From time to time I have people ask me why I talk so much about religious issues and the dirty laundry and lies of professional Christians and anti-gay denominations - e.g., the Roman Catholic Church and the Southern Baptist Convention. Actually, as one who is constantly pushing for full civil law equality for LGBT equality, I find the answer very simple. If one looks at the history of homophobia and often horrific treatment of LGBT individuals, the entire story line traces back to religious based discrimination, particularly in Abrahamic religions: Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. All three religions trace their anti-gay vitriol back to a few Old Testament passages that are said to condemn same sex relations. But for those passages, the lives of gays throughout history might have been wholly different.*
As to why I call these religion based homophobes hypocrites, the answer again is simple. Out of all the Bible passages that these self-anointed Christians claim to honor and worship, ONLY those pertaining to gays continue to be argued as requiring literal application. Prohibitions on divorce are ignored - indeed, Evangelical Christians have among the highest divorce rate while gay friendly Massachusetts has the lowest divorce rate. I'm am not seeking to be mean. I simply want consistency on the part of these homophobes. As brief look at portions of Leviticus Chapters 18 -20 illustrate my point:
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CHAPTER 18:
19 " 'Do not approach a woman to have sexual relations during the uncleanness of her monthly period.
20 " 'Do not have sexual relations with your neighbor's wife and defile yourself with her.
21 " 'Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed [a] to Molech, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.
22 " 'Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable.
20 " 'Do not have sexual relations with your neighbor's wife and defile yourself with her.
21 " 'Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed [a] to Molech, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.
22 " 'Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable.
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CHAPTER 19
12 " 'Do not swear falsely by my name and so profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.
13 " 'Do not defraud your neighbor or rob him. " 'Do not hold back the wages of a hired man overnight.
14 " 'Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but fear your God. I am the LORD.
15 " 'Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.
16 " 'Do not go about spreading slander among your people. 19 " 'Keep my decrees. " 'Do not mate different kinds of animals. " 'Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. " 'Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.
20 " 'If a man sleeps with a woman who is a slave girl promised to another man but who has not been ransomed or given her freedom, there must be due punishment.
13 " 'Do not defraud your neighbor or rob him. " 'Do not hold back the wages of a hired man overnight.
14 " 'Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but fear your God. I am the LORD.
15 " 'Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.
16 " 'Do not go about spreading slander among your people. 19 " 'Keep my decrees. " 'Do not mate different kinds of animals. " 'Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. " 'Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.
20 " 'If a man sleeps with a woman who is a slave girl promised to another man but who has not been ransomed or given her freedom, there must be due punishment.
26 " 'Do not eat any meat with the blood still in it. " 'Do not practice divination or sorcery.
27 " 'Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.
28 " 'Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.
27 " 'Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.
28 " 'Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.
33 " 'When an alien lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him.
34 The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt.
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CHAPTER 20
9 " 'If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or his mother, and his blood will be on his own head.
10 " 'If a man commits adultery with another man's wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death.
11 " 'If a man sleeps with his father's wife, he has dishonored his father. Both the man and the woman must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.
12 " 'If a man sleeps with his daughter-in-law, both of them must be put to death. What they have done is a perversion; their blood will be on their own heads.
13 " 'If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.
14 " 'If a man marries both a woman and her mother, it is wicked. Both he and they must be burned in the fire, so that no wickedness will be among you.
15 " 'If a man has sexual relations with an animal, he must be put to death, and you must kill the animal.
10 " 'If a man commits adultery with another man's wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death.
11 " 'If a man sleeps with his father's wife, he has dishonored his father. Both the man and the woman must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.
12 " 'If a man sleeps with his daughter-in-law, both of them must be put to death. What they have done is a perversion; their blood will be on their own heads.
13 " 'If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.
14 " 'If a man marries both a woman and her mother, it is wicked. Both he and they must be burned in the fire, so that no wickedness will be among you.
15 " 'If a man has sexual relations with an animal, he must be put to death, and you must kill the animal.
25 " 'You must therefore make a distinction between clean and unclean animals and between unclean and clean birds. Do not defile yourselves by any animal or bird or anything that moves along the ground—those which I have set apart as unclean for you.
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I suspect you get my point. Moreover, if the Bible is inerrant as is claimed when it is used to denigrate and fan anti-gay hatred, then Ronald Reagan, Newt Gingrich, Rush Limbaugh and John McCain are all divorced adulterers that should have been put to death. Instead, Reagan and Limbaughare worshipped by the anti-gay far right. Bottom line - the professional Christians and similar hypocrites do NOT get to have it both ways. Inerrancy is an all or nothing proposition. Since so many Bible passages are so conveniently ignored, so too should those applied against gays by religious extremists. or are our enemies merely being shallow hypocrites?
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