Religion and LGBT

Well, I just don't want someone to pick and choose. If this is going to be about religion, then I hope people who are uneasy about it are going to do the same to divorced people, liars, people who judge....etc.

Just don't pick and choose.

Secondly, if you truly love your friend you will accept and love them and take this opportunity to understand how opbeing gay isn't the end of the world.

 

Leviticus explicitly says to shame homosexual behaviour (or worse in less recent versions). The bible also states not to eat shellfish or to shave or to carry tattoos/deface your body.

I'm an atheist, which means I don't take instruction from your religious book, thus I have a larger capacity to accept others. I'm not saying "Lose your religion", I'm more suggesting not taking your religion as serious as to give up ones friendship.

He was G/B/T before he told you and now that he has told you, nothing has changed JUST because you know. Any kind of loving god would love his children, god is also reportedly merciful and kind. It ultimately depends on what you believe your god believes. If you get me.

 

This video brings up good points. It's a little long but worth the watch.

[YOUTUBE]ezQjNJUSraY[/YOUTUBE]

 

I am responding as a person who is christian and who is gay. From a person who is too scared to come out because of church backslash, Thank you for trying to understand and love your friend anyway. As for how you approach it from a religious standpoint, You should just accept and love him as you would any other person. Even if being gay is wrong,( Which I don't think it is but I'll get back to that) it is not anyone's place to judge another for their sin. That is God's privilege alone.
Now as far as it being a sin, I would ask you to research this. You might have a change of heart. The video above is an awesome resource. If you have the time, you should definitely watch it.
Whatever you decide, please don't turn your back on your friend. He trusted you with this information and you have the opportunity to show the love and acceptance that God expects.

 

great video Lance, thanks for sharing!

 

Good news you wonderful friend you!

You don't need to change your beliefs as a Christian!

Christians are taught to love God and one another. All other laws stem from that.

That is all.

 

I pray that you'll have peace on this, and am very proud of you for coming straight to the "horse's mouth" so to speak, as many religious fellows have very biased points of view on this subject. Not to say they're bad people, they have just been raised that way or have never encountered anyone in the LGBTQ community. God Bless You!

XOXO (*hug*)

 

Lance, thanks for sharing that video link.
It is not just worth a watch, it should be compulsory viewing for a great many leaders around the world. Not just because of its message, but because it supports the truth that sense comes from deep thought and consideration and erudition rather than spin and chat and ego.

 

Your friend is the same as he was before. Now, you know that he has the desire to engage in consensual sexual relationships with other men (and perhaps he already does). Consider this. It hurts no one. It makes him happy. It makes his partner happy. Love of any kind between any people is a wonderful thing, and can only lead to a better world, certainly not a worse one.

If you still feel the need for a religious justification for your feelings towards him:

Would Jesus Discriminate? - Jesus affirmed a gay couple

Read this page and some other examples on the website. It basically re-examines the bible in regards to homosexuality. To be honest, I'm not sure how accurate or widely accepted the claims it makes are, and as I'm not religious, it doesn't directly affect me, but it is something to consider.

I truly hope you can come to accept him. That you've come here shows that you're openminded.

 

I'm an atheist so I can't really give you any advice in regards to working around the conflicts between your religion & homosexuality, but just let me tell you this.

Your friend has always been gay; he was gay before he told you & he's still gay after coming out to you. Since we were all born this way (in regards to our sexual orientation), do you really think a loving, merciful God would punish us purely on the grounds that we're not heterosexual? We didn't have a choice in the matter; this is just who we are. Now personally I don't believe in a God/or God's, but it just doesn't make sense to me that since we're all supposedly created in His image, that we'd be sent to hell for something He apparently assigned us at birth.

Anyway, religion aside. Please continue loving your friend. I am still closeted to most of my friends & family for fear of alienation/disown-age/changes in my relationship with them etc, so I know what it feels like to face this kind of thing & I think the most important thing you can do is to pursue your friendship with him

 

I also want to suggest that video up there by Mathew Vines, it is a good look at the common passages used to defend discrimination and it goes by scripture, which is often very important to Christians.

It's great that you accept your friend, you have no idea what kind of pain can be caused by rejection simply for who you are. Or maybe you do.

 

Thanks for your reply.

If I may reply to your most recent post about being a concerned friend - then be a friend and be supportive! That's all!

You mention 'pretty stiff morals' - If you are having to wrestle with them personally perhaps it's time to review what you've been brought up to believe/read into on certain subjects.

To use an example from your religion's history - Be a doubting Thomas. There is nothing wrong with a bit of sceptical inquiry into this - Surely if it's the bible/god we're talking about, what have you got to be worried about?!

As for not wanting to compromise anything with your beliefs by doing a little "research" - Attempting to find a 'better' or more complete understanding of a subject generally is something I've always thought of as to be desired. For example : People find something comfortable and generally well fitting ; but is it true of reality? Having a comfort zone and not wanting to leave it can sometimes stump your development as a person.


Ultimately (and I'm not being mean or judgemental when I say this, merely pointing it out) - There is a lot of disagreement between Christians about homosexuality and Christians generally don't live up to what the Bible commands (Killing homosexuals, killing people who work on Sundays, Killing unruly children, not tattooing their body, shaving - etc). The one thing they do seem to agree on is that Jesus loves everyone (apart from the WBC, which seem to have a different view...).

I'm not an expert but from what I've seen - there is a little leeway in what you can believe about homosexuality (or indeed bisexuality) and still be a comfortable Christian.

 

I recently was reading something online and someone brought up the old tired adage, "It's Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve!" I think the main thing you need to consider is moral relativism and the time you're living in. What was viewed as acceptable by society is different at different points in time. If you take a literal approach to the Bible, as I know many do, Adam and Eve were the first couple. They had children. How did the human race multiply? I am assuming that Eve's sons either had to have sex with her (their own mother) or they eventually had sisters who they had to engage in incest with. That behavior would not be acceptable in the church today; however, it certainly seems to have been then. While I may be an atheist and don't find myself trying to convert people to atheism, I do try to ask people questions about things that just don't seem to "add up" in their religion just to get them thinking.

 

Coming from a gay Christian's point of view, I would suggest doing a looot of 1-on-1 talk with God. Of course, that doesn't imply you're going to hear some divine, thunderous voice fill your room when you're praying at night.

But anywho, I got over this entire religious bridge by doing just that--talking to God on a regular basis. I always got a warm, accepting vibe from him every time I presented him with my troubles on subject, but, I couldn't help but feel I was dubiously trying to just CONVINCE myself that God loved me still and would accept me.

Couple of nights ago, I came out to my mom, and that night, I thanked God for it going well and all, and then, I kinda teared up, yadda yadda yadda, and in the end, I just felt more certain than ever about God's acceptance. This picture kinda just formed in my head of him reaching his hand out to me and it was just a very warm and gentle feeling.

So, where am I going with this? I'm saying, I know now, indubitably, that God DOES accept me, and i'm sure the whole LGBT community just as they would the straight community.

So, you're worried that your friend may be condemned by God because of this? Don't.

Now, if you're worried about him being condemned by a harsh Christian community, that may be another story. You just gotta be there for your friend. That's what friends do, eh?

 

That's a really amazing story Emberblaze!!! You're so amazing!!! (*hug*)

 

Oh stoooop, I blush! Don't make me get all haughty-headed ^^