Feeding the Anger of the World

This was intended as a comment on Stephen Hanchett's blog, but it got to be too long.
It was in response to his post on the Family Values Cult, in which he discusses the difference between Christ's teaching of love and family compared to the modern interpretation. I think you will find it helpful to read that post first, before reading this. Also, reading the comments to that post may help, but aren't necessary.

Sorry for the long silence...

A few quick points:

First: The difficulty expressed here in loving an omnipresent, "ineffable" (not really) God is that it makes it hard to know what to love....

I find it easier to start with what God gave us: His Son, Jesus Christ. He came to us as a man, and I often fall back on this when I get a little overwhelmed. To define God as anything, from "All Love" to "The Creator", tends to do one thing - limit God. He (again, not really He) is these things and much more.

If anything, we can say that God is ONE. the perfect unity, indivisable and yet inumerable.



Second (and this is the LONG bit): I find it interesting that the "love" part tends to address the negation of the practices of the "Right." But I have yet to see discussions of our own failing to live into the model of loving even those who would do us harm.

I, as some of you know, will be the first to wear the "guilty" T-shirt and sit in the front of the "Love" remedial 101 class - if there ever were one.

I am dying to see any attempt by either side to begin to find common ground and turn our backs on the hatred and bickering that almost everyone in these types of conversations is guilty of.

Case in point: I have a buddy who has made it his mission to get the local divinity school to start recognizing and acknowledging the damage done to the LGBT community by their basically agreeing to the exclusion of said community from serving as clergy openly. This is a horrible over-simplification of the issue at hand, but I don't want to get bogged down with the details and it isn't this side of the equation I am trying to address.

What I am trying to address is that the two "sides", the administration of the school, and the LGBT and affirming allies are really so entrenched that my friend has his work cut out.

On one side, you have administrators of a basically Methodist tradition that have a Discpline (Guidine rules) that states that all are of sacred worth and worthy to be ministered to. Then it turns around and says that any "self avowed, practicing homosexual" cannot be ordained as a minister as this "lifestyle" is against "Christian teaching." (they fail to mention what that teaching is, however.)

This results in an administration that is either too caught up in its own laws or refusing to take the high ground and acknowledge that this stance is wrong and it does more harm than good.

Now that's one side.....

Then on the other side you have LGBT folks in div school and in the general population so badly hurt and suffering from these types of rules that they would just as soon go talk to a tree than to turn their eyes to God. Afterall, why bother with an entity that doesn't acknowledge who you feel you were created to be?

So deep are these polorizations that the very thought of open dialog seems so remote to me to be almost hopeless. I have even suggested to my friend that perhaps it would be best to tell the LGBT's that organized "christianity" does not follow true Christian teaching and that they should follow God together apart from the "church" and be the Body.

Yet he has decided to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable, and so I will be here for him if he needs me.

My point is this: we can all rant and rave about how unjust and crooked the other is; how they cheat, murder, steal, and spread hatred....(Dem's are just as guilty in my book - I gave up looking at this as a Dem/Rep Lib/Cons thing quite some time ago. I am Christian, period)

But hold on a sec, how much hate and such are we spreading. Take some time out to look at some of the posts from the viewpoint of that question. how much is out there about the corruption and sins of the people we at least at one time supported? There is plenty of it out there, are we willing to acknowledge it and move on?

Sure, I will grant you that the Administration is totally not taking responsibility for their actions, but won't God take care of that if we can't?

I will grant that there is certainly room to complain and also to bring what really appears to be the Truth to light.

But what will we do in between reading and posting? I don't have the answer for that, I am asking.

If we are dealing with the end times, shouldn't we be living into the "Love" part, too? I mean, if the End is inevitable, shouldn't we be focusing on trying to make this a world of love and not hate? More like Heaven than Hell?

How much anger and negativity are we feeding into the world? Isn't that a bit of a trap?

David Icke said that people on opposite sides of a conflict like to think that they are complete opposites. In this case as long as both sides fight and argue, I have a hard time making a distinction - I am, of course talking about the general population and not the war criminals and crooks, their judgement will come and yes, we need to call for justice.

There are plenty of people out there who only support these guys "just because." How far could we get with a little diplomacy?

In this case, the serenity prayer says it all. We can change the hearts and minds of those who will listen, but we have to reach them. We can never hope to change the behavior of those in power, much less any one else. We may never be able to vote them out of office.

