It makes me feel both nauseous and tickled pink that so many “Christians” are proud to voice their opinion that homosexuality goes against “God’s word”, that same sex marriage perverts God’s idea of what an acceptable marriage consists of. In actuality, it is not so much gay marriage that’s perverting God’s word, but rather it is these self-proclaimed religious people that are perverting God and religion. Do the teachings of the Bible really include the ostracizing of homosexuals? Well, let us not forget that this Bible in question was a book written by mortal men, and—feel free to correct me if I’m wrong—a book that was written quite some time ago. Isn’t change a natural part of life’s course? Some obvious examples of America’s moving forward like the abolishment of slavery or the granting of women’s right to vote may come to mind. Clearly the United States, a nation that claims to be progressive, opened its eyes long ago and granted equal rights to women and African Americans, as we can assume God would have been in favor of. So why is it that we’re still helplessly stuck in the stand-still mindset of the Middle Ages when the time comes to accept and grant rights to homosexuals?
So many people seem to use religion as comfort food. When was it ever intended to be utilized as something to hide behind from things that frighten us, like differences and progression? Is preaching about the Bible the new substitute for accepting the omnipresence and rapidity of change?
Even according to the most modern of dictionaries, the very frequently used dictionary.com, the denotation of fear is phrased as “a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined”. Pay particular attention to the last seven words. This application of that truth extends beyond just conservatives or homophobes—it reveals what’s hidden underneath prejudiced people of every kind: fear of the new and unknown. But why be afraid? Though scientists would disagree, devout Christians all share the belief that God created the world. So why can’t such devoted followers have faith in the nature of what he’s created?
Another way for many individuals to cope with the shock of discovering the vicious evils of homosexuality is to pretend that gays chose to be the way they are. If that’s the case, then I regret not choosing to be born with green eyes, an outgoing personality, and lots of athletic talent—I suppose I was just foolishly unaware that human beings have the power to pick and choose their inborn traits. It’s a little alarming to me that such a notion would even be a consideration in so many people’s minds. To all of us belonging of mainstream sexual orientation—did we ever decide to be straight, or was our attraction to the opposite sex randomly assigned? And to those of you pompous enough to feel good about yourselves for being widely accepted—whether it be for your sociability, your talent, your appearance, or even your sexual preference—keep in mind that it was all just a luck of the draw that you had nothing to do with.
Of course, I’m not so narrow-minded to shun those who disagree with gay marriage. I’m only baffled by what a large percentage of those people are proud church-goers and pride themselves on being spiritual. It isn’t really so much their antics about “sacred marriage” that irks me; it’s the fact that shunning homosexuals or even just dismissing their romantic emotions as perverted choices they made is so paradoxical to everything that Christ ever taught. Even as a very unreligious Catholic, I feel perfectly free to look upon homophobes as the real ones that will be judged by this alleged God in the end. Perhaps the part of the Bible that records the teachings of Christ has managed to be overlooked. Jesus was acceptance and unconditional love incarnate, and taught us to be the same. And yet, so many Evangelicals, Catholics, and others who are opposed to acceptance feel very high and mighty for attending church so often. In my opinion (and I’m not alone), they ought to feel nothing but shame, remorse, and embarrassment when they walk through the church doors pretending to be true followers of Christ. I can only hope for their sakes that they will pray very hard for acceptance into heaven.
We are all so afraid of the unknown, and yet, what is more unknown, foreign, and inexplicable than the existence of God? What is God, really, but a force of energy that is far bigger than the petty ignorance of His creations? As far as I was taught, He wasn’t a man sitting up in Heaven with a whole lot of time on His hands to write rules about which of his creations—all of whom he was said to love equally— will and will not be accepted; it’s foolish to think of him depicted that way, and that certainly isn’t any God that I’d want to be putting all of my faith in. If this is what God has been reduced to in the modern world of religion, count me out.