One objection to the Leviticus statement remains.  Dr. Walter Wink and others point out its punishment for homosexuality: "If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable.  They must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads" (20.13).  If we no longer execute those who practice homosexuality, are we justified in ignoring the prohibition against such activity entirely?

Those who argue that homosexuality is a biblical lifestyle point to this "outdated" penalty as reason to consider the prohibition to be equally irrelevant to society today.

No one I know would argue that homosexual practice should result in the death penalty today.  But let's consider two facts.  First, the levitical code was given to Israel at a crucial time in her early formation.  The nation had no functional law process or court system.  Her moral character was not yet formed.  And so the Lord gave the nation clear and enforceable standards which would help solidify and preserve her spiritual future.  The spirit of the levitical prohibition is clear: homosexuality is not to be practiced or accepted by the nation.

Second, a reinterpretation of the penalty prescribed by a law does not justify the decision to ignore the law itself.  Leviticus also prescribes the death penalty for child sacrifice (20.2), adultery (v. 10), and bestiality (vs. 15-16).  I presume we would not accept these practices as moral and lawful today on the basis that their prescribed punishments are not prosecuted by our society.

And so we have surveyed arguments for ignoring the levitical prohibitions against homosexual practice, and concluded that these laws are indeed timeless in import, expressive of moral standard, relevant to our culture, and a valid basis for moral standards today.  An objective reading of the levitical prohibitions leads to the clear conclusion that this part of God's word considers homosexual practice to be wrong.

A survey of the biblical materials relating to this issue would also include Deuteronomy 23.17-18, which outlaws prostitution, whether male or female.  But interpreters are divided as to whether the passage relates to homosexuality in general.