What is God's plan? I think only God really knows. What happens if we don't like the answer do that question? We can either pray and ask for acceptance and understanding or be miserable for the rest of our lives.

As far as "preaching" goes, speak the truth in love. A friend of mine had three guidelines to keep in mind before saying something. I am embarrassed to say that I don't remember what they are right now, but I will ask her and get back to you.

It is correct to help guide someone when they are in error. But always be prepared to be receptive of correction, too. None of us are without fault.

Anyone who has read this blog knows that I am far from getting the "Speaking the Truth in Love" thing down, but I am tired of being angry and I know that I can do more harm than good most of the time.

I will be posting here more often, but the tone will change.

What or Who can Separate us from the Love of God?

Rom 8:35,37-38
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? [shall] tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Opening Old Wounds

Events in my life over the past few weeks have led to a re-opening of some old emotional wounds that I had thought at least mostly healed.

A friend of mine is dying of cancer, and I was deposed today in a "wrongful death" case of another friend.

The funny thing is, that the friend dying of cancer really re-opened the memories of the loss of my partner Eric in '94. I grieved his loss for a very long time and wondered how things could have been different.

What has come from that though is I now look back on those times with fondness, and I often smile. Why? Because it is he who finally helped me see that I was loved and could love. We were together for 5 years and we never fought, we never raised our voices at eachother - we had some discussions over differences of opinion, but we were both intelligent adults that knew how to work through the rough spots.

We were AIDS activists in a small NC military town. We made a major difference. Our lives had purpose and we followed that purpose together.

We had a wonderful life together. It is something I will never forget. I will always love him. That doesn't mean I will never love that way again, it just means he will never leave my heart.

In a concert on Saturday, June 18, I shared him with the audience. I believe I said his name and talked more about him in public than I had in the last 10 years.

I am so thankful for my friends and my adopted "family" of brothers that have been here for me through all of this. I thank my band of brothers, Triangle Gay Men's Chorus for helping me through and giving me the opportuinity to tell them and our wonderful audience about Eric. I am also very thankful for the music of Mark Weigle. I had the opportunity to meet him last year and he has some wonderful insight into life. His music is a celebration of life and I thank him for it.

I have a new-found peace about my love for Eric, I smile more when I think about him and our lives together. Remembering him is no longer about the loss, it is about the gift of love and life he gave me that I will never forget.

Of Trolls and Self-Respect

I follow a couple of other blogs here on blogspot. (see the sidebar)

On one of those blogs, there are (were) some pretty outspoken “Trolls”.

Well, what they basically do, their whole purpose in Internet life is to create a disruption. They live to piss people off. They get off on knowing that they have pushed every emotional button of as many people as possible as often as possible.

They go to places where they know what they say will get people so riled up that those folks focus on rebuking the trolls and forget why they are on the blog. It becomes all about the troll.

Even when the “victims” of these senseless acts of verbal violence are aware of what is going on, the desire – no, the need to put the troll “in his (her) place" becomes paramount.

Unfortunately, yours truly fell into that horrible trap. I must admit that for me it became very easy to get sucked in to the whole “need to be right” mentality.

Damn, on some occasions, I said some stuff that I ended up regretting. I managed, however to forgive myself, and I know that many of the “normal” folk on that blog understand.

Now I'll go ahead and tell you why I'm talking about this here. What do trolls have to do with Queer Christians?

Glad you asked.

So here is the connection:
We are all face at one time or another by someone who, intentionally or not, is going to “push our buttons.”

This is a fact of life. Its unavoidable, and in the context of homosexuality and Christianity, is a central theme to many conversations that arise when we are trying to share our views with, to put it fairly, Christians who do not view that Queerness is in keeping with Christian teaching. When we are faced with people who tell us that being Queer is a sin and we are not deserving of Christ, it can cut to our very core.

In the past weeks, as I have shared my frustrations with friends, it had occurred to me that not all anti-Queer Christians are coming from a hateful and/or hurtful attitude. After all, they are following a doctrine that many of them have been involved in all of their lives. Not all of them are really saying that God hates Queers. They just say, and believe that it is a sin.

This doctrine has been handed down for hundreds of years.
I am only being slightly apologetic.

(There are a myriad of sins, and, even in the context of saying that being Queer is not a sin, we are in very good company when it comes to sinning – a small, but, I think in a way, wonderful fact that we all, as human beings, have in common.)

