A university attended by many Christians currently uses an art textbook containing photography of nudity, photos glorifying homosexuality, sculptures of female genitalia, and multiple sculptures of nude human bodies. The administration and many brethren are defending such content because it is “Art” and not intended to be viewed as pornographic. There is one person who appears to be in defense of such by asking, “Is it inherently sinful to look upon the naked human form?”<\/p>\n
Do you care to comment?<\/p>\n\t
Morality is not established by what people, or subgroups of people, find acceptable. Right and wrong are based on the nature of God. “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth<\/em>” (I John 1:5-6). Since God does not change, right and wrong are fixed commodities.<\/p>\n The general rule since the fall of man is that a person doesn’t expose his genitals to others. We make efforts to keep our privates private. Of course, there will always be times when it can’t be avoided, yet we should make efforts to minimize it. Being seen naked in front of others ought to trigger a sense of shame. “Your nakedness shall be uncovered, yes, your shame will be seen<\/em>” (Isaiah 47:3). One of the complaints God had against ancient Israel was the fact that they lost their sense of shame. ” “Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed; nor did they know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; at the time I punish them, they shall be cast down,” says the LORD<\/em>” (Jeremiah 6:15; see also\u00a0Jeremiah 8:12).<\/p>\n There are going to be times when you can’t avoid being seen or seeing someone else naked. However, we should carry with us a sense of respect for the other person. We should avert our eyes out of respect for the other person. “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?<\/em>” (Job 31:1). When people call images of the naked body “art” they glorify the very thing that God said should be embarrassing.<\/p>\n An example is that of Ham (Genesis 9:20-27). Ham’s father, Noah, sinned by making wine and getting drunk. Ham accidentally walked in on Noah while he lay naked in his tent. Rather than be embarrassed by the situation, Ham went to his brothers. We aren’t told what he said, but it is likely he thought it was funny that their father was acting so poorly. I want you to particularly note Japheth and Shem’s response. “But Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and went backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s nakedness<\/em>” (Genesis 9:23). I’m sure that over the years there were many occasions when they might have seen their father without clothes. They could have just walked in and covered him up, but they were making a strong point. Their father, because of his drunkenness, was in an embarrassing state and they refused to see their father lowered in their eyes. Thus they went out of their way to make sure they didn’t see Noah uncovered.<\/p>\n Nakedness becomes sinful when it is done for sexual pleasure or voyeurism. “Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbor, pressing him to your bottle, even to make him drunk, that you may look on his nakedness!<\/em>” (Habakkuk 2:15). This remains true regardless of whether someone wants to label something “art.” Claiming that something good can come from something that is intrinsically shameful doesn’t make it become right. But you also mention that this book depicts homosexuality in a favorable light. Trying to make something that is sinful (I Corinthians 6:9-10) look good is not good. “And why not say, “Let us do evil that good may come”? — as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just<\/em>” (Romans 3:8).<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Question: A university attended by many Christians currently uses an art textbook containing photography of nudity, photos glorifying homosexuality, sculptures of female genitalia, and multiple sculptures of nude human bodies. The administration and many brethren are defending such content because it is “Art” and not intended to be viewed as pornographic. There is one person…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[796,206,736],"class_list":["post-52620","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-art","tag-nakedness","tag-nudity"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":50638,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-viewing-movies-with-brief-nudity-a-sin\/","url_meta":{"origin":52620,"position":0},"title":"Is viewing movies with brief nudity a sin?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 28, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is viewing movies with brief nudity a sin? The church doesn't condemn viewing non-sexual movies. However, the Bible does seem to address nudity as shameful, but I don't believe it condemns it either. I understand that lusting is a sin. Does the Bible say anything about looking at somebody\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":25187,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/would-constant-exposure-to-nudity-reduce-lust\/","url_meta":{"origin":52620,"position":1},"title":"Would constant exposure to nudity reduce lust?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 10, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: A link to\u00a0your survey was sent to me by a girl in Nepal who has been reading the arguments we've made on our anti-porn-addiction website. This is what I'm wondering: What would the answers to those survey questions have looked like from teens growing up in a \"naked people\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16469,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-wrong-to-look-at-nudes-as-art\/","url_meta":{"origin":52620,"position":2},"title":"Is it wrong to look at nudes as art?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 21, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: There are people who chose to put their bodies on display as art. Is it wrong to appreciate the body in that way? It's not porn. It doesn't cause the body to lust. It's just people standing around naked. Answer: When Adam and Eve sinned by eating of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4692,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-does-uncover-the-nakedness-mean\/","url_meta":{"origin":52620,"position":3},"title":"What does “uncover the nakedness” mean?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 25, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: In Leviticus 18:6-19, the phrase \"uncover the nakedness\" is used repeatedly. What is meant by this phrase? Answer: There are three sets of words in the Hebrew that are translated as naked or nakedness. The Hebrew adjective 'arom\u00a0refers to being without clothing. It can mean without any clothes or\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8568,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/did-ham-have-sex-with-his-mother\/","url_meta":{"origin":52620,"position":4},"title":"Did Ham have sex with his mother?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 29, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I just read your answer to the question about whether boys should see one another naked as in locker rooms, etc. In the Bible, when Ham \"saw his father's nakedness,\" that does not mean he literally saw his father without clothing on. It literally meant that he had sex\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":46234,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/god-doesnt-want-you-to-change\/","url_meta":{"origin":52620,"position":5},"title":"God doesn’t want you to change","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 15, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: It's not about wearing clothes its about doing everything in society so that you match your body in human form. God doesn't care if you wear clothes or what clothes. He just wants you to be you. Don't ever change. Just be yourself. Thanks for trying. Just so much\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52620","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52620"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52620\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52620"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52620"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52620"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}