Journal: Eikon
Volume: EIKON 07:1 (Spring 2025)
Article: A Critique Of Karen B. Keen’s Hermeneutical Method
Author: Andrew Slay

Eikon 7.1 (Spring 2025) p. 106

A Critique Of Karen B. Keen’s Hermeneutical Method

Andrew Slay

Andrew Slay is the Pastor of Students at Westwood Baptist Church in Cleveland, TN, and is a PhD student at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife Ashley have two children.

How one interprets a text will dictate what one believes, including about sexual ethics. Therefore, due to the importance of correctly interpreting the Bible’s sexual ethic, I will critique how Karen R. Keen, who professes to be an LGBTQ-affirming Christian, concludes that the Bible affirms same-sex relationships.1 I will argue that Keen’s arguments are flawed as she misinterprets the meaning of the law, the fruit of the Spirit, and Romans 1:24−27.

What Is The Main Intent Of The Law In Leviticus?

Karen Keen’s hermeneutical method can be seen through her interpretation of the Old Testament laws prohibiting same-sex relationships and her implementation of virtue ethics in living out the fruit of the Spirit to deem an action right and pleasing to God. Her main argument is that we should interpret these laws by seeing God’s main intent of the law to promote a “good and just world” that “provides care for neighbor, fair treatment, compensation for offenses, and general well-being.”2 Keen is correct that one of the purposes of the law was to promote a good and just society, to protect the helpless, provide for the needy, and treat others the way we would want to be treated. Her understanding,

Eikon 7.1 (Spring 2025) p. 107

however, of the main intent of the law is only partially correct. By observing the larger context of the Holiness Code in Leviticus, as well as the biblical narrative, it becomes clear that her definition of a “good and just society” that affirms same-sex relationships is found wanting on several fronts.3

The Holiness Code

To start, we need to observe the texts about homosexuality in Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13. Keen says we must see the main intent of the law from this passage — how it promotes a good and just society — in order to understand how we must obey these principles today. The intent of the law is found in the moral law underlying each of the civil laws given in the Old Testament. As Keen argues, the reason we cannot simply throw away these commands entirely is because they are tied to the nature and character of God, and there is a reason why God gave them to us.