Gays Step Up Efforts to Reverse Gay-as-Godless Stereotype
By Dan Gilgoff, God & Country
A groundbreaking survey about the faith lives of gay Americans that the Barna Group put out last week got surprisingly little attention. In my latest God & Country column for U.S. News Weekly, I tied the Barna survey's fascinating portrait of gay religious life to the gay rights movement's recent efforts to ratchet up outreach and messaging. Much of the work is aimed at reversing the gay-as-Godless stereotype.
Here's the top:
Though he was raised in the United Methodist Church, Harry Knox knew he couldn't become a minister in his denomination because it doesn't ordain openly gay members. He enrolled in a seminary of the more liberal United Church of Christ but was eventually denied ordination anyway. "My whole career as an activist is an accidental ministry," says Knox, 48, who now works at the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay rights group. "I would rather be a local pastor."
Instead, since 2005, Knox has built HRC's "religion and faith program," which works to combat the stereotype of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community as antireligious. "For far too long, LGBT organizations did not put religious allies at the forefront of our efforts," Knox says. "That's a mistake we're making less often now."
Those religious allies may be more plentiful than most Americans think. A Barna Group survey out last week shows that most gay Americans lead pretty robust faith lives. While 72 percent of straight American adults describe their faith as "very important" in their lives, so do 60 percent of gays and lesbians. Almost as many, 58 percent, say they've made a personal and ongoing commitment to Jesus Christ.
And though they are much less likely than straights to share the beliefs of born-again Christians—which comes as no surprise, since most churches in the born-again tradition condemn homosexuality—the Barna survey found that 27 percent of gays do hold those beliefs. "Many in the Christian community assume there's this significant gap between heterosexuals and homosexuals in terms of faith beliefs and activities," says George Barna, the country's top pollster on religious issues, who supervised the survey. "While there are statistically significant differences, it's the narrow size of the gap that's most surprising."
The poll unleashed a torrent of hate mail, mostly from believers furious with Barna's conclusion: that many gays are Bible-believing Christians. But more and more gay rights organizations are joining HRC in stepping up efforts to highlight the faith beliefs of many gay Americans, largely through religious outreach programs. And some religious traditions and denominations are taking steps to welcome gay and lesbian members.
Gay rights activists say that the 2004 election, when voters in 11 states passed gay marriage bans that were heavily promoted through churches, was a wake-up call. To help counter the image of the gay marriage battle as a fight between gays and religious Americans, HRC, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and other national gay rights groups quickly hired religious outreach staff.
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Who is driving ?
This message is about the sexual freedom of 'creatures', not about mankind and Gods' Bible. If we confine our thinking to the reproductive acts between all male/female or unitary reproductive entity's then the Bible has no relevance. We then realize that the differant sexual attributes are strictly for reproduction of that species. And so it is and it seems to work well.There are reports and ample observations of homosexual activity among many of the animal entity's. There is no concern or interest if such is not among humans. That concern may emanate strictly from those who read and instruct from the Bible and dismiss sexual activities in the animal kingdom since the Bible and Religion were not aimed at animals. Human homosexual activity must operate from the same stimuli as for heterosexual activity; some mental and some from the massive pressure of hormones. Of humans, men seem to carry a massive oversupply of testosterone that provides a sex drive demanding relief far more often than their female counterpart. This imbalance pressure often presents excessive demand to married females leaving both parties frustrated. That fact is absent in the animal kingdom where promiscuity is the norm. Among humans it is a terrible source of frustration and problems. It is advantageous for humans, especially men, to engage in homosexual activity in order to manage excessive testosterone and avoid the social and civil problems attendant with "acceptable" non-homosexual behaviour. Often, unwanted pregnancies and abortion clinics are in this picture more to fuel the fire of the Religionists.
The simpler life, relatively free of major and Religious problems, could be enjoyed if human kind were seen as a product of evolution.
Authority to condemn homosexual acts.
The Bible is said to be the word of GOD. We are told that all of the manuscripts were written by men, who were inspired by God. We must take these statements as the truth, because there is absolutely no independent, reliably truthful confirmation available. We believe "on FAITH", or we do not believe, and cannot participate in the dialogue. I am sincerly sorry for introducing heretical doubt here, because that may be painful for many believers to read or to accept. Some say the Bible is the greatest of all writings. I cannot comment on that. I understand that the books and chapters were written over a span of approximately 300 years, which would tend to authenticate the credibility of each writer, if their manuscripts provided common information. But I must add that the writings cover a variety of subjects few of which obviously derive from the mind or the mouth of God. The OT offers the best opportunity for God-source information, but also the most unlikely situations; e.g. Noah's Flood and the scene with Adam and Eve and the discussion with the Snake.Note: The flood was to destroy all of mankind because man was so sinful, so God wished to start over. Look at the results!!! Question the source of the volume of flood waters covering the planet to at least 30,000 feet, and where it went when the water subsided presumably to "sea-level".
The bottom line: Is the Bible from God or from men with reason to have some common knowledge in their days along with a belief that Jesus was the promised Saviour? If it is a man written book, then who has the authority to forbid homosexual conduct between men and women?
Gays as godless sterotype.
I can only speak to this as I am a Catholic and a sinner. But I do know this. I can not and would not receive Holy Communion if I have committed mortal sin until I have made a good confession. If any of these homosexuals or lesbians, however well meaning, are actively engaged in a exual relationship, under canon law, they can not receive Holy Communion unless they confess and repent. That is immutable and unchanging church doctrine. That has not changed, even under Pope Benedict.If they are doing that or persisting in that, they are guilty of a sacrilege. In effect, they are doing themselves more harm than good by this behavior, according to church doctrine. So, if they can not receive in good standing, then why would they attempt to be part of the Church? There can be only one conclusion: They do not accept church doctrine regarding themselves and their life. You can respond with bitter expletives ad nauseam, But since the above is true, then they are hardly members in good standing.That could lead to another surmise: That one goal of the gay and lesbian community is to have these passages and words deleted from the Bible. If that should emerge as an issue of debate in the coming years,then we will surely see what Christ said when He stated: " I did not come into the world to unite, but to divide."
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