From the history book

In the old testament, in the 3^rd Book of Moses, it is written that when a man lies with a man as with a woman, an offense against God has been committed, and the two who have offended shall be damned. From this writing comes the foundation for the Jewish contempt for homosexuality - a belief easily accepted by those who professed the Christian faith.

While many theologians believe that Jesus Christ was never actually concerned with the theme of homosexuality [he is not quoted speaking ill of those who are same-sex oriented], his followers were not so accepting and understanding. The Apostle Paul issued strongly worded condemnations of homosexuality. He demanded those who were gay relinquish the "unnatural custom" and fight "against the shame." And so it was from the end of the 3^rd century, homosexual love between two people was considered sinful, to be punished by, not only the fires of hell, but the bonfires of man as well.

In the Middle Ages, filled with heresy, devil worship, sorcery, sodomy, witchcraft and black magic, the fact that homosexual relations existed among women was not cause for great concern. However, it should be noted that if a woman was discovered to be a Lesbian, there is a strong likelihood she would be burned at the stake as a witch.

The dawning of the Renaissance brought a change in the mentality of man. God and the Church were no longer at the center of societal relationships, but man, himself - his accomplishments, his needs and his desires. Homosexuality became more accepted, due, not in such small part, to the fact that many of the times' renowned artists had inclinations toward same sex relationships - men such as Botticelli, Donatello, Michelanglo and Leonardo da Vinci. In fact, speaking for the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Paul III proclaimed that artists were not to be subject to the same laws as the common man. Presumably this was done in order to exempt those men from what laws were on the books that might have been used to prosecute men practicing homosexuality.

Since the beginning of time, when humans started to form cultural groups, it is believed there were same sex or homosexual couplings.
The oldest information on record regarding the theme of Homosexuality comes from the ancient Greeks. In their mythology, numerous references to the practice of homosexual liaisons may be found. The most notable is the Robbery of Ganymedes.
The subject of this story is a young shepherd who was so beautiful that even the Greek Gods took notice. It is said that Zeus, himself, sent an Eagle to attack and rob the youth, who was subsequently saved by the intervention of Zeus, and that the boy was then willing to become a personal servant to the father of the gods.
To the intelligent observer, it is obvious these mythical stories of men and their gods were direct reflections of the Greek lifestyle during the period around 500 BC. Homosexual relations were commonplace among the Greeks. They were not only accepted, but expected as well. It was assumed the sons of wealthy families would "live" together with older, respected men who were their "mentors."

This practice of young men living with and being loved (physically) by older members of the society was also prevalent among the Romans. The respected men of the Aristocracy enjoyed the "companionship" of so called amusement slaves. It should be noted, however, these instances of male-male involvement were based primarily on sexual desires and needs, rather than those of an emotional nature.

At the beginning of the 4^th century, the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great proclaimed Christianity as the Roman State religion. For gay men and lesbians, it was the beginning of times of persecution felt even into modern times.

With Christianity came the belief that sex for any other reason than procreation was taboo.