X-Sender: kevyn@pop.ksu.ksu.edu Mime-Version: 1.0 Date: Thu, 31 Aug 1995 14:30:19 -0600 To: Manhattan Queers Email List From: kevyn@KSUVM.KSU.EDU (Kevyn Jacobs) Subject: MERCURY: Weston anti-gay Editorial and responses Sender: owner-mq%casti.com@KSUVM.KSU.EDU Precedence: bulk Status: RO X-Status: FROM THE MANHATTAN MERCURY AUGUST 20, 1995 =============================== Homosexuality a moral problem, and a sin Rev. Todd Weston Contributing Writer In last Friday's edition of the Mercury I read an article written by a young lady from Manhattan High School. The article dealt with the subject of sexual preferences and especially with tolerance for the homosexual lifestyle. I must admit that my heart broke as I read this article. How tragic it is that we are raising a generation in America that has been taught that perversion is normal. How tragic it is that we are raising a generation that sincerely believes that people are born either straight or gay. How tragic it is that we are raising a generation today that believes that in the name of tolerance. everyone should not only tolerate but accept this deviant lifestyle regardless of their personal convictions. How tragic it is that we are raising a generation that believes religion is just a way of thinking rather than a way of living. And how absolutely tragic it is that we are raising a generation in America that truly believes God approves of this abominable lifestyle. When I hear people claim that the Bible is either silent on the subject or that it supports the homosexual lifestyle, I have to ask myself what Bible they are reading. Or are they actually reading it? How can we ignore the biblical fact that God annihilated the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, which were notoriously wicked and filled with homosexuality? Why would God judge these people if He approved of their behavior? How can we ignore the biblical fact that kings who took a stand against homosexuality and removed the Sodomites from the land were not corrected by God but commended as doing what was right in the sight of the Lord? How can we ignore the biblical fact that Romans 1 identifies homosexuals as people given over to vile affections and who possess a reprobate mind? How can we ignore the biblical fact that 1 Cor. 7:9 clearly states that homosexuals will not inherit the Kingdom of God? And what about the clear prohibitions in scripture such as Leviticus 18:22, which states: "Do not lie (have intercourse) with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable." We must understand that God does not hate the homosexual, but He does hate homosexuality, for it is a sin against nature. When God created mankind, He created them male and female (Genesis 1:27). Isn't it interesting that man's loneliness and need for companionship was not remedied by the creation of another man, but by the creation of woman. Gen. 2:24 states, "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife and they will become one flesh." Nowhere in scripture does God promote, much less approve of a same-sex relationship. In the creation of mankind, God established principles of sexuality by which the human race was to develop. Psychologically this relationship was sound. Physically the relationship was natural. Sociologically it established the ideal family unit. The biblical concept is that human sexuality ideally is a heterosexual monogamous relationship. When people choose--and it is a choice--to be homosexuals, they reject God's principles of sexuality. They engage in behavior that is both unnatural and destructive. Homosexuality is a sin that flies in the face of God's will and design for mankind. It goes against everything that is decent, natural and right. The good news of God's word is that Jesus Christ took upon Himself the sin of the world, and when He died upon the cross His death paid the penalty of sin. Christ's death upon the cross was the enormous price that God paid so that He might freely extend forgiveness and salvation to all who will believe. The bottom line is that homosexuality is a moral problem. It's a sin problem. But God solved the problem of sin by sending His Son to die upon the cross. Only God can help the sinner, and nothing is impossible with God! Is that a message of hate as some would have us to believe? Are you kidding? It's the greatest love story the world has ever known! Rev. Todd Weston, 805 Davis, is pastor of the First Assembly of God in Manhattan. ========================================== ========================================== FROM THE MANHATTAN MERCURY LETTERS TO THE EDITOR AUGUST 24, 1995 ========================================== God is big enough to handle diversity To the Editor: When I read the article by the Rev. Todd Weston in the Mercury this past week, I found myself angry and then just sad. To Todd, I must say that as a fellow minister, I respect your right to proclaim your convictions as regards your understanding of scripture and your experience of God. But Todd, you spoke as though there is only one way to be Christian -- your way. My own spiritual journey began as a Southern Baptist. I continue to experience a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The study of scripture in preparation for preaching is still a mystical and emotional delight. And I still love the church, the Body of Christ, the community of the faithful. She is wonderfully diverse and filled with a love that can only come from God. But Todd, I don't agree with you. I do not believe that God will reject someone because of his or her sexual orientation anymore than I believe God wants women to keep silent in the church. And as you know, that too is scriptural. I believe God is larger than our naming and our taming. I believe God cares far more about how we treat our sisters and brothers than about how we have sex.! The mission statement of the church I serve begins with the following sentence: "The mission of our church is to love and, accept others unconditionally as God loves and accepts us, and, by example, to encourage others to do the same." I have no doubt that the mission statement of your church reads differently, and that's OK. God is big enough to handle the diversity of our convictions. But what is not OK is the likelihood that someone who happens to be gay and desperately in need of a loving community will read an article such as yours and believe that there is no room for them in the Christian church. Maybe, just maybe, the wondrous diversity of God's creation is no accident. Rev. Don Longbottom Pastor, First Congregational United Church of Christ ================================== ================================== FROM THE MANHATTAN MERCURY EDITORIAL PAGE AUGUST 24, 1995 =============================== The sin is in the righteous condemnation Dianne K. Urban Contributing Writer The Rev. Todd Weston wrote that being homosexual is a sinful choice. Perhaps he is able to choose between homosexual and heterosexual behavior. I, on the other hand have always been attracted only to members of the opposite sex. My only apparent choices are celibacy or interacting with a male. Does that mean I deserve a medal for being "good?" A homosexual relative of mine, after one failed attempt, committed suicide because my relatives could not be what family, friends and society in general demanded. A homosexual friend who is very kind, loving, talented, intelligent, well-educated, charming and eager to please did not divorce until the children were grown. Teenagers discovering their homosexuality sometimes commit suicide because their choices are intolerable: being themselves and being subjected to hate and derision or hiding their true nature. I remember telling my young teen-aged daughters that their father and I would love them just as much should they ever find that they are homosexual. They responded that they already knew we would. I want my children to stay alive, and our family would welcome partners of either sex. Is sin involved in homosexuality? Without a doubt. Arrogantly proclaiming homosexuals as being more sinful than heterosexuals is a sin. Contributing to a person's self-hate