Dear John Boehner, Speaker

This is a letter I am sending to Speaker of the House John Boehner

Dear Rep. Boehner,

I am a resident of the 8^th District of Ohio. As you have recently taken over the position of Speaker of the House in the U.S. Congress, you must have many letters and emails coming across your desk. I understand that you do not have time to read everything, and that someone else is probably reading this for you, deciding whether or not it is worth your attention. I hope that you will read what I have to say, and consider my words carefully. You are my representative after all, and I have a great respect for you.

I am a 20-year-old college sophomore at (Some School) in (Some Town), (Some State). I am a strong believer in Christ, and I outwardly show my faith each and every day. I fight for what I believe is correct, and I do not back down when people disagree with me. I am strong in my beliefs. I voted for you in November. I have a family that cares for me, and I for them. I believe that a smaller government is better, and I do not think Universal Healthcare is going to solve our problems. In many ways, you and I share the same beliefs and values. This is not always the case though.

I am homosexual. I have been called gay in a derogatory way, been told by multiple people that I will burn in hell, and my car has even been paint-balled, all because I am gay. My parents accept me as a person, but I am sure they still do not approve of how I am choosing to live my life. I am going to be scorned and hated by many people throughout my life, just as others have been experiencing for decades. I do not choose to be who I am; however, I do choose to love, and accept everyone for who they are. Now I am not saying that you have to agree with marriage equality, but as a government official, your personal values and beliefs about how people choose to behave should sometimes be disregarded.

The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) limits the rights of certain individuals in this country. Marriage equality is considered a state issue, not a federal issue. DOMA is contradictory to that very idea. Saying that the federal government will only recognize a marriage if it is between a man and a woman is discriminatory. Multiple states have already legalized marriage equality, or at least recognized marriages that were performed outside of their borders. If a state sees a marriage of two men or two women to be acceptable, then the federal government should recognize that marriage.

To make another important note, DOMA is contradictory to the constitution. President Obama believes this, and so do many Americans. It is a discriminatory act that limits the rights of certain Americans. To me, this is no different then race equality or gender equality. Both of those issues once plagued, and in some ways still do, our country. There was a time when people believed that African-Americans were lesser humans, or that women could not do as much as men. Discrimination is nothing new to this country, but through the years, America has learned to accept people for who they are. This is no different. Whether or not you believe in marriage equality, you should not limit the rights of individuals in a free nation.

I am not asking for special rights. I am not asking to be given special treatment. I simply want the right that all Americans deserve: the right to marry and live free of persecution by the government. I have done nothing wrong or illegal, and I deserve the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I hope you do not dismiss this as just another piece of mail looking for special privileges. It is not, and I am not asking for anything more than to be treated fairly. As your constituent, I hope that my voice means something to you, and that you will not allow someone that you are representing, a fellow American, to be discriminated against any longer.

Yours Sincerely

Josiah (Last Name)

To anyone who did not infer this, Ohio District 8 is John Boehner’s home district, and I am a legal resident of that district, and I am registered to vote there, even though most of the year I live at my college. I wrote this letter because of a guy in Maryland who inspired me by his letter to his state representative about things being voted on in the Maryland House this week.

I have already sent this letter to Congressman Boehner through my district’s contact email, and I will be sending a hard copy of this letter to his office in Washington D.C. tomorrow morning. I do not know if it will make a difference, or if he will even read it, but I have met him before, and I am hoping since I am one of his constituents, I will actually get noticed.

Reparative Therapy Comparison

So this morning, I attended a church I do not normally attend. I was singing in a choir in place of one of my teachers who is in Washington D.C. this weekend, so it will likely be the only time I ever go there, unless I sing for him again. However, I felt the message to be extremely relevant to things going on in my life recently.

The message was based around John 4:1-26. The story presented here is where Jesus talks to a Samaritan Woman at Jacob’s well about the Living Water, and how those who drink the Living Water will never be thirsty again. Now, throughout the story, it is clear that the woman has lived a sinful life and that she is scorned for who she is by all of her peers. Jesus does not look down upon her or judge her. In fact, he simply loves her.

Now that being said, it made me think that who are we to judge others? I know this isn’t going to be a smooth transition into what I’m trying to say, but this sermon is what sparked my thought, and what made me write down my thoughts on the bulletin. Here is how I feel about Reparative Therapy (also called Conversion Therapy or Reorientation Therapy):

Organizations and programs that claim they can “change” a person’s orientation and make them heterosexual are in fact a lot like hair dye companies. They offer you a “product” that will make them money, that in fact will only change you in appearance.

