It's Only Gay if You're Receiving
Posted on
Sunday, November 05, 2006
by Gary A. Ballard
I hate to be one to pile on to a dogpile of media scrutiny, but there's just a little bit I have to say about The Rev. Ted Haggard and his fall from grace. For those who have not paid attention, Haggard was, until this past week, an evangelical minister in Colorado who preached from a pulpit of bigoted discrimination against gays as well as all that family values twaddle the evangelicals eat up like candy. You know, marriage is only between a man and a woman and anyone who isn't part of that is a sinner and destined for hell, abortion is unforgivable, everyone must have children and live the exact same way. Only Haggard, who preached that homosexuals should not be allowed to have the same civil benefits as heterosexual monogamous couples because homosexuality is a sin, is a liar and a hypocrite.
Rev. Haggard has had according to his accuser, regular homosexual encounters topped off with meth use, and according to the Reverend, sexual immorality of an unspecified nature. He has expected us to believe that he was completely innocent, then that he bought meth but didn't use it, and then that he isn't gay but is sexually immoral. He just has a "sexual problem" that has affected him for his entire life. I realize through the distorted lens that is the worldview of evangelicals homosexuality is a sexual problem, but let's get down to brass tacks.
You don't have a sexual problem, Rev. Haggard; you have an honesty problem. You are a homosexual, or at least a bisexual. That isn't a problem, it's a reality. I realize that reality is not often something evangelicals like to deal with, but it eventually can't be avoided any longer. Instead of apologizing for "immoral acts" to your congregation, why don't you apologize to them for teaching them bigotry and hatred disguised as moralizing? After all, you are a hypocrite. You are a homosexual man, yet you want to hide that part of yourself from everyone around you. You want to come across as in enough control of your inherently sinful nature to judge others' behavior, when you are not in control of it yourself. You aren't just a liar, you have cheated on your wife and broken the sanctity of your marriage, and you don’t' even have the balls to admit it fully. You are a hypocrite and you should have been exposed, because your message is misleading an entire congregation into a bigoted, close-minded agenda that could lead to an entire class of American citizens being denied their basic Constitutional rights.
You ask for forgiveness, but if you are asking to be forgiven for the wrong things. You need to ask for forgiveness for being a hypocrite and a bigot, for being a poor shepherd to your flock, not for being gay. Being gay doesn't require forgiveness, it requires acceptance. If you want forgiveness, admit that you are gay and try to live with that. Admit to yourself and everyone else that you have a drug problem. Admit that being gay isn't the sin, trying to hide it behind a heterosexual relationship is.
The evangelical position on homosexuality is based on Bible verses that claim being gay is a sin. Boiled down to its barest essential elements, this belief is based on some guy in the Middle East thousands of years ago claiming that God told him that homosexuality was a sin. Is it that the claim was made thousands of years ago that makes it special? The same man in the Middle East saying that God spoke to him now would get laughed at and ignored by Haggard's congregation. Or is it the claimant to secret God knowledge? Again, those same claims today would get laughed at. Is it just the ick factor of thinking about two men snogging which makes homosexuality an unforgiveable sin to the evangelical crowd?
Whatever the reasoning is, these hypocritical rabble need to realize that if their leaders are hypocrites, liars and adulterers, what does that say about where they've been led? I'm not claiming their leaders can ever be without sin; sin is inherent in man's nature. But I am saying that when these leaders start tossing around Bible verses to justify a bigoted set of laws, the flock needs to learn to think for themselves instead of following hypocrites like Rev. Haggard.
Rev. Haggard has had according to his accuser, regular homosexual encounters topped off with meth use, and according to the Reverend, sexual immorality of an unspecified nature. He has expected us to believe that he was completely innocent, then that he bought meth but didn't use it, and then that he isn't gay but is sexually immoral. He just has a "sexual problem" that has affected him for his entire life. I realize through the distorted lens that is the worldview of evangelicals homosexuality is a sexual problem, but let's get down to brass tacks.
You don't have a sexual problem, Rev. Haggard; you have an honesty problem. You are a homosexual, or at least a bisexual. That isn't a problem, it's a reality. I realize that reality is not often something evangelicals like to deal with, but it eventually can't be avoided any longer. Instead of apologizing for "immoral acts" to your congregation, why don't you apologize to them for teaching them bigotry and hatred disguised as moralizing? After all, you are a hypocrite. You are a homosexual man, yet you want to hide that part of yourself from everyone around you. You want to come across as in enough control of your inherently sinful nature to judge others' behavior, when you are not in control of it yourself. You aren't just a liar, you have cheated on your wife and broken the sanctity of your marriage, and you don’t' even have the balls to admit it fully. You are a hypocrite and you should have been exposed, because your message is misleading an entire congregation into a bigoted, close-minded agenda that could lead to an entire class of American citizens being denied their basic Constitutional rights.
You ask for forgiveness, but if you are asking to be forgiven for the wrong things. You need to ask for forgiveness for being a hypocrite and a bigot, for being a poor shepherd to your flock, not for being gay. Being gay doesn't require forgiveness, it requires acceptance. If you want forgiveness, admit that you are gay and try to live with that. Admit to yourself and everyone else that you have a drug problem. Admit that being gay isn't the sin, trying to hide it behind a heterosexual relationship is.
The evangelical position on homosexuality is based on Bible verses that claim being gay is a sin. Boiled down to its barest essential elements, this belief is based on some guy in the Middle East thousands of years ago claiming that God told him that homosexuality was a sin. Is it that the claim was made thousands of years ago that makes it special? The same man in the Middle East saying that God spoke to him now would get laughed at and ignored by Haggard's congregation. Or is it the claimant to secret God knowledge? Again, those same claims today would get laughed at. Is it just the ick factor of thinking about two men snogging which makes homosexuality an unforgiveable sin to the evangelical crowd?
Whatever the reasoning is, these hypocritical rabble need to realize that if their leaders are hypocrites, liars and adulterers, what does that say about where they've been led? I'm not claiming their leaders can ever be without sin; sin is inherent in man's nature. But I am saying that when these leaders start tossing around Bible verses to justify a bigoted set of laws, the flock needs to learn to think for themselves instead of following hypocrites like Rev. Haggard.
Labels: Politics, Religious Corruption
posted by Gary A. Ballard @ 3:42 PM
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