Sunday, July 24, 2005

We Didn't Start The Fire

I went to a drag show on Friday night. Fellow Seeker has been begging me to go with him for as long as I have known him, and I finally gave in. So there we were - F.S., Skeptic, Boyfriend and me - at 2:00 a.m. in a gay club. It was Lesbian Night, so while there were straight people and gay men, it was mostly lesbians. It was like the Sodom and Gomorrah of the 21st century.

The show was very entertaining and we had a lot of fun. As I traveled home, I thought about the experience in terms of Christianity and everything that I have been taught about homosexuality. After thinking it over, I can't help but wonder: What is the big deal? What is the big deal if a man wants to have sex with a man? What is the big deal if two consenting adults want to have sex although they're not married? Why does God care about our sex lives? I can see why God would care if we lie or cheat or steal or murder, because those actions harm other people. But what is the big deal with the personal stuff? For example, I compared the gay club to Sodom and Gomorrah because I have always been taught that homosexuality was the reason for the demise of those cities. So, do the people I saw on Friday night deserve to be devoured by fire? By the God who arguably created them that way?

I spoke to F.S. on the phone today and he was telling me that he has come to the realization that the whole Hate-The-Sin-Love-The-Sinner thing is a bunch of B.S. He doesn't believe that people who profess to love sinners in spite of their sins really do. I added that it is worse for gay people, because it is not a sin like getting drunk on the weekend or something. It is not just an action, it is who they are. How do you hate who they are without hating them?

I also spoke to Sister today about prayer. I was asking her if she prays, how often, and why. Sister is quite an interesting character. I have been living with her for nineteen years and I still don't completely understand her. For example, you will never hear her mention God. Never. She doesn't go to church or read the Bible. But the second I break out into my blasphemous questioning, she gets angry at me. She told me today that she prays twice a day. I asked her why and she said, "You have to." I pressed her to explain further, and she said that she has been doing it since she was young. But I doubt that it is only a habit and nothing more, otherwise she wouldn't have said that she has to.

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