Ezra Chitando – « Masculinities, religion, and sexualities »

Emerging within the study of religions and masculinities is the focus on sexualities. Intriguingly, although religions have had a lot to say about sexuality (through their tendency to try and police it), reflections on religions, masculinities and sexualities in Africa have not been as consistent as one would have expected. Apart from African women theologians, most African scholars of religion and theology have not been as forthcoming in addressing religions and sexuality in the three main religions of Africa, namely, African Traditional Religions, Islam, and Christianity. Nonetheless, there is an emerging interest in this theme, with various scholars analyzing how religions (or certain versions, interpretations, or expressions of them) both prescribe and proscribe particular sexualities. For example, most versions of African Traditional Religions, Christianity, and Islam have been interpreted and deployed as promoting heteronormativity and as condemning homosexuality. However, closer readings of their sacred texts and traditions, such as the story of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19, ‘queer’ these texts, that is, facilitate newer and redemptive interpretations. Three scholars active in this field in Africa have maintained that the passage, which has been a ‘text of terror’ for homosexuals in the world, must be reinterpreted. Thus

‘Rereading the toxic so-called homosexuality texts demythologises them and enables queer Christianity to talk back to the Christian establishment […] Rereading these texts also offers other more redemptive interpretive options. For example, if Genesis 18–19 “really” is about hospitality and not homosexuality, then perhaps this text can be read for inclusion of and hospitality towards “strange(r)” sexualities. At the very least, the text speaks to the role of protecting the stranger from the established culture of the time. Just as Abram (and later Lot) defended the stranger from abuse, he also negotiated the protection of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah.’^[10]

The role of religions in shaping masculinities and the imagined sexualities that must go with it has resulted in contradictions and hypocrisy. For example, Christianity has generally upheld an ethic of abstaining from sex before marriage and mutual fidelity in marriage. This model is often presented simplistically and is built on the assumption of heteronormativity. An ideal scheme is formulated where the adolescent boy who grows into a young man abstains from sex until he is married to his virgin female partner.

Alternatively, if he takes up the vow of celibacy, as in some faith traditions, he remains celibate for the rest of his life. Such a model of the ‘faithful husband’, many proponents proclaim, is the surest way of addressing sexually transmitted infections and HIV. The discourse on sex and sexuality in such religious settings is guided by ‘old time religion’ and seeks to nurture masculinities that encourage men to get on the straight path, and retain them on this path. However, this focus on personal morality overlooks the reality that vulnerability to HIV is due to complex systemic factors, and not simply one’s sexual behavior. 

However, it has become clear that the conservative religious approach to masculinities and sexuality faces a number of challenges. In particular, the tendency to demonize the body in Christianity is counterproductive. The fear of the masculine body’s potency (alongside the notion of the ‘dangerous’ female body) has led to three main challenges. To begin with, the ideology of ‘puritanical’ masculinities that are undergirded by religion (especially Christianity) has come under increasing scrutiny. For example, some young men are questioning the insistence on abstinence, calling upon religious leaders to be more flexible in their teachings on sexualities. However, there are also some who acknowledge these teachings and strive to uphold them in their own lives, leading to conflicting positions regarding the value of pre-marital sexuality for young men.^[11]Thus, there is tension over the practicability of the Christian teachings on sexualities. Secondly, there is contestation over the assumption that religions can only approve heterosexuality. The LGBTI movement has emerged as a significant player in different parts of the world and has challenged the faith communities to review their stance on homosexuality. Third, there has been a shift in both academia and activism to promote sex-positive theologies. That is, religions are called to regard sexuality more positively and to have more confidence in the body. In the context of Africa, initiatives such as the International Network of Religious Leaders Living with and Personally Affected by HIV and AIDS (INERELA), and the World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy (EHAIA) have been actively involved in the struggle to encourage faith communities to embrace the body, as well as sex and sexuality, as being integral to what it means to be human.