I have very little control over how someone believes. I talk to them how Christ's love has been good for me, that love being shown through the caring people at my church. I can't hope to change anyone's mind in a day. I am open about who I am and in doing so, I hope to put a face on what many do not know about first-hand.

I found it very easy to feel personally attacked by those trolls – especially when they kept insisting that being gay is a sin, even in the face of such overwhelming discussion illustrating the opposite viewpoint.

I, as many of us would, I suppose, got very angry, hateful and just plain mean. Then I finally asked myself, “what am I trying to prove here?” It's easy to hate your “enemies.” So I decided that – since obviously we were going to continue to disagree on this point – to let it go. Sometimes I can't get through to someone. Sometimes I have to admit to myself that I can walk away – it doesn't meant I'm weak. It doesn't mean I am admitting that they are right. It is ruining my peace of mind.

The way I saw it, if I began to act in a way where I was letting them get to me, that's when I was going to let them win.

So, instead I decided to talk in a loving, caring way, regardless of how they behaved. I wasn't always successful, but that was my goal. That is my goal now, and I will try to live up to it.

For you, my Queer brothers and sisters, I hope to offer this bit of hope to you:

Know in your heart that Christ loves you. As fallible, regular, everyday, normal humans that we are.

Regular, fallible, normal, everyday humans may try to tell you otherwise. Just remember, Jesus speaks for Himself and The Word tells us that we are loved and treasured, just like everyone else.

The Spirit of Hate

Cross Burning in Durham, NC
(click on the picture to enlarge)

On the weekend of may 8, 2005 a group of very hateful and awful baptists, mostly all from the same family (Phelps), came to Durham, NC. They were coming to protest a local school's performance of “The Laremy Project” a play about the beating death of Matthew Shepard. These people are a group of selve avowed hate-mongers and are proud of it!

I was at the rally to counter their hate speech. There were 10 of them. There were over 100 of us. It was really incredible to see these people holding up signs that declared, basically, that gays, and anyone who supported our "defiling" lifestyle were deserving of death.

In addition, they declared that God hated the US for allowing homosexuality.....
Can anyone smell the irony here? If it weren't for the right to freedom of speech and assembly that they enjoy here in the US, they wouldn't be able to stand on the flag or shout out hate speech without fear of being arrested.

What amazes me even more is that they aren't arrested for inciting violence.
Now one of many statistics that I read in the coming weeks before their little visit is that in every place they “visit”, hate crimes increase in the weeks after they leave.

And so the topic of this post: What happens when someone brings with them the very Spirit-Demon of hate?

Well' here in Durham, we had not one, but three – albeit most likely from the same person(s) – CROSS BURNINGS!

Now, some of you out there, especially if you live in the more rural South where the KKK tends to run amok, may not find this very remarkable. However, when I tell you that this is the first event of it's kind in recent history you may begin to see my point.

UPDATE: the national headquarters of the KKK has officially dis-avowed themselves from this event. The interesting thing about this is they accused a minority group for it saying that their motive would be "to draw attention to their cause." This is typical of the oppression mindset. See Stephen Hanchett's recent post,CSI Sodom.

The Mayor of Durham said that this is the first burning here since he moved here, 1968.

Although, as of this writing, there are no leads on the actual perpetrators of this atrocity, One of the sites where a cross was burned was one of the churches that our little Phelps family decided to visit. According to the pastor of that church, he can make no other connection why anyone would do such a thing. The Phelps visit was the only recent event where anyone has expressed their “displeasure” with the church.

Now I know that this is all circumstantial, and I am willing to admit that one may have nothing at all to do with the other.
But, if I were a betting man, which I'm not, I would put my money on the connection.

I can't help but believe, especially in light of the hate crime statistics they leave in their wake, that the Phelps folks have some very bad demons in tow. Call it what you want, but hate begets hate. I believe that where there is hatred, there the Devil is too. The Bible tells us that the real battle is not of men, but of principalities and demons, Good and Evil.

That is why when we deal with hate speech and other such crimes, we must remember to be vigilant. We must remember that we thirst for justice, not revenge. We must be angry, but not hate our enemies. Jesus told us to love our enemies, for it is easy to love those who love you in return. Hatred can not stand in the face of love. It will either lash out, or run. Usually, though, it will run.

While at this rally, looking upon such arrogant and ignorant hatred, even while it was faced by our singing of hymns and proclaiming the words of Christ, I realized that maybe, in the end, I can't do anything to help them. To bring peace to their hearts. I pray for them – I wish they knew the peace of Christ in stead of the Hate of a false religion.

