Re: Islam and homosexuality…
First on the note of ‘Interpretation’:
Quran states it all clearly. It is indeed logical. You just have to understand what is said in Quran. It explains things in a manner that may at first seem controversial, so we do not comprehend them but if you really think about it, it is very logical. It dictates the correct way of life for a Muslim. Which is why majority of the Muslims live that way. Whether you choose to be a practicing and/or a good Muslim, or not practice at all is your individual decision, for which you alone will be responsible. But it all really does just come down to the bottomline being Quran is what it is and if it were amendable like Bible, then you would never know the originality of it;therefore, it has been preserved and shall be preserved until the end of times. inshaAllah.
It needs no changing, it applies to all eras and times. It just requires understanding with an open mind, without any set biases. It’s the ways in which people act/behave that change over time but the nature stays the same, just like the plaques of societies are given new names but the source of it all remains the same as it did back then. So nothing really has changed, except that we’ve started to uncover what has been told in Quran a long time ago.
Tracking back to the topic at-hand of Homosexuality
As humans were created of two sexes to be able to reproduce sexually (as opposed to asexually as some lower creatures do), what is considered most unnatural in Islam is the existance of non-platonic relationships (i.e., involving sexual attraction) of men to men and women to women. What is acceptable, of course, is platonic, entirely non-sexual, love expressed by men to men and by women to women in a brotherly and sisterly manner.
This does not mean, however, that Islam turns a blind eye to the existence of homosexuality. In fact, the Qur’an does not deny that some men and women might be inclined towards homosexual and lesbian behavior, but it is quite clear from Islamic teachings that when and if such behavior becomes manifest, it has to be stopped because it is both unnatural and destructive to the social fabric.
So, the Qur’an in general regards homosexuality as unnatural and informs us that it was not known among the creation before the people of Lot practiced it. Prophet Lot (peace be upon him) attempted to advise his people to refrain from this unnatural behavior lest they incur the wrath of God.
Peace!