| A rather conservative Christian friend of mine (I'm also Christian, but consider myself more 'liberal' in my beliefs) was talking about how he doesn't really have a problem with people who are gay; they're sinners, he insists, but everyone is a sinner.
First, I assume you can see a distinction in the types of sin -- we're all sinners in the sense that we're not perfect, we're all selfish, or what have you. But the type of sin that he implies homosexuals engage strikes me as different -- they're sinners because they're doing something bad.
So this makes me wonder... Do you consider homosexuality wrong (from a religious standpoint), and why? I don't, for the reason that I believe for something to be a sin, it requires an 'overt act' -- you have to actaully do something. You could argue that actually engaging in gay activities was an overt act, but I have a problem with that also. You're not really harming anyone else by being gay. (Assuming, of course, that those involved were willing. But the same is true for heterosexuals...) Furthermore, if God "created you in his image," how can you possibly be a sinner for a trait you have no control over?
But I think a lot of people who have religious objections to homosexuality find basis for it in the Bible. This I find disturbing; the Bible has numerous passages that are essentially antisemetic in nature. Do Christians hate Jews because the Bible says so? As a Christian, I can say I certainly don't -- they're a sister religion on which we're based. Why is homosexuality any different? It really makes no sense to say "Because the Bible says so."
I'm interested in seeing what others think, though. Try to stick to the religious aspect of it, though; I'm not as interested in your personal opinions or sexual orientation. (I think you can hate gays but have no objection to them religiously, or you could be gay but think it's a religious sin. Personal opinion and religious beliefs don't seem too related in this case.) |