Why post this on a site about Queers and Christianity?
Well, I grew up listening to this kind of hate. There was a time I believed it. There was a time when I would allow people like this would bring me to the edge of suicide. There was a time when I believed, “What the Hell, if I going to Hell any, I might as well give up!”

After all of these years of finding my way back to Christ, I realized as I was standing there on the corner holding my “God So Loved The World” sign, that they have no power over me. They declare that they have the answer to salvation, but really all they are doing is "shutting up the Kingdom of God."

I realized in that moment that I was free from them. No one would ever again shake my Faith that Jesus is love, and I am loved by Him.

Queer Christians vs The "Vocal" Minoriy

Before I start this post, I would like to clarify on a term I will use here. I will use it both for its simplicity and for its use as an affirming term of identification for the LGBT etc. community. That term is "Queer."

Though in my younger life, the use of the term was used as an insult - much like "fag" and the like, I have learned only recently that this word has been adopted by the younger members of our community as a positive term. I actually love the idea and the irony it represents for me, so I will be using it more often than not.

---

I was chatting with some friends yesterday and I wanted to share some of that with you.

We were talking about homosexuals and Christianity and how there seems to be so much intolerance in either group for the other.

For much of the Queer community, the oppression and exclusion by a view that homosexuality is somehow sick and perverted causes them to throw out the whole concept of Christianity as nothing more than an oppressive elitist religion.

For many Christians, the relatively recent teachings - within the last couple of centuries - of this doctrine of the "dirty, having-sex-out-of-wedlock-non-heterosexual" have been very well-seated in their concept of "morality".

I think the most interesting line that we came across in that evening's discussions was how it was easier to come out as Queer in a loving Christian setting than it was to "come out" as Christian in a queer setting. The book we were discussing mentioned that many in the gay and lesbian community see this this idea of being a "Queer Christian" as similar to being in an abusive relationship and refusing to leave it.

But for me as a Queer Christian, I will say this: I am Christian and I beleive in the teachings of Christ and what He called us to do. Though I attend a Methodist church, this church lives up to the real teachings of Christ: that we are all persons of Sacred Worth - regardless of the color of our skin, how much or how little money we make, our "class" in the social structure, or who we are called to love.

Now, having said that, most denominational structures of Christianity frown upon Queers. These denominations have adopted the teachings of some early doctrine that says that homosexuality is against Christian teaching. However, the argument doesn't really hold water and more often than not, when that view is challenged, quite often the answer will be-"because it isn't."

But a simple cursory look at Christian history will show that much of the anti-Queer doctrine is not really Biblically based at all. In fact much of the homophobia started much later, probably around medieval times.

Within these denominations, there are "pockets" of progressive Christians who beleive that Christianity should be open to all who would seek it. They desire to have "open Hearts, Open Minds. and Open Doors." - This is a Methodist ad slogan, but followed at it true core, these "pockets" of Christians seek to not only stop closing up the gate of Heaven, but opening it wide and showing the way.

All of this discussion led up to my conclusion that there are a lot of very accepting and loving Christians out there who love people for who they are and uphold Jesus' message of love and justice-seeking. There are also very loving Christians who have been taught exclusion, but in their hearts, it pains them to see the Queer community suffering because of it. You will know these people by their lack of hate speech. their words ar said in a loving fashion, for they truly see themselves as trying to save us in as caring a way as they know how. There is a stark contrast between these good, but misled people and those who flat out condemn Queers and ususally anyone who doesn't believe as they do, to Hell.

The problem, really, is driven by what in my view is a minority. Many Conservative-Christian denominations depend greatly on the preacher, the pastor, or the hierarchy to tell them what they should think about the Bible and "Christian" teaching. More often than not, the folks in these congregations are not only encouraged to follow their preacher, but some preachers actually tell them not to read or watch the news, he'll tell them what he thinks about the news. This also, in many cases, applies to the teaching of the Bible.

So much of that kind of "Bible study" focuses on one or two verses out of context and then manipulates them to fit into what they want to teach.

Almost all of the Evangelical preachers in the media operate in this fashion.

Now, I'm pretty sure that you could count these "tele-evangelists" on your fingers and toes, and yet their views drive many Christians in the wrong direction. They are few, but VERY LOUD!

The words of these folks spreads like a virus as every anti-Queer, "Pro-Life" preacher repeats the hatred and fear that the tele-evangelists spew.

