Coping and response patterns toward male same-sex relationships in the haredi community: A symbolic boundary analysis

Conservative religious communities often uphold strict sexual norms that position same-sex relationships as "morally deviant" (as described by community members), yet relatively little is known about how community members construct and manage responses to same-sex relationships in everyday social life. This qualitative study examines coping and response patterns toward male same-sex relationships and gay men within the ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) community in Israel, drawing on symbolic boundary theory as an analytical framework. In-depth interviews were conducted with 25 Haredi men. Thematic analysis revealed five interrelated response patterns: silencing discourse on male same-sex relationships, framing male same-sex relationships as contradicting divine command and natural order, attributing male same-sex relationships to external secular influences, protecting the younger generation through spatial and cultural avoidance, and reparative approaches aimed at "correction." These patterns function as forms of moral, cultural, and spatial boundary work through which participants seek to preserve communal values and social order. The findings illustrate how multiple boundary strategies operate simultaneously to regulate sexuality and manage perceived normative threats amid broader social change. By focusing on community members' narratives, the study advances understanding of how symbolic boundaries surrounding male same-sex relationships are constructed and maintained in insular religious contexts, and highlights the relevance of community-level mechanisms for understanding stigma and minority stress processes.