Think about it. Hair dye is a chemical that is absorbed into your hair. It is dangerous and damaging to the hair, but people do it because they want to appear to be something they aren’t. They want to be accepted by others, or feel better about themselves…but the change is only temporary. You may be able to make your blonde hair look brown, but at the core, the hair is still blonde, and over time, the dyed hair begins to fade and grow, and you realize that the root is still blonde. There is no way to change the color of your hair. It is what it is.

In the same way, you cannot actually change a person’s sexual orientation. People who go to reparative therapy are looking for a way out of the hatred, both by themselves and by others. This fear and hate is enough cause for them to be upset, and to look for quick fixes, but the reality is that we cannot change who we are. We can put on a mask, and be taunted and tormented with enough hatred and self-loathing that we can bury a part of ourselves, so that no one else can see, and even we see a new reflection in the mirror, but that part of ourselves is still there.

Now some people will try to give me facts about how people have thought they were gay, then they were bisexual, then gay again, and then straight, and blah blah blah…sure, some people actually do change sexual orientation. Some people claim they are changing orientation when really they’re just trying to fit in somewhere and they’re lying about who they really are to get where they want. Not everyone is like that though. I used to consider myself bisexual, and I honestly believe that I was. There is still a 0.1% part me that likes girls, but that is not enough for me to consider myself bisexual. It honestly used to be 50/50 between guys and girls, but as many people say, sexuality is fluid. It moves and changes, especially when we are still discovering who we are.

I can even use the hair analogy still. My natural hair color is brown. Has it been brown my whole life? No. I was born with blonde hair and blue eyes. It wasn’t until I was about 5 years old that my hair started turning brown, and my eyes gradually changed to hazel. Is this because someone changed them, or I chose to change them? No, this happened naturally, but it didn’t change who I am as a person. It is the same as aging. As you get older, hair color gradually  changes, and gray hairs start to appear. The same goes for sexuality. It can change over time, and as in all sexual desires, they fade and age, and turn into something more loving than just whether or not I want to sleep with a guy.

All this being said, I am trying to say that humans cannot change who a person is, especially sexual orientation wise. I am not saying that God cannot change a person. He has the power to do anything He desires, but if he truly wanted to change me, or any other gay person, He can, and He could have back when I prayed for answers and guidance. I even asked Him to make me straight on a daily basis because I was afraid I was disappointing Him. He didn’t change me though. I don’t believe He wants me to change. That is my opinion, and I don’t expect you to agree.

Now that I have finished writing out my thoughts, I want you to know that I apologize for how haphazard it is, and the disorganization of thought. It was meant as a whole for people to realize that Reparative Therapy does not work, and is in fact very harmful to those they are trying to “help.”

Thanks,

– Josiah –

Bigots and Verbal Abuse

So, something that has really been on my mind lately has been bigots and verbal abusers…sometimes they can be synonymous, but that is not always the case. For those who don’t know, a bigot is:

A person obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices, especially one exhibiting intolerance, and animosity toward those of differing beliefs. (Wikipedia)

Now, I’m not saying everyone who doesn’t agree with homosexuality is a bigot. Some people do not believe homosexuality is moral, or acceptable, but if they do not constantly argue against the rights of homosexuals, they are not a bigot. You can disagree with homosexuality all you want, but is it really your place to keep rights from them? I don’t think so.

Marriage Equality is bound to pop up on this blog at some point, seeing as someday, I will want to get married. Today is not that day, but I will give a slight glimpse into my viewpoint:

Marriage is a government instituted union. Many people believe that marriage is a biblical idea, but that is actually false. Matrimony is a much better word for the biblical idea. I’m not saying it’s perfect, but it’s better. Marriage is simply a union between two people (currently a man and a woman in the United States), which allows them to share benefits, support children together, and basically share everything. Civil Unions are the creation of a second union made with the intent of allowing LGBT people to live their lives together. The problem with this is that marriage is the only thing recognized (currently) by the federal government for full sharing equality. It doesn’t make much sense to me. If you want to call it civil union but give them full rights the same as marriage, I couldn’t care less. However, the problem I have with it is that it currently discriminates against LGBT couples. Fix that, please, I beg of you, otherwise, I will call you a bigot, just saying.