I find it amusing that these leaders focus on less than 1% of the content of the Bible. As Al Franken said "If you removed all of what the Bible say about homosexuality, you would hardly notice. Now on the other hand if you removed all of what it says about justice, taking care of the poor and needy, and loving your neighbor, you would have a hole big enough to hide Rush Limbaugh's drugs."

The point is this: They strain at a gnat and will swallow a camel.

In the analysis, this is how I see it. The minority teaching a doctrine of "Christian hate" are becoming more and more a minority. However, they get a lot of money and a lot of exposure to spread that doctrine so more people hear them than not.

I believe that the Spirit is moving once again in the Body of Christ. More and more Christians are starting to understand that what the hate-preachers are teaching is a false religion. More and more are being moved by the Spirit to seek the Truth in Love.

The Hate-preachers are feeling the pressure, they are holding the government hostage and they know that their days are numbered.

Those who preach love, compassion and acceptance need to speak up now.

Queer Christians need to come out to their Queer brothers and sisters and tell them that Christ loves them, and God has such wonderful plans for them. We need to tell them that those who teach hate and fear are not God. They can, just as many of us have, recognize that the Hate-and-fear-mongers are wrong. Yes, they hurt us, but we do not need to allow them to stand between us and Jesus Christ.

A friend of mine made a comparison that I found quite insightful. He compared our faith to this story:

Mat 25:14 For [the kingdom of heaven is] as a man travelling into a far country, [who] called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. 15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.
16 Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made [them] other five talents.
17 And likewise he that [had received] two, he also gained other two.
18 But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.
19 After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.
20 And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more.
21 His lord said unto him, Well done, [thou] good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.
23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, [there] thou hast [that is] thine.
26 His lord answered and said unto him, [Thou] wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:
27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and [then] at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.
28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give [it] unto him which hath ten talents.

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My friend compared our faith to the talents and said that we should put our faith to use and not keep it buried until we stand before God.

This is so that we can "invest" in our fellow human beings that they too may have abundance in Christ:

Mat 25:29 For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

Love & Choice

This post is used by permission of the original Author,
PETERZ. I thank him for his wonderful insight and say that I can barely hold a candle to his work. However, I will do what I can as I can.


