The Deadly Connection Between Christian Evangelicalism and Homophobia

Two posts I came across today connect the dots on an issue that I feel strongly about: the responsibility of Christianists for maintaining a climate of anti-gay hatred that ruins many LGBT lives and is a significant underlying cause for LGBT suicides. One post is from Pam's House Blend that addresses the suicide of a young gay man in Seattle. The other is on Huffington Post and authored by an individual raised as an evangelical Christian. The first post focuses on the corrosive atmosphere that surrounds many gays on an unrelenting daily basis which, with the correct trigger, can cause even seemingly well adjusted gays to take their own lives. Here are a few highlights:
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As I walk though what he [the suicide victim] says, and I’m sure many of you will feel the same way, sometimes we have felt the feelings Ryan felt. Those feelings are within us that come from the wounds of past times. While we are able to overcome those wounds enough to see alternatives, there are others that ultimately made the same tragic decision as Ryan.
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More than a million LGBT teens are suffering debilitating depression because their families and religious institutions see them as deviants. Suicide rates amongst LGBT youth are four times higher than those of heterosexual youth. LGBT people are victims of discrimination and bigotry, which are often justified and promoted by religious teaching that says homosexuality is immoral, sinful or abominable.
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These experiences can result in a chronic sense of unworthiness. We become timid and afraid to assert who we are and protect ourselves, our basic needs, our self-esteem, and our physical and emotional well-being. We honor their [bullies' and religious bigots'] needs at the expense of our own. We aren’t worthy enough to deserve it. We abuse ourselves. Sometimes we abuse ourselves to death.
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As a two time suicide attempt veteran myself, I have felt the exact results of what the writer is describing. Bearing up under a constant negative message about one's very being is exhausting and at times, not much is needed to trigger a desire for a deadly self-injury. It may be a personal confrontation, a horrid divorce hearing, or even hearing news of another triumph by anti-gay bigots (e.g., today's vote by the Iowa House to move forward a constitutional amendment to rescind all recognition of same sex relationships in that state). But this atmosphere doesn't arise in a vacuum. And the Christianist bear a huge responsibility for it.

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The second post connects this demoralized and sometimes suicidal reaction by LGBT individuals to the hate disseminated "godly Christians." The author seeks to shout a wake up call to these merchants of hate and to redirect Christians to the message of love in the Gospels. Sadly, I doubt that the haters will hear the message. Here are some highlights:
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[W]hat is clear is that Christians, and evangelicals in particular, are guilty of demonizing homosexuals. We are told -- despite Jesus' example -- that it is up to us to throw the first stone of judgment at those we deem sinners. In fact, on Thursday, with unfortunate timing, Albert Mohler wrote, responding to Joel Osteen's nearly forced pronouncement that he believes homosexuality is sin, that "those who express confidence in the Bible's teaching" will have to make such a judgment.
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But when we do this, we put an unbearable burden on the shoulders of our gay brothers and sisters. Even the most "love the sinner, hate the sin" believer among us is guilty. We have mistakenly labeled homosexuality as an unforgivable sin, a malfunction, a distortion or a disease. And we are guilty of a million counts of making life miserable for so many people, and of making life unlivable for countless others.
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I'm calling for an end to this life threatening judgmentalism. I'm calling for a moratorium on debates over what qualifies as sin in other peoples' lives. I'm calling for a change in priorities, a shift back to what we should have been doing all along. I'm calling for love, acceptance and a global admission that we have wronged so many people. Ultimately, I'm pleading with my fellow Christians to change.