Homosexual man says publishers’ Bibles
violated his rights, inflicted emotional pain
The Layman, $70 million sought from Zondervan, Thomas Nelson Inc., July 10, 2008
A homosexual Michigan man is suing two Christian publishers over their versions of the Bible. The lawsuits claim that because these Bibles refer to homosexuality as a sin, his constitutional rights have been violated and he has suffered emotional pain.
Bradley LaShawn Fowler, 39, of Canton, Mich., is seeking $60 million from Zondervan and $10 million from Thomas Nelson Inc. Both lawsuits were filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The case against Zondervan was filed Monday and the Thomas Nelson case was filed in June, the Grand Rapids Press reported.
A judge refused Monday to appoint a judge to represent Fowler in the Thomas Nelson case. Fowler is representing himself in both cases.
Fowler claims in his lawsuits that Zondervan and Thomas Nelson’s versions of the King James Bible manipulated Scripture without informing the public, WorldNetDaily reported. They did so, he alleges, by using the word “homosexuals” in 1 Corinthians 6:9. Because his family’s pastor used one of these Bibles, his family considered him a sinner and he suffered “20 years of emotional duress and mental instability,” he told the TV station.
A Zondervan spokeswoman told the TV station that her Michigan-based company doesn’t translate the Bible or own the copyright for any of its translations, but instead relies on the “scholarly judgment of … highly respected and credible translation committees.” Also, Zondervan never alters the text of translations it is licensed to publish, she added.
A spokeswoman for Thomas Nelson Inc. told The Layman that her Tennessee-based company has not yet been served with Fowler’s lawsuit.