1 Male Homosexuality and Islam Rusi Jaspal De Montfort University, Leicester, UK While homosexuality has gained greater social acceptance in many Western societies, it remains highly stigmatized and, in most cases, forbidden in mainstream Islam. Theologically-based homophobia has given rise to negative social representations of homosexuality in Muslim communities around the world. Lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) Muslims themselves are acutely aware of the stigma of homosexuality, and the prejudice and, in some cases, harsh punishment that they may face if they disclose their sexual identity. This can in turn induce threats to identity and compromise psychological wellbeing. This chapter pieces together emerging empirical evidence on the interface of (male) homosexuality and Islam, focusing upon the theological (meso), social (macro) and psychological (micro) levels of analysis. Islamic Theological Constructions of Homosexuality Like most religious traditions, Islamic ideology appends hegemonic status to heterosexuality, and is deeply opposed to homosexuality. This stance is ingrained in the major ideological channels of communication, such as Islamic holy scripture (the Koran), Islamic law (Shari’ah), and the verbal teachings of the Prophet Mohammed (Ahadith), all of which appear to outlaw homosexuality (Bouhdiba, 1998). Theological opposition to homosexuality is based on what is regarded by most Islamic scholars as the Koran’s explicit prohibition of same-sex sexuality. The story of Lot in the Koran has been widely cited as evidence of God’s condemnation of homosexuality. The Koran makes seven explicit references to the people of Lot, whose destruction by God is often attributed to their engagement in homosexual practices, as exemplified in the following passage: What! Of all creatures do ye come unto the males, And leave the wives your Lord created for you? Nay but ye are forward folk… And we rained on them a rain. And dreadful is the rain of those who have been warned. (Pickthall translation, 26.165-73) Although there has been some variation in the interpretation of the Story of Lot (Kugle, 2010), there is one passage in the Koran that more clearly demonstrates the illegality of homosexuality: And as for the two of you who are guilty thereof [of homosexuality], punish them both. And if they repent and improve, then let them be. Lo! Allah is ever relenting, Merciful. (4.16) In Islam, the Koran legislates all aspects of social life but interpretations of the text have varied in accordance with time and space, and some interpretations have been favored over others by particular denominations of Islam. Yet, in their reading of the story of Lot, most Muslim scholars (e.g. Yahya 2000) advocate that homosexuality is an aberration and violation of nature, as well as a revolt against God. Although there has been some discussion of the authenticity and accuracy of the Hadith (sayings attributed to the Prophet Mohammed), they are frequently invoked by Islamic scholars in order to substantiate the dominant Islamic position on homosexuality: The Prophet said: If you find anyone doing as Lot’s people did, kill the one who does it, and the one to whom it is done. (Abu Dawud 4462, Book 39, Hadith 4447) Like other Ahadith, this one constructs homosexual acts as both immoral and illegal, and homosexuals as deserving of capital punishment. They construct both the active and passive