d realised these desires weren’t going away and I was going to have to ask the question, ‘What does God say?’.

Today there are lots of books for Christians that present an answer to that question. That wasn’t the case when I was a teenager. But one of the books that was available, and that was important for many of us who had to wrestle with that question personally in the late 90s and early 2000s, was The Moral Vision of the New Testament by Richard B. Hays. The book included a chapter on homosexuality, taking the topic as one of the ‘test cases’ to which Hays applied his ethical approach. That chapter presented the historic Christian perspective on same-sex sexuality – that same-sex sexual activity is sinful – rooted in careful exegesis of relevant biblical texts. In my mind and my story, Richard Hays has always been a significant figure – he wrote a book that helped people like me know how to follow Jesus faithfully.

That’s why it was a big surprise when the news broke earlier this year that Richard Hays, in partnership with his son Christopher Hays, had a new book coming out (The Widening of God’s Mercy: Sexuality Within the Biblical Story) and that this book argues for the moral acceptability of same-sex sexual relationships.

Was this finally going to be a persuasive, biblically rooted argument in favour of same-sex relationships? It seems not.

To be honest, I was a bit shaken by the news because, not only has The Moral Vision been an important and influential book in my world, but Richard Hays is also a highly respected New Testament scholar whose work I would usually expect to be insightful and scholarly rigorous. Had Hays spotted something others hadn’t before? Was this finally going to be a persuasive, biblically rooted argument in favour of same-sex relationships? Would this be another book from him that would have a big impact for me and others?

It seems not. The book came out this month and reviews are now starting to appear. These reviews show this book is what pretty much all recent books arguing for the morality of same-sex sexual relationships are – a repackaging of arguments that have been made before and refuted before. As often with these books, it seems there may be some good intentions behind what the Hayses have written, but there aren’t good reasons to think what they’re saying is right.

How do I feel? A little relieved – turns out God hasn’t allowed the church to get this wrong for 2000 years. A little weary – the argument goes on but is just going around in circles. And a little sad – that people continue to think Christians like me need saving from God’s good parameters for sex and sexuality.

God’s mercy is already wide enough for people like me.

God’s mercy is already wide enough for people like me. It is expressed both in the forgiveness he offers us for our sexual (and other) sins and in the gift of his word to guide and his Spirit to empower life-giving obedience.

Several helpful reviews of the book have appeared online, but I’ve found Preston Sprinkle’s review most helpful. Here’s his conclusion. The whole review is well worth reading.

'I have to admit, the scholarly side of me was excited when this book was first announced. Some Christians immediately trashed the book on social media—something no thoughtful Christian should ever do with books they haven’t read—but I was genuinely excited to read it. Richard is a brilliant scholar (I wasn’t familiar with Christopher’s work), and his article on Romans 1 in particular was one of the most thorough and exegetically responsible treatments of this tough passage. I was deeply curious how he was going to refute his previous argument. I also wondered if The Widening of God’s Mercy would tease out a fresh argument for same-sex marriage that hadn’t yet been made.

'To my surprise, the book did neither. Instead, it simply repackaged an old trajectory argument to make a questionable logical leap: since God welcomes foreigners, eunuchs, tax collectors, and sinners, therefore sex difference is no longer part of what marriage is.'

Read Preston’s full review here: Review of The Widening of God’s Mercy by Christopher B. Hays and Richard B. Hays.