Now, onto verbal abuse.

Although some people don’t find anything wrong with name calling, I have a serious problem with it. I don’t want be called a Fag. In fact, I wish the word was never used in such a derogatory sense. Yesterday, someone said something about a purse being used for something. I was about to say something, but she corrected herself and said girls, and corrected herself again and said “feminine people.” Now, I have no problem with her saying that. I doubt most people would, but then the guitar player turned around and said, “Does that mean it applies to the fags?” He said it with a grin on his face, and a very condescending tone in his voice. This is what really bothers me. Fag is not the only word though. I have a problem with the following words when used in a derogatory sense:

Fag

Dyke

Queer

Homo

I am sure there are more words I would disagree with, but these are the ones that come to mind. When you say things like this, do you realize what you’re doing? The guitar player does not know I am gay, nor does he know a girl standing nearby is bisexual. It isn’t obvious, because I am not “feminine” and she is not “butch.” As far as people know, we are both straight as can be, but that doesn’t justify joking about things like that. I took offense to that, and I can’t look at him the same way anymore. He has lost my respect, and I hope he learns that words like that are hateful and they hurt people.

Random Event, Not-So-Random Reaction

This morning, I opened my Bible to read, not knowing what I was going to read. Some days, like today, I just open my Bible to a random spot and read whatever book and chapter it is on. I found this to be worth posting about, in light of recent comments on my post about Homosexuality and the Bible. I hope this impacts someone in some way:

Romans 14 (NIV)

1 Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters.2 One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables.3 The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them.4 Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

5 One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.6 Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.7 For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone.8 If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.9 For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

10 You, then, why do you judge your brother or sistert? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.11 It is written:
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will acknowledge God.'”

12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.14 I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean.15 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died.16 Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil.17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.

19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble.21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

22 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves.23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.

For The Bible Tells Me So

Last night, a friend who read my last post was reminded of a time a few years ago, when she was watching a documentary on TV. It was called For the Bible Tells Me So. She suggested I watch it, because it deals with what I was talking about. I watched it tonight, and it gave me even more reassurance that I am on the right path. For those of you who don’t have time to watch it, and even those who cannot watch it, as it is very difficult to find available online, I decided to post a few of the things that were mentioned in it.

Something that should be noticed is that people always say “This is what the Bible says,” but no, actually this is what the Bible reads. It takes a lot of analysis into not only what it is saying, but also of the language, the culture, and the custom to help us understand what it means or says.

Another thing to note is that there is no commandment that says “Thou Shall Not Act on Homosexual Desires,” but there is a commandment that says “Thou Shall Not Bear False Witness” and I cannot hide who I am. I cannot be untruthful in who I am and what God has made me. If you believe that God loves all of his creation, and you concede that I did not choose to be this way (which I promise you, I did not choose to be gay), then you have two choices. You can interpret the Bible the way I believe it should be interpreted, not in a way that homosexuality is a sin, but rather that homosexuals are encouraged by God to find the one they love and to create a God-centered life together. The other option is to believe that God created homosexuals, loves them, but then condemns them if they choose to act how created them. How can I believe that I am going to hell when the God that I love and that created me with love tells me that who I am is wrong. I cannot believe that.

Leviticus 18:22 (KJV)

Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.

This is one of the most difficult passages to explain. How could this possibly be seen in a pro-homosexual way? This is a paraphrase of the explanation given in the video:

Lying with a male was not allowed in the day because they NEEDED to procreate, and only the men could reproduce. Women were just for incubation, the men had the seed, so they could not waste their seed with other men. They had to save it for women. This rule no longer applies, as there is not a need for procreation.

Something else that was mentioned was that abomination was ALWAYS used to reference a ritual wrong. It is never used to to refer to something innately immoral. Eating pork is not innately immoral, but it is an abomination because it broke ritual requirements.

Genesis 19:

And they called to Lot and said to him, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them.”

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is almost always interpreted to mean that homosexuality is abominable and worthy of destruction. This is what I believe:

Anal rape was a great way, in those times, to humiliate and punish people. The Sodom story was about cruelty and inhospitality, not homosexuality. The city was doomed before this incident. God had already chosen to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah prior to Him sending the angels.

So why do we choose to believe that God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah due to homosexuality?

Romans 1:26

God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another.