Love & Rape


The political arm of the Fundamentalists has boiled Christianity down to two issues; Abortion and Homosexuality. The truth is that those running these campaigns couldn’t care less about either issue, but see these as Hot button issues to polarize and mobilize voters. They presume to pretend they are of such high moral ground; as though they are not guilty of having had sex outside the marriage bond, and then they go around condemning others. "Know ye not that by what measure you judge you will be judged?" Are you going to tell us that the things they are accusing those others of, they themselves are not guilty of? Too bad these were not in the crowd with Jesus when the harlot was brought to Him for he truly would have found his men. The harlot surely would have been stoned. Hypocrites! Woe unto you, "the harlots shall go into the kingdom of God before you." Mt: 21:31. Who made them the judge over anyone's life choices? It was God who gave us a choice; it is Antichrist that would like to take it away. God would guide us into truth and He gave us a conscience so that we hopefully will make the right choice. Would you declare that we don't need the ability to choose anymore, because your righteousness has made that choice for us? I am not saying I believe in abortion, (as much as they want to frame it that way with right wing spin) but we know that life has many different turns and circumstances. Some have been raped or abused, or are in poverty. I agree that perhaps it is taken far too lightly and may be occurring far too often; but the answer to that would be counseling and teaching. We should help people care more about the sanctity of their own bodies. If it is outlawed, it will go underground and women will be butchered in back alleys. Who am I to tell anyone what is the right choice in their circumstance. I would just pray that they would make the right choice. Ah but you would say they are murdering babies, because they are making the wrong choice. That would be for God to decide. Let me remind you that God foreknowing the choice we would make in the garden, knowing that the wrong choice would bring the fall of man, with all its suffering; Knowing we would make the wrong choice, still allowed us the choice. It is man making himself God (antichrist) that would take away choice. To say that life begins at conception is a theological belief. It follows a line of thinking that conception if left to its natural path would result in a baby. That is true, but that doesn't mean that if interrupted at some early point, that it is at that point a baby with a soul. The belief that we should not interfere comes from a few scriptures like Mt: 19:6: “Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” The problem is that these scriptures are dealing with marriage or being born again. On the other hand some would say that a child becomes a living soul with its first breath. Gen: 2:7: “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” It is amazing to me that anyone would be so adamant over a questionable soul, and have no regard over those that are unquestionable. The Bush's have killed hundreds of thousands so far. There is no shadowy theological question about that.
The other lie that has been spread to purely play on people’s prejudices is the Gay issue. The idea is that a gay person is automatically in sin and separated from God. This bigotry is preached from the pulpit of the Religious Right. You are lead to believe that homosexuality is a choice. That idea is completely unsubstantiated. Ask any gay person what they think. Yet these people automatically discount what gays say as unreliable and their word is reliable, even though they have not experienced what a gay person goes through. I would ask, “When did you choose to be straight?” I think that is an excellent question. Who in their right mind would choose a life of discrimination and persecution? If the homosexual has a promiscuous life, I would ask whose fault is that? I would give the blame to the Church. If you have been taught that you are condemned already, then why not just go and indulge all your lusts. There is a difference between love and lust, straight or gay. Mt: 23:13: “But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.” Christ died for Gay people also. As a result of the rejection they have experienced, many seek for a spiritual life in all kinds of places, from cults to Eastern religions. We as Christians are called to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom and lift up the glory of Jesus. Any cleaning up of our lives is done in the presence of God as we come boldly before His throne that we may receive grace to help. Heb: 4:16: “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” In other words we should not put the cart before the horse, we do not clean up our lives first in order to come before God; we come before God as we are and he cleans us up. To tell a gay person that he must stop being gay is the same as telling a straight person to stop being straight. To most of us that would seem just impossible. It is a part of your very fabric. Again in Matthew in the same passage dealing with shutting up the Kingdom we see this; Mt: 23:4: “For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.” I know that with God all things are possible, but it would appear that this is not an issue to God. Jesus never mentions it.
Even if it were important, where would you get that kind of grace to change? Only because you were in love with the Most High God, and to be in love you would need to be able to come as you are so you could know Him; not turned away before you are even getting started.
I think it would be important to look at exactly what the Bible does say about this subject, which is amazingly little. As Al Franken put it “if you took out of the Bible everything that has to do with homosexuality, you would wouldn’t even notice a difference; but if you took out everything that has to do with looking out for the down trodden and the sick and the poor, you would have a box just about the right size to smuggle Rush Limbaugh’s drugs in”. There is no question that Gods creation was meant to be for Man to desire a Woman. What most over look is that we are living in a fallen creation. There are all kinds of things that are not quite in the perfection that God intended. If a person is born with an abnormality would you say they are going to hell for it? No, and yet if the world were in Gods perfect order, there would be no imperfections.
First let’s deal with the passage in Leviticus 18:22 & 20:13 ““Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.” The code of Laws and customs in Leviticus were not intended for Christians. We are not under the Law but under Grace. The Old Testament Law was meant to convict all of sin so that we would know we needed a savior. No Christian group would demand that we obey all the rules that are laid down in these verses. If we did we would have to keep the kosher laws as well. We don’t demand compliance with the other sexual rules in Leviticus. If we did, we could not touch our wives during her monthly cycle and we would allow polygamy, which is lawful in Leviticus. Unless you are willing and able to obey all the rules in Leviticus, you cannot blame the homosexual for not feeling bound to obey them. To point to these two verses and demand that kind of selective compliance is ludicrous and wrong.
