Quote from my Pastor from today's sermon

uh!! what did i do?

 

Of course not. But they do choose to act on it (or not).

Every human being with a functional sex drive gets tempted, even if it's only in his or her own mind.

 

That's funny... That's what numerous presenters said at an APA seminar on homosexuality I went to a couple of years ago.

 

Then I doubt it was an APA seminar.

Or it had to be 1972.

http://www.apa.org/pi/lgbc/publications/justthefacts.html

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, published by the American Psychiatric Association and defining the standard of the field, does not include homosexuality as a mental disorder. All other major health professional organizations have supported the American Psychiatric Association in its declassification of homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1973. Thus, the idea that homosexuality is a mental disorder or that the emergence of same-gender sexual desires among some adolescents is in any way abnormal or mentally unhealthy has no support among health and mental health professional organizations.

 

You're right, K. I misspoke. They never said it was a psychological disorder -- that was me trying to 'shorthand' the central message of the conference.

This is what I was referring to:

The article goes on to say that sexual orientation is not a choice, which coincides with what was taught at the seminar. The speakers there explained that the environmental and cognitive factors influence happens before the age of three, all but eliminating the person's ability to discern what is happening. And apparently, once the factors are set, they're set in stone.

I find it interesting that the APA is claiming "considerable recent evidence" of significant biological influence. I'm anxious to see what, specifically, has been discovered and how it influences child development.

 

The two don't correlate at all for me. Sure there are some acts that are sinful, but I don't think the act of feeling love for someone of the same sex is a sin if you were born to feel that way.

 

I thought we were talking about sex, not love.

 

Ah.

 

See, I think that's a lot of the problem that people have when discussing the whole issue, & part of why some people (not directed at you HB) are so horribly intolerant & judgmental toward homosexuals.

It's NOT all about sex & lust.

Most people have a natural urge to pair up, to find a mate, a companion. Part of that drive is sexual, but an even greater part of that is a need for love & companionship.

To tell an entire segment of the population who have no choice about these natural feelings & urges (no matter what the original "cause" is)--"Sorry, something's wrong with you, & you just must deny yourself that ultimate companionship for the rest of your life"--that strikes me as cruel & evil. Love is something to be sought & treasured & nurtured--not something to be withheld & denied & made to seem "dirty." I simply can't reconcile any concept of a loving God with an entity that would make such demands of people in a world that can often be so frightening & lonely & cold.

OK, but suppose I'm wrong. Suppose the Christian God is real, & suppose God does view the behavior (not the inclination) as sin. Still, Christians should remember that the gospel is supposed to be offered as a gift to be freely accepted or freely rejected--not instituted as a law that all are forced to conform to, & not used to condemn others. (Reward & condemnation are reserved to God himself at Judgment--correct?) You can believe the behavior is sinful, adhere to that in your own life, & be honest about it without actively discriminating against people who disagree with you. You can respect their rights to disagree, to work, to have families, to be part of the community & the world we share. It wouldn't hurt for a few to try to understand what it might be like if the shoe was on the other foot, either. What if you woke up tomorrow to the reality that heterosexuality was the "aberration" & sin, & homosexuality was the norm? Could you just decide to change who you are & how you feel? Could you forever forswear the companionship of a mate of the opposite sex? Could you seek that companionship with someone of the same gender, to become "normal?" It might engender a little tolerance & compassion & respect if people could do that.

 

Not to be confrontational but many of the stereotypes that make people think homosexuality is all about sex are created and reinforced by the gay community. You see gay pride marches on TV and they are full of people who either by word or appearance say that it is about sex. You see guys walking down the street in S&M outfits, Transvestites in full dress, and all other sorts of overt costumes that celebrate gay sex. Perhaps that is only the ones that get on TV but the perception is out there and reinforced very often.

When african americans marched in protest in the 1960s they did not do things to reinforce racial sterotypes as part of their marches. On the contrary, they did everything they could to carry the notion that they were no different than whites and deserved equal rights.