Okay, let me clarify my views:
1) I don't have any personal animosity or hatred towards homosexuals, atheists, etc. I have a well-respected first cousin who is an atheist, who is a decent, loving family man, who loves his wife and children. I personally don't now know any homosexuals, but a next-door neighbor during college was gay, and he never offended me. I also have known adulterers,, and I don't hate them either, although adultery is another "sin against God".
2) As I've told Christine via e-mail, it wouldn't at all alter my beliefs if indeed homosexuality was scientifically proven to be genetic. In fact, it would make sense from a Christian's beliefs perspective. We believe that ever since the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, all men have been corrupt, through them. You might call it genetics. The bible is endlessly clear on that point, which is that all men are corrupt. That's not to say that everyone engages in all crimes known to man, but certainly there is not a depraved, base, or despicable act which has not already been done by man, most times repeatedly. Do you think Hitler was the first person to engage in the horrors that he committed? He certainly was not the first, or even the second, by far.
3) It was not God's will that Adam and Eve sin. In fact, God gave them express directions not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, but they went ahead and ate anyway. Prior to that, the earth was perfect and pristine-- no diseases, no reason to work; everything was provided naturally in abundance by God. After the fall of the first parent, things changed. Man had to work "by the sweat of his brow", etc. The world has been an imperfect place ever since.
4) It's true that God knew that Adam and Eve would disobey him and sin against God. Nevertheless, he loved man, and Christ was with God before the foundation of the earth, knowing what his destiny was. I don't question God's motives for creating man. Suffice to say he wanted to, and I'm not in any position to argue with that; rather I'm thankful to Him.
5) From an earlier point: There are sins against Society (man), and sins against God.
a) It's true that in Early America, laws against sodomy, adultery, blasphemy, witchcraft, etc., were placed on the books, because at that time the people felt these things were a threat to a civil, law abiding society; therefore the laws against such were enforced, and penalties and sentences handed down by the courts. Even the Supreme Court of the US at one time backed laws against Blasphemy.
b) Nowdays, I don't know of any Christians who want to reactivate those laws, and have the government handing down sentences for violations of laws against God. For instance, even though many people believe that abortion is "wrong" (not just Christians, I can assure you), I don't know of anyone who supports civil punishment for people who get abortions. If the courts were to hand down punishments for all instances of sins against God, needless to say soon all of society would be in prison, and the last free man would have to lock himself inside the last cell.
c) What Christians find distressing, is that nowadays people look to the government to define what's right and wrong, but the government can only realistically hand down sentences for crimes against society. Therefore, people have the mistaken notion (helped by the popular culture and the media) that if the government can't punish them for a particular thing, then it must be good and acceptable. This is an extremely unfortunate belief; nevertheless, Christians accept their responsibilities to govern those of their own depraved desires which the government can't govern. Hence, Christians still see some things as wrong, which the Govt doesn't, like adultery, abortion, and yes, homosexuality. I could go on with other examples, but you get the idea. No, we're not Nazis. We simply have beliefs in addition to those which the government holds -- and other people don't seem to like that. Go figure. |