I use in my discussion mostly the King James Version; it seems to have less of an axe to grind than many modern day translations.
Now what about Sodom? Genesis 19:1-29 If you read this passage you will see that it says in vs. 4 “All the men young and old” It is highly unlikely that a whole city was homosexual, the whole city may have been self indulgent and lustful, but not that they would have an orientation to homosexuality. It is also apparent that these men were not looking for a consensual good time; they wanted to rape the angels. It is also clear that these men were not just homosexual but looking to fulfill their lust, or Lot would not have offered them his daughters The true sin of Sodom is revealed to us in Ezekiel:16:49: Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fullness of bread, (it seems that one of the main accusers of the homosexual is guilty of this sin of Gluttony, Have a look at those cheeks on Jerry Falwell) and abundance of idleness (this is what our entire society is caught up in idolizing movie and sports stars) was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy (tax cuts for the rich and no health care for the poor). 50: And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good. This society had become completely self indulgent.
Now let us look at the New Testament. The one passage that is seemingly the most damning is Romans 1:18-29. This scripture is not what it appears to be on the surface. This is a condemnation of ungodly ritual indulgence, which worked up into a frenzy of all manner of sexual lust. This was not a condemnation of Love between two men or between two women. If you think it is, then it carries the same condemnation of “fornication”; but for some reason these modern day Pharisees seem to skip over that part. Because they are not looking for a way to redeem those whom Christ died for but rather to condemn in order to better justify their own self-righteousness. They fail to notice what it says just a few verses down. Romans 2: 1: “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.”
This brings us to the passage in 1 Corinthians 6: 9: “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, (I know that some new translations incorrectly have in this place the words “male prostitutes and homosexuals) 10: Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11: And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” Before I get into the break down of those words, I would call your attention to the other words that I have in bold letters. These carry equal weight. The word translated in the KJV as “effeminate” would have been better translated the “self-indulgent” Does this remind you of Sodom? That word could not have anything to do with being a homosexual, because although there are effeminate homosexuals, there are plenty of effeminate straight men as well. The reason the KJV writers used that word was because they were referring to the Kings of France as being self-indulgent prancing about in their frills and “girly-man” wigs. They were what were brought to the English’s mind when you used the word effeminate. The next words “abusers of themselves with mankind” would have been better translated as “exploitation” It may have had to do with male prostitutes, but also any kind of prostitution. It was actually directed at those that used the prostitutes more so then those that were being used. They are more the victims of abuse. In our society we are surrounded with all kinds of exploitation; from the Rich to the Corporations. Anytime you do something for your advantage or pleasure that uses another, or takes advantage of their situation is to exploit them.
Unfortunately there many gay men that perhaps because of guilt or being told they must be straight end up marrying and then sneak around behind their wives back. They deny there true identity to themselves and others and as a result have a secret life. When and if they are exposed it is often disastrous to them and their families. Some even committing suicide. What a shame. Then there are those that try to combat it within themselves buy becoming “homophobic homosexuals” or “self-loathing.” Then some become just plain hypocrites. Here are a few examples. This is from the New York Times on April 9, 2005 The Article “G.O.P. Consultant Weds His Male Partner” “Arthur J. Finkelstein, a prominent Republican consultant who has directed a series of hard-edged political campaigns to elect conservatives in the United States and Israel over the last 25 years, said Friday that he had married his male partner in a civil ceremony at his home in Massachusetts.”He was actively anti-gay. Or how about this “Two men have told a Spokane, Washington, newspaper that Mayor Jim West offered them jobs after meeting in a gay Internet chat room.” Article says how he fought against any gay equality issues.
Another good site on the subject is The Real Live Preacher.
By this discussion I am not saying that the homosexual or anyone else is not called to righteousness. They are responsible for moral behavior that is not destructive to themselves or others just like everyone else that wants to know a walk with God.
I am saying though that a committed relationship based in Love can be blessed by God. It says in Hebrews 13:4: "Marriage is honorable in ALL, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." (It does not say in that passage the marriage is only honorable between a man and a woman) Gal: 3:28: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus."
I realize that many are coming from a position that has been held since the middle ages. Perhaps it is time that these issues are reexamined. I believe that the truth of Gods word is being progressively restored to His Church. No question that Gods perfect order is for one man and one woman to be in a loyal blissful marriage, but unfortunately that is rare. There is a 1.Good and 2.Acceptable and 3.Perfect will of God. Rom.12.1. or none of us would marry for that is what Paul thought would be best. I am fully aware that many will disagree with this post, but my intent is not to convince everyone, but to win those that may be alienated from the Lord to "Come unto Him" Eph:1:6: To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. Let each person come before God and seek what is Gods will for their life according to His Word and their conscience. Titus:1:15: "Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled."
Lastly George W Bush may be guilty of both these things he has fought against. Abortion and Gay Rights. Now isn’t that just like the Antichrist.