When Paul says natural and unnatural, he is not necessarily referring to nature, even though we can see homosexuality all throughout it. What he is likely meaning when he says natural is customary, and unnatural is uncustomary. Homosexuality was not customary in the Jewish world, but Paul saw it in the Greek culture and saw it as an idolatrous, cultish act. This is what he was referring to when he wrote this passage.

Now, as I have stated in a previous post, there are other verses that are used as “Clobber” passages, but these are the most widely used, and therefore are the ones that I am going to reference right now.

I would like to take a look at the issue of Marriage. I do not believe in calling it gay marriage, because that implies that it is inherently different than what most people consider “normal” marriage. It is no different. People always talk about how if we allow gay people to get married, terrible things will happen. Well let me assure you, if gay people are given the right to marry their loved ones, the only thing that will happen is that gay people WILL GET MARRIED! No world war will break out. Children will not be taught how to have gay sex in schools, and no one will be required to get a marriage. Now I would like to make a point that the video showed me on this subject:

“In the Bible, a man acquired his wife. We don’t do that anymore. Jewish tradition used to be that the man consecrated the woman by putting a ring on HER finger, and she was consecrated to him. He could have other wives. Nowadays, we have a 2-ring exchange, both are made holy to each other. The man’s not going to take other wives. She’s not taking other husbands. Things change. Just because it’s written in the Bible doesn’t mean that’s how we do it today.”

This was said by a Jewish man in the video, and I agree with him 100%. Marriage today is nothing like it was in the Bible, so why do so many Christians say that marriage must remain holy and between a man and a woman, as in the Bible. Nothing about marriage is the same, and nothing about marriage between two men is unholy. I think I have established that my belief is two men can live a happy, loving, committed, God-centered life together, and create a family that lives a life for God.

Acceptance

This was what one gay teenager said at a protest outside of Focus on the Family headquarters in Colorado Springs with his family:

“To be a family means to love and to accept and to embrace. These are my parents. This is what it means to be a family. Focus on the Family teaches people to reject their gay sons and their lesbian daughters, and it has to end.”

This gives me hope. My parents once read and listened to Dr. Dobson from Focus on the Family, and I remember that his teachings were a main reason I had to go to counseling when I was 11 years old. No 11 year old should have to go to psychotherapy and counseling. I know today that my parents love me. I do not know if they accept me, but I know they have not abandoned me, and that, I believe, is the first step to a successful family. Acceptance.

Finally, I would like to make an appeal to anyone who is reading this that may not believe what I am saying. It is okay to have doubts. It is okay to believe what you will. It is NOT okay, however, to hate people, or to discriminate against people, simply based on something that goes against what you believe. Here are a few quotes from this video that dealt with this:

1. “The Bible is about love, it’s about the human condition, it is about inclusion, it’s about justice, for all people, not just some people.”
2. “We are never to be exclusive. God’s world is ALWAYS inclusive.”
3. “Jesus always embraced the outcast, so how a church can make someone an outcast and yet call themselves Christian doesn’t make any sense.”

And something a very elderly couple said when their church ordained a gay bishop (New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson):

“We do not judge whether he is a sinner. We’ll leave that up to God.”

Just as the Bible tells us too, we are not to judge others. We are to leave all judgment up to the Holy Judge, our Heavenly Father God.

Romans 14:10-13

But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.

1 Corinthians 4:5

Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

Hebrews 10:30

For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.

Do not judge your brothers and sisters of this world. That is for God and God alone.

Peace,

– Josiah –

For anyone interested in watching the video, this is the link I used to watch it online:

http://www.veoh.com/browse/videos/category/activism_non_profit/watch/v18496223THBFsstz

The documentary is 1:38:48 in length, and it was worth every second of it. I suggest that everyone watch it. It made me cry, not necessarily because of how emotional it was, but because it hit my heart in the most amazing way. I cannot even begin to explain the love I felt from watching this.

Homosexuality and the Bible

I actually find it is interesting. I titled this homosexuality and the Bible, but in all reality, homosexuality didn’t exist in the Bible. There was no word for homosexuality, and there are no homosexual, loving relationships in the Bible (this is debatable, but most conservative Christians do not believe there were).

On Thursday, I received this comment on my Mission/Calling post:

There is no way you are being honest when you say homosexual behavior is not condemned by the Bible. Just because it is “who you are” does not absolve the sin. I lust after beautiful women, it is a sin as plainly spelled out as homosexual behavior. I do not get to ignore and misrepresent the Bible to suit my needs.

