Christians usually cite Paul instead to avoid that problem.
I was taught that the New Testament supersceded the Old Testament. That's why, e.g., all of the Sabbath prohibitions weren't emphasized in the churches I attended.
It seems to me that the passages from Leviticus are cited by well-read Christians who like to pick and choose passages to attempt to win arguments, or by Chrisitans who haven't studied the Bible on their own and are just parroting what they've heard from others. It's a dishonest way of arguing from a Chrisitan perspective, IMHO, because it's picking and choosing.
I'm surprised that the Anglican Archbishop from Nigeria didn't realize the perils in citing Leviticus from a Christian perspective. It seems to me that that is one of the first things that a seminary student should be able to address.
I find the last passage in the cite from Romans interesting:
28Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. 29They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30slanderers, Godhaters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
Maybe we should have a Constitutional Amendment against gossip, greed and disobeying one's parents too. ;-j
Hey Joe! I think you just need to cite this passage to keep your cell phone bill in check. :-)
HTH.
Cheers,
Scott.
(Who thinks that Paul really messed up Christianity.)
