Gay Marriage

I've talked about this issues many times before, but it was that is very personal to me. No, I'm not a closeted gay, but I know a lot of people that are gay - many who are close to my heart. And this post isn't just about gay marriage, but just being accepting of people who are gay. But let's start with the gay marriage thing.

I ran across this picture the other day. It takes a shot at explaining gay marriage. And I think it does a pretty darn good job. It's simple to understand. And it's completely true. I would like to try and see someone argue against this. Here it is.

How simple is this to understand? The church isn't involved in anyway when it comes to being recognized by the government and being allowed those benefits as a married couple. I don't care if your personal beliefs think that gay marriage is wrong. That's not really for any of us to decide anyway - it's God who is the ultimate judge. (I personally belief that God doesn't judge gays and that He created everyone just the way they are - gay or straight) But again - you can believe whatever you want. And I think it's up to each church to determine what they believe and churches are doing that. But when it comes to the government, there should be NO question. Gay couples are being denied rights they deserve. And that is unconstitutional. And sad. How is it, in a great country like America, not everyone has the same rights? Can you argue against that? I didn't think so.

Not only do gays not get to marry the person they love and be denied rights and benefits they deserve, they are very much persecuted against. I recently read a very powerful message online. The title of the article is "I'm Christian, unless you're gay". It really is one of the best articles I've read when it comes to the issue of being a Christian but not being okay with gay people. You can - and should! - read the full article here. To sum it up, it talks about Christians and what Christians believe. And what one of the main things that Christians believe is that you should love everyone. But many Christians don't. They look down on people if they're not like them. They judge people. They won't admit it, but they do. And I'll admit here that I know I'm just as guilty about this as the next person. It mentions that many people think it's okay to judge other people because their "actions were somehow justified because of my beliefs at the time". But the author takes a look at not only Christianity, but other religions as well. And do you know what the main theme was in all of these religions? Love.

According to Christians, Jesus taught a couple of interesting things. First, “love one another.” Second, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” (“Her” being a woman who cheated on her man.)
According to Buddhists, Buddha taught a couple of thought-provoking things. First, “Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; this is the eternal rule.” Second, “Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.”
According to Hindus, a couple of fascinating teachings come to mind. First, “Do not get angry or harm any living creature, but be compassionate and gentle; show good will to all.” (Krishna) Second, “Love means giving selflessly, excluding none and including all.” (Rama)
According to Muslims, Muhammad taught a couple interesting things as well. First, “A true Muslim is the one who does not defame or abuse others; but the truly righteous becomes a refuge for humankind, their lives and their properties.” Second, “Do you love your creator? Love  your fellow-beings first.”
According to Judaism, their scriptures teach a couple remarkable things. First, “Love your neighbor like yourself.” Second, “Examine the contents, not the bottle.”

Love. That's the theme here. Love above all else. But do we do that? Sadly, no. The author does mention, and I agree here, that not all Christians don't put love first - many do. But we all should be doing this, there should be no exceptions.
The article goes on to say that it doesn't matter what your religion is or if you have no religion at all. We should all just be good people. We don't have to accept or enable anyone. But we should care that they are a human being above all else, just like you. 

In truth, having a religion doesn’t make a person love or not love others. It doesn’t make a person accept or not accept others. It doesn’t make a person befriend or not befriend others.
Being without a religion doesn’t make somebody do or be any of that either.
No, what makes somebody love, accept, and befriend their fellow man is letting go of a need to be better than others.
Nothing else.
I know there are many here who believe that living a homosexual life is a sin. Okay.
But, what does that have to do with love?
Come on. Don’t we understand? Don’t we get it? To put our arm around someone who is gay, someone who has an addiction, somebody who lives a different lifestyle, someone who is not what we think they should be… doing that has nothing to do with enabling them or accepting what they do as okay by us. It has nothing to do with encouraging them in their practice of what you or I might feel or believe is wrong vs right.
It has everything to do with being a good human being. A good person. A good friend.
That’s all.

How powerful is that? Why can't we just strive to be a good human being? A good person? A good friend? Everyone deserves to have a good friend in life. Let the rest go. Don't let your thoughts or beliefs stop you from caring for another person who is different from you? Everyone needs love. Because here's the thing: nobody is perfect.

So read the article. It's worth your time. Think about what is says. Think about the next time you meet or see someone who is different from you. What will you do? Are you going to judge them? Or will you open your arms and love them? After all, the greatest thing is love.