Saturday, June 7, 2008

FREEDOM OF SPEECH, RELIGION, AND HOMOPHOBIA

"The Alberta Human Rights Commission has fined a Christian group $5,000 for an anti-gay letter that was published in a Red Deer newspaper.

"The panel ruled in November that the Concerned Christian Coalition and its former executive director Stephen Boissoin broke Alberta's human rights law because the letter likely exposed homosexual people to hatred and contempt.

"In 2002, Boissoin wrote a letter to the editor of the Red Deer Advocate that compared gay people to pedophiles and drug dealers. It was published under the headline 'Homosexual agenda wicked.'"

[For the full article, see here.]

Wouldn't it be a wonderful, civilized thing to do in the U.S. to enact human rights laws that punished those individuals and groups that expose any minority group "to hatred and contempt." That hatred and contempt are frequently manifested in violence perpetrated against members of that minority group.

And homophobic religious haters who profess to be Christians, and who demonize Gay people and falsely claim that the Bible condemns same-sex love and relationships, and who falsely invoke the name of God in spewing their hate, claim innocence and, much as did Pontius Pilate, wash their hands from the taunting, suicides, assaults, and murders of LGBT people to which they wittingly or unwittingly give permission and which may be seen to be a consequence of such ignorant and/or hateful speech.

They call themselves the "Concerned Christian Coalition." What else would they call themselves to seek at least a modicum of credibility from others who don't know any better?

Of course, haters all too frequently appeal to God to justify their hate. It's important to remember that whenever evil is done, there is almost always an appeal to virtue.

It is rare that someone views him/herself as a hater without cause. Some noble cause is almost always manufactured by those who exclude and/or vilify and/or hate others, and what more noble cause is there than to claim to be doing "God's work?"

"Today, I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord." (Adolph Hitler in "Mein Kampf.")

And the Bible and, of course, God, is the ultimate source of virtue! So, wolves in sheep's clothing, by their specious appeal to the Bible and their false invoking of God, in addition to their playing the victim in that they are quick to allege that their "freedom of speech," and their "freedom of religion" are being threatened and curtailed, portray Christianity and God Himself as being diametrically opposed to the plain Gospel message of grace and love.

And they have the temerity to play the victim role, claiming that they are the victims who are not allowed to have "freedom of speech" and "freedom of religion." Well, they can keep their ignorant hate speech and they can keep their kind of "religion" to themselves!

It boggles the mind when the oppressor portrays him/her/itself as the victim!

Homophobic speech and "religion" have no place in the public square or in the heart of anyone who claims to be a Christian, or in the heart of any decent person, for that matter! (It is important to remember that one can be a decent person and not be a Christian. However, all Christians are decent people, and if they are not decent, they have no claim to be called "Christians!")

Yet, these wolves in sheep's clothing have a tremendous amount of influence and credibility among ignorant and/or gullible people as can be seen here, for example, where, according to a study conducted (the methodology of which I can't vouch for), found that 48% of Americans believe that "homosexual behavior" is a "sin."

Non-predatory same-sex love, just like non-predatory heterosexual love, is not a sin! Please read some of the articles and sites in the Links section that amply show the truth of this fact!

When ignorant people who vilify, hate or exclude think of Gay people, they usually solely focus on the sexual aspects of life, and see the Gay person in solely sexual terms! They fail to recognize that even if a Gay person is unable to engage in sexual activity he or she is still Gay, just as if a Straight person is unable to engage in sexual activity he or she is still Straight!

However, people have been so indoctrinated, if not brainwashed, by hate speech and exclusionary rhetoric emanating from all too many professing Christian sources, that have absolutely no biblical or factual basis, that the lie has become the truth, and Gay people are seen by all too many people as being solely sexual creatures, frequently on the prowl. Empirical and biblical evidence is of no value to those who have a vested interest in maintaining their exclusionary mind-set and their prejudices.

However, there is absolutely no excuse for anyone, Straight or Gay, to believe the big lie that committed same-sex love and its expression is in any way a sin!

Indeed, as with committed heterosexual love, committed same-sex love is a sacrament that is honoring to God!
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2 comments:

DC HAMPTON JACOBS said...

Jerry,

Are you the earthbound identity of the Angel Tartarouchos? Because your words of profound wisdom definitely constitute the "flaming fire that pursues them" spoken of in the Gnostic Book of Thomas!

Jerry Maneker said...

Thanks so much, Don Charles. It means a great deal to me.