Tolerance and Love?

On Sunday Night, Compass on the ABC showed a riveting show called "For the Bible Tells Me So" which concerns the attitude of the Christian Church (actually quite a few Christian Churches) to homosexuality.  Obviously they know the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras was on the night before!

The show is highly critical of literalist biblical interpretations.  After all in Leviticus it quite clearly states homosexuality is an "abomination" and anyone participating in it should be treated quite mercilessly indeed.  Mind you the bible also says anyone working on a Sunday should be stoned to death and a father can sell his eldest-born daughter into slavery, no worries.

As is quite clearly pointed out, the bible contains details of customs and practices WE NO LONGER ADHERE TO.  The Old Testament is OVER two thousand years old, and things change a bit due to the change in societal norms.  I would have thought this was blindingly obvious.

However, in the USA (and no doubt in all ostensibly Christian societies) there are vast numbers of people who persecute homosexuals, and one of the worst things they do is to contend that homosexuality is a lifestyle CHOICE that can be suppressed by the "victim" and you can convert people from being homosexual into heterosexual.

If homosexuality was a choice - why would anyone choose to be a member of a minority that's being persecuted, hassled, bashed and otherwise discriminated aginst in often violent and distasteful ways?  Why would anyone choose to put themselves through this willingly?

And conversions!  Huh.  There are cases of people being in heterosexual relationships for twenty years or more, and they'll give the appearance of being straight to all outsiders.  But really, they are supressing deep inner feelings which is not good for their psychological well-being at all.

Why are people frightened of homosexuals?  Might I say from the outset that I am not, but I don't feel threatened at all by them, nor do I consider that society is doomed by their existence.  What does worry me is the outward display of hatred to other Christians by Christians, in blatant defiance of Christian principles.  Universal love is one of the fundamentals espoused by Christ.  He did NOT say love everyone except homosexuals, he said love everyone.  Or have I got the whole thing wrong?

Lots of people certainly have, anyway.  There are vast numbers of extreme right-wing moralists who bay for the blood of homosexuals and would deny them all societal rights if given the chance.  Doing so seems to be quite a profitable operation. The show quoted figures of several churches turning over half a billion (US) dollars annually, based on preaching a non-tolerance of homosexuals.

And worst of all was the story of a mother, caught up in the hype of denying homosexuality, who refused to accept her daughter's position and basically disowned her, only to have her commit suicide feeling that the major cause was her mother's lack of ability to accept her.  This woman has since realised that what the church taught her was plain wrong, and had she not been so dogmatic, her daughter would now still be alive.  Problem is, it's a bit late now.  If there is an afterlife, she can apologise to her daughter.

Prejudice and discrimination is such an evil human trait.  It leads to death, war, genocide, etc, and is such a negative use of human endeavour.  I wonder why it is so innate in many members of the human race?  And why so-called preachers can use it to summon up these hostile feelings in members of their congregation.  They probably think they are doing the right thing.  If only someone with some clout could come down and explain it to them...