(April 21, 2018 at 5:38 pm)Antares Wrote: I think about my gay friend and realize that if he'd came out to me even five years ago, I would have shunned him do to the religious belief I held then.

I admit, I became tolerant of homosexuality when I left religion as well.

But now looking back, I became tolerant of disbelief in God, as well as the true nature of goodness, and the connection and I myself was ignorant and turning away from true nature of goodness.

It's not easy condemning a human being, believe me, it hurts, no one likes it, it's not fun, it's not something we enjoy.

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(April 21, 2018 at 7:16 pm)Lutrinae Wrote:

(April 21, 2018 at 7:16 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Guys, gays and people who believe it's evil, are both human beings, and this is sensitive issue that hurts people on both sides of the issue. This is why I believe such discussions cannot be with mockery or done in a playful manner.

It's a serious thing.

No, it really only hurts those who are being condemned by those who think they have the religious superiority to condemn.

What if the religious person has a child who thinks he is gay by nature? It hurts them if that child succumbs to what they perceive as propaganda from misguided individuals from their perspective as well.

And aside from that, no one enjoys condemning a human being of an evil.

(April 21, 2018 at 7:18 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: And aside from that, no one enjoys condemning a human being of an evil.

They shouldn't be doing it period, because it's a perceived evil based on a silly religious belief. It's not a real evil.

In your perception it's a silly religious belief. In their perception, it's what makes sense, and is the truth.

(April 21, 2018 at 7:27 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: In your perception it's a silly religious belief. In their perception, it's what makes sense, and is the truth.

They need better common sense and a better guidance toward truth that doesn't rely upon superstition.

(April 21, 2018 at 7:30 pm)Lutrinae Wrote:

(April 21, 2018 at 7:27 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: In your perception it's a silly religious belief. In their perception, it's what makes sense, and is the truth.

They need better common sense and a better guidance toward truth that doesn't rely upon superstition.

God is the best guide and most capable of providing insights and proofs towards the truth if he were to exist, and hence, looking for a religion is not a bad idea, if you know God exists.

And in fact, looking towards religion to see if God exists is not a bad idea, for if he were to exist, he would best capable of reminding of what proofs and insights are there of proving himself to exist.

(April 21, 2018 at 7:32 pm)MysticKnight Wrote:

(April 21, 2018 at 7:30 pm)Lutrinae Wrote: They need better common sense and a better guidance toward truth that doesn't rely upon superstition.

God is the best guide and most capable of providing insights and proofs towards the truth if he were to exist, and hence, looking for a religion is not a bad idea, if you know God exists.

And in fact, looking towards religion to see if God exists is not a bad idea, for if he were to exist, he would best capable of reminding of what proofs and insights are there of proving himself to exist.

God is the worst guide. You can believe all you want how he's the best, but he simply isn't according to reason.

If one discards reason, of course god appears to be the best guide toward any kind of action.

It took me a long time to trace my footsteps and see how evil it was for me going the track of madness. I hope a journey to realization of one's missteps and falling off the tracks won't be as hard and painful for you.

(April 21, 2018 at 7:40 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: It took me a long time to trace my footsteps and see how evil it was for me going the track of madness. I hope a journey to realization of one's missteps and falling off the tracks won't be as hard and painful for you.

Well, wasn't that a nice way of saying I should abandon reason for nonsense.

No thank you.

(April 21, 2018 at 7:12 pm)Neo-Scholastic Wrote:

(April 21, 2018 at 3:33 pm)JackRussell Wrote: What about homosexuality within marriage?

Luckily many countries have evolved.

Just because States honor pretend marriages doesn't make them so in the eyes of the Lord.

The World is supposed to end in 2 days; does it really matter?

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(April 21, 2018 at 7:40 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: It took me a long time to trace my footsteps and see how evil it was for me going the track of madness. I hope a journey to realization of one's missteps and falling off the tracks won't be as hard and painful for you.

I, too, have journeyed hard, away from religion.

Again different people interpret Bible differently. Like David P. Gushee, evangelical minister and university professor of Christian ethics at Mercer University, who wrote:

Quote:It has dawned on me with shocking force that homosexuality is not primarily an issue of Christian sexual ethics. It’s primarily an issue of human suffering. With that realization, I have now made the radical decision to stand in solidarity with the LGBT community.

There is a sexual-minority population of about 5 percent of the human family that has received contempt and discrimination for centuries. In Christendom, the sexual ethics based in those biblical passages metastasized into a hardened attitude against sexual- and gender-identity minorities, bristling with bullying and violence. This contempt is in the name of God, the most powerful kind there is in the world. I now believe that the traditional interpretation of the most cited passages is questionable and that all that parsing of Greek verbs has distracted attention from the primary moral obligation taught by Jesus — to love our neighbors as ourselves, especially our most vulnerable neighbors. I also now believe that while any progress toward more humane treatment of LGBT people is good progress, we need to reconsider the entire body of biblical interpretation and tradition related to this issue.

Put simply, it finally became clear to me that I must side with those who were being treated with contempt, just as I hope I would have sided with Jews in the Nazi era and with African Americans during the civil rights years.

It is hard to describe exactly why my moral vision shifted in this way. But undoubtedly, it had much to do with my move to Atlanta in 2007 and my growing contact with LGBT people, especially fellow Christians. I hardly knew anyone who was gay before that move, but afterward, they seemed to be everywhere, and a few became very dear friends. It became clear to me — in a deeply spiritual place that I will allow no one to challenge — that God was sending LGBT people to me. The fact that one of these LGBT Christians is my dear youngest sister, Katey, has made this issue even more deeply personal for me than it would have been. The fact that one place where she developed a deep struggle with her sexuality was in evangelical churches has contributed to my new moral commitment to make evangelical families and churches safe places for LGBT people.
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