Introduction

History:
I felt a deep need to create this blog to help those who are still in the position I was four years ago.

Up until that time, I believed that God did not want me. Although somewhere deep in my heart I knew that this wasn’t true, I found it extremely difficult to allow myself to be “Christian” because my beliefs have always been that our Creator – whoever or whatever that may be – was a loving, patient, gentle and compassionate entity. What I saw mostly of “Christianity” were people who told me that I was going to Hell. In the most extreme cases, I was told that God hated me.

God hated me? I didn’t understand why; this was such a foreign concept to me that I could not believe that I could ever accept Christ into my life.

What finally changed in my life? What did it take to show me that it was people that hated me and not God or Jesus?

God brought two very wonderful people in my life. One is a learned Christian minister, the other his partner for over 10 years.

This minister slowly and patiently showed me that I was not hated by Jesus. He showed me scripture that proved that I was loved. He also showed me scripture which illustrates that those that would keep us from seeking Jesus are in fact the ones who are in the wrong. We will discuss these passages as time permits.

The other major influence was a congregation that from the first time I walked in their doors made me feel welcomed and loved for who I was. The first time I went to this church, I was singing with a gay men’s chorus – It seemed so strange to me that a Methodist church would allow such a thing. I felt that I had finally found a community that would uphold my search for the loving God I always knew in my heart existed. I became a member at that church and now sing in the choir and witness to others who were like me or to those who need to see that we, meaning LGBTQ’s, HIV+'s, etc., are people loved by God, too.

And so for the past eight years I have been on a journey. And last month I finally realized that I truly believe and trust in God. When I told my minister friend this, he said “I think you have believed for a long time, it’s just now that you are realizing it.” This realization came after having to discuss with my sister the real sin of Sodom that caused God to destroy it. It’s a long story, I will be glad to share it in a post.

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This blog is to help those who have been rejected and marginalized by those Christians and certain versions of Christianity that demean individuals for being gay and/or HIV+. I would like to address these two issues specifically, but we can talk about anyone who feels shut out by what I will often call "Conservative Christianity."

My favorite passage of the Bible that I will use as the basis for our discussions here is this:

John Chapter 3:
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life.
17 For God sent not the Son into the world to judge [condemn] the world; but that the world should be saved through him.

The two points to note from this passage are these:

1. God so loved the WORLD. Contrary to the "God Hates Fags" movement, God loves all. If He did not, it would say something like "God so loved the world, except for the 'evil doers'" or some-such statement, but what the Bible does say is Rom: 5:8: “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
   


2. He sent not his Son to condemn the world. Here we should realize that if Jesus came not to condemn the world, then it is certainly not anyone's place to condemn anybody to Hell. In fact, to do so falls under the category of "Judge not lest ye be judged." What this means is that we will be held to the same standards as we judge others. If we judge harshly and rigidly, we shall be judged harshly and rigidly by God. If we do not condemn or judge harshly, we will be judged with mercy and kindness.
   

So, what does this all mean for those cast out by the religious conservatives? Well, what it means, as far as I have been shown by God's mercy, is this.

People are not God. Churches and organized religions are not God. In fact, many of the conservative denominations are very far from living into the true teachings of Jesus.

I know this may be hard to believe, but the folks that tell you that you are destined to go to Hell because you are homosexual are just plain wrong. They will cite Jewish law in Leviticus as proof of their argument. What they will fail to mention is that Jesus taught us something far more important than condemning our neighbor and demeaning them and closing our doors to them because they are "sinners" - The reality is we are all sinners and we have all sinned and will continue to do so - it's called "being human."

No, they will not tell you what the overwhelming message in the New Testament - the part of the Bible that talks about Jesus' life among us and the lives of his followers soon after His death - here it is, are you ready?

His message is this: Love, compassion, patience, charity. Actually, much of the Old Testament focuses on God's call to care for the less fortunate and those in need. I can post the actual scriptures relating to this later if there is a request for it.

That's not all of it, but I can tell you this: Jesus did not turn his back on the sinners. He embraced them. The only ones He showed very little patience and tolerance for were the Sadducees and the Pharisees. These were the biblical scholars and priests who carried a lot of power in their day. Their religion was "The letter of the Law." They had lost all sight of the spirit of the Law.

Jesus' teachings were a threat to their authority, so they tried very hard to get Jesus to incriminate himself by saying something contrary to Jewish law.

The comparison of those ancient religious leaders and the conservative fundamentalist Christians today will show many similarities. The most important of these for our discussion is the insistence that the sinners aren't welcome, in our case, gays and lesbians. This group of Christians views homosexuality as a choice (despite the growing body of scientific evidence to the contrary) or if it is not choice, then it is for us to fight the "urges" that we have - we have been handed a cross to bear and we just have to deal with it.

The only cross that we have been handed is the same cross that everyone bears: that of finding our way to God through Jesus Christ. Jesus has not turned His backs on us - He turns his back on no one. It is we that turn our backs on Him.

But for many of us in the GLBTQ and HIV communities, we have done so only because we are convinced by those who would have us believe that Jesus has in fact turned against us.

The fact is it is they that have turned against us, not God.

So now that I've given you an idea of where I'm coming from, let's begin.