There is a difference between tolerating the person and tolerating the behavior. You have been taken in by some really self-serving teaching if you have been taught the bible is supportive of homosexual behavior.

First, I would like to briefly respond to this comment, and then I will make my case for why I believe homosexual behavior is not condemned by God.

Response:

I am being entirely honest. Do you know what the word honest actually means? To be honest is to be “honorable in principles, intentions, and actions; upright and fair” (Dictionary.com). In all senses, I was honest. Now I admit, “who I am” has affected my beliefs. I cannot deny that. If I wasn’t gay, I would not have even questioned what everyone else told me to be true about homosexuality. There would have been no reason for me to research and ask for God to show me what to do, and how to live my life as a homosexual. Since I am gay, I had to question everything.

First I questioned whether or not God existed. I spent two years believing that he didn’t, but I realized my mistake. I took Jesus into my heart a second time when I was 17, and my love for Christ has been growing since that time. Even after coming back to Christ though, I still believed that being gay was wrong, and so I tried to push those feelings aside, asking God to take them away from me. I tried dating girls. I even maintained a decently long relationship with one, but I realized that I could not be truly happy with that. I looked deep into my heart, trying to find an answer in there. I searched the Bible, but I could see no hope. I prayed for God to help me, and he did. He gave me hope. He gave me joy. He helped me to realize that my being gay and choosing to live a homosexual life with a man I will one day marry (whoever that may be) is no sin, and that He loves me, and I love him.

I would like to point out that I was never “taught” anything about the Bible being supportive of homosexual behavior. Since the time that I felt that everything was okay, I have spent my time searching and researching everything I could about homosexuality and the Bible. So here is what I have found:

Leviticus 18:22 (NKJV)

You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

This verse has been translated as many different ways as I can think of. Many of them are worded much more to my liking than this one, but that doesn’t matter, it works any way it is worded. You see, I look at this from a different point of view than most people. Several verses throughout the Bible, including Romans 1:26-27 talk about men leaving their “natural” relations with women and burning with lust for men. I can truthfully say that I have no “natural” feelings toward women, and that my “natural” affections and attractions are for men. We can also find this in nature all around us.

Did you know that 94% of the time, male giraffes have sexual intercourse with other male giraffes. Are those giraffes doing an “abominable” or “unnatural” act? Not just giraffes though. Homosexual behavior has been seen and recorded in at least 1500 different species of animal, so why do we say that it is “unnatural” if it is all throughout nature?

I would never lie with a woman, because that is unnatural to me.

I also would like to point out that “abomination” is an interesting choice of words here, seeing as the original hebrew “tow’ ebah” meant “morally disgusting” but ALSO strongly implied idolatry. Does this mean that homosexual sex is idolatry in and of itself, or that the abomination is homosexual behavior in an idolatrous context? I make no assumptions for others, I only hold my own belief that only when in idolatrous context is homosexual behavior detestable.

Genesis 19:5 (NKJV)

And they called to Lot and said to him, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them carnally.”

Noting that “carnally” was added to this translation, we will not talk about that, but rather focus on the “that we may know them” part. Most people believe that to know them in this instance means to have sexual intercourse with them. I would like to point out that the to know (yâda‛) is used over 900 times in the Old Testament, yet is only used to mean sexually about a dozen times. Why is this instance used to mean sex? It could much more easily be translated as “get to know” or even “interrogate.”  Translators have made the choice to translate it as homosexual rape, and I personally do not agree with that translation.

1 Timothy 1:8-11 (NKJV)

But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.

1 Timothy 1:8-11 (Amplified Bible)

Now we recognize and know that the Law is good if anyone uses it lawfully [for the purpose for which it was designed], Knowing and understanding this: that the Law is not enacted for the righteous (the upright and just, who are in right standing with God), but for the lawless and unruly, for the ungodly and sinful, for the irreverent and profane, for those who strike and beat and[even] murder fathers and strike and beat and [even] murder mothers, for manslayers, [For] impure and immoral persons, those who abuse themselves with men, kidnapers, liars, perjurers–and whatever else is opposed to wholesome teaching and sound doctrine As laid down by the glorious Gospel of the blessed God, with which I have been entrusted.

Anyone find that the Amplified Bible refers to “sodomites (NKJV)” as “those who abuse themselves with men” to be interesting? I thought it was fascinating that a translation might actually make sodomy seem like it is just a sin between men. Sodomy can refer to anal sex, oral sex, or any other genital to non-genital stimulation, whether heterosexual or homosexual, even bestiality. So why is it translated as such? Sodomy has recently become a term to mean “anal intercourse between men.” It has long meant a whole lot more. I will let you decide what you think on this subject.

Now I know that there are a whole lot more “clobber passages” in the Bible, but I don’t have time to go through them all right this very minute and give a response. It is midterm week, and I am very tired. Maybe someday in the near future, I will post my beliefs on those other passages, as well as the relationships that I find to be homosexual in nature and accepted by God. I will also post my beliefs about churches like Westboro Baptist Church and how they break so many of the Bible’s and God’s commandments, but all of that is for another time.

– Josiah –

Coming Out Isn’t Good Enough

Excerpt from “Crisis: 40 Stories…” Page 35, written by Bruce Bastian:

“Coming out did not make everything better overnight, however. It was a long and sometimes scary journey. Yes, it freed me from a life of lies and let me be who I really am, but in the end, it takes more than the courage to be who you are to be free. You need to feel safe, secure, and accepted in and by society; you need to feel part of your religious community if that is your choice; and you need the right to marry and make a life for yourself with the person you love. Boys and girls must feel free to feel different without being wrenched with guilt.”

This paragraph from the book really hit deep in my heart tonight. Now I am not fully out yet, but I am out to my friends and family. I have been coming out slowly over the past 2 years because it is difficult and it is scary. Coming out right now to the entire world would not make me feel any better tomorrow. Sure, it might feel good for the first few minutes, but then it would begin to feel awkward, and I would be afraid of what people might say. All of this could be avoided if people were more accepting, especially in religious communities.

I live in a very large Christian community, and it is not acceptable for someone here to be openly gay. If I, or any other gay (LGBTQ) person, chooses to live a lifestyle that this community deems “sinful” (and by choice, I only mean the acting on it; no one here believes that being gay is a choice, it’s the choice to act on it that is sinful to them), we would be ridiculed, mocked, called names, and probably thrown out. There is no tolerance for that here. I want to change that. It is this intolerance that makes gay people, like myself and a few others here I know, remain in the closet. We do not feel safe, secure, or accepted. We only feel like a part of this community because people are unaware of who we truly are. We do not have the right to marry, let alone date someone of the same sex here. Coming out would be pointless for gay people here, because we would not have any of the things that make coming out worth it.

This is why I have chosen to change things. I do not know when, and I do not know how, but one day, before I leave this community behind, I will come out of hiding, and I will make it well known that I believe that God loves me, and that I am going to heaven, even though I am gay and choosing to act on that. I will fight for my rights to equality, and I will not leave this place of my own will. If I am forced out, I will leave, still fighting for what I believe. I will not allow anyone to tell me that what I choose to do is wrong, because I know that God is on my side. I hope to never have to leave this place in such a manner, and I hope that what I do will change the way people here think and act toward gay people, because we all deserve to live our lives free of hatred and scorn. I want to make this place better, and someday, I hope you will want to make some part of this world better as well.

Books I’m Reading Now

I am reading 3 books at the moment. All of them have to do with homosexuality, just different aspects of it. Here they are:

Crisis: 40 Stories Revealing the Personal, Social, and Religious Pain and Trauma of Growing Up Gay in America

Edited by Mitchell Gold with Mindy Drucker

What the Bible Really Says About Homosexuality

Daniel A. Helminiak, Ph.D.

Virtually Normal: An Argument about Homosexuality

Andrew Sullivan

I have just started all three of them, but so far, I’m finding them very interesting and hard to put down. I feel like all of them are really giving me new insights in how to change the world. You can look back at what my calling/mission is here:

My Calling / Mission

My Calling / Mission

I believe my calling/mission is to change this world. I am a gay Christian. It is because of this that I believe things need to change. Most churches condemn gays, and I find this to absolutely against every teaching in the Bible. I don’t believe being gay is a sin, nor is acting on homosexual feelings. It is all about how we love, not who we love. This is why I feel so called to this. If I can make even one church change it’s view on homosexuality, I will have made this world a better, more loving place. I understand there are already churches out there that support gay rights, but it is a very small percentage of churches, and I feel like I need to stand up for this and make more churches accepting and make people aware of what the Bible really says about being gay.