Forgiveness.

Because God does not judge or punish bad behavior does not mean He condones it. 

He withdraws.

And He waits.

He does not bless those who do evil.

God is indifferent to evil.

Because He knows that evil is caused by fear.

And fear is forgivable.

But it does not mean that you are free to continue your bad behavior.

You are forgiven when you admit your guilt and appeal to God's mercy.

And when you cease the offending behavior*.

Not before.

(* I am not referring to homosexual behavior.)

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The Wrong Church.

If your religion doesn't make you more tolerant, more compassionate, and more loving then you've got the wrong church.

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God Hates You.

Fundamentalists say God hates gays.

In this they are saying that hate is Biblical.

But this is based on the words of David.

And David's vision was not perfect.

He says God hates sin and wickedness.

And: "I hate them with prefect hatred."  Psalm 139:22 (NRSV)

But Jesus says: "'You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy".  But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.'"  Matthew 5:43,44 (NRSV)

And Jesus words take precedence over those of David, Moses, and Paul.

[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.]

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Motivation.

We all want to do good works.

But is our motivation fear or love.

If our motivation is fear we will resent having to do things for others.

And we will be miserable and touchy.

But if our motivation is love we will be happy and full of joy!

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Prosper.

"'But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.'"  Matthew 6:33 (NRSV)

People misinterpret this to mean that God will give them riches and status.

But in fact it means that if you seek God and act honestly all your needs will be provided.

It does not mean you will be prosperous in a worldly sense.

To seek this is to be worldly and corrupt.

[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.]

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Loving Men.

At the Last Supper John - the disciple Jesus loved - laid his head against Jesus' chest.

This is an unconscious action to lay your head against the beloved's heart in order to receive his love.

In our modern society to love another man is almost an oxymoron.

"You don't do that!  They might call me a poofter!"

But loving other men is an attribute of the very highest spirituality.

Jesus, Rumi, David, Socrates, Buddha all loved other men.

Love is the bond between Jesus and his disciples and love is traditionally the relationship between spiritual teachers and their students.

So far from being a sin or a disgrace loving other men may well be the highest spiritual calling.

 

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The Scapegoat.

What is the power behind the scapegoating of gays and lesbians?

After AIDS the prejudice, hatred, and fear of gay people rose sharply.

And some people on the conservative side of politics took advantage of this to create a social, religious, and political scapegoat.

The scapegoat is laden with all the evil, corruption, and wickedness of society.

And the reactionary trigger of the moral majority creates political power.  

Most of this, however, takes place on the unconscious level.

So most people are unaware of what they are doing.

But the fact remains that the political Right* has disgraced itself by succumbing to the temptation to use gay people as a social scapegoat.

(*With the help of Generation X and their allies.)

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