understanding the anti gay side

fournineteenfiftynine

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My knee jerk reaction to these people is that they are ignorant bigots.

But as I think about it more, I actually think they sincerely believe the following things:

1. That people with same sex attraction is not really much different from someone with different sex attractions. That attractions are essentially a human condition that is more of a temptation. It doesn't really matter if they are same sex or different sex attractions. They are temptations that lead you towards sinful behavior.
2. That people with same sex attractions or "temptations" want the society to rid themselves of responsibility, guilt, or shame when they carelessly act on these temptations. Honorable straight people have temptations, too, but they want the church and society as a whole to control these temptations until they get married where these temptations become a sanctified and clean place to perform the biological functions to produce children.
3. By approving of homosexual behavior – the house of cards would fall. If you allow homosexuals to be able to act on these temptations outside of a biblical and sanctimonious heterosexual church sanctioned marriage then you are opening a huge Pandora's box. Then they will have to approve of sex outside of marriage, etc...

I really think that is what they believe. So therefore they don't believe:

1. That sexual attraction, whether to the other sex or the same sex, is a God given, natural and biological, and spiritual gift to help create a spark that makes us want to flirt with and please another human being.
2. That these sparks create the potential for us to learn about one another, experience tenderness, and express affection with someone special in a very intimate way.
3. That as we learn more about our bodies and others bodies and learn to express intimacy with each other – we become more human and more connected to humanity as a whole and to the God within all of us.

I think it is more of a fundamentally different world view about sexuality and intimacy as whole that separates these lines of thought. I never hear this question asked, "Why do you, as a heterosexual, feel that you get to experience the joy of allowing your natural attractions to lead to affection and and expression of intimacy through sex but you want to bar those with homosexuals the joy of that basic human experience?"
 

JTalbain

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The Catholic in me applauds your empathy. The cynical asshole in me just points out this is no different than any other situation where people allow dogma to give an answer that science has already provided.
 

FuzzyKen

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People who are ignorant bigots or taught to be ignorant bigots are an amazing bunch. Two years ago my life-partner and I were lectured by a very homophobic and bigoted pre-teen when we played host to he and his Mother at Christmas. This little "future gay basher" was taught by his Grandparents that the only thing that counts is the Christian "Fundy" viewpoint and that all other viewpoints are simply "wrong". I heard from a nine or ten year old male all about how gay people are all "child molesters", how we are all sinful and was lectured again and again by this little twit for three days over the Christmas Holidays.

While I promote understanding of all viewpoints and rights to opinions, I also reserve the right to have little tolerance for out and out ignorance and stupidity when science proves this wrong. I hope that his idiotic Mother has already signed him up with a lifetime membership in the "Flat Earth Society". Mommy thinks that teaching bigotry and homophobia to her Son is something that he will grow out of.

We can all remember by way of Matthew Shepherd that she is in fact wrong!

It is really sad that there are people who take pride in lack of education or learning.
 

dandelion

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I would agree that some of the objection to gay rights is a 'floodgates' mentality. pornography in the Uk has become steadily more available throughout my lifetime, but contrary to the claims of those who then and now seek to ban it, life has generally become better, not worse. A gay lifestyle is placed in this same heading, part of the objection is because it is a deviation from a perceived norm, and it is implicit that if one deviation is accepted then others might be too.

The recent Uk debate on gay marriage has really been about whether or not you are allowed to call it marriage, even though it was already pretty much established as a legal contract with a different name. The objection has been a purely homophobic one against the perception it is equivalent to traditional marriage, not against the already existing formal reality.

So I think openly gay relationships remain an eyeopener to the heterosexual world. Gays have many more sexual partners, both as part of and outside of formal marriages, and generally have a much more relaxed approach to sex. paradoxically some of this has been forced upon the gay community by persecution, but they have embraced it, it works.
 

fournineteenfiftynine

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i think you really understand the situation. of course the church has to shoulder much of the blame but is coming to terms with reality slowly (at least in parts)

Thank you. I think if people would think through things we'd all be better off.
 

fournineteenfiftynine

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People who are ignorant bigots or taught to be ignorant bigots are an amazing bunch. Two years ago my life-partner and I were lectured by a very homophobic and bigoted pre-teen when we played host to he and his Mother at Christmas. This little "future gay basher" was taught by his Grandparents that the only thing that counts is the Christian "Fundy" viewpoint and that all other viewpoints are simply "wrong". I heard from a nine or ten year old male all about how gay people are all "child molesters", how we are all sinful and was lectured again and again by this little twit for three days over the Christmas Holidays.

While I promote understanding of all viewpoints and rights to opinions, I also reserve the right to have little tolerance for out and out ignorance and stupidity when science proves this wrong. I hope that his idiotic Mother has already signed him up with a lifetime membership in the "Flat Earth Society". Mommy thinks that teaching bigotry and homophobia to her Son is something that he will grow out of.

We can all remember by way of Matthew Shepherd that she is in fact wrong!

It is really sad that there are people who take pride in lack of education or learning.
They are called "Republicans" :)
 

cruztbone

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this is the perfect opportunity for Catholic dissidents to make known their disgust with the prevailing anti GLBT church attitude and take control of the process of electing a new pope. perhaps celebrating after selection with rainbow smoke coming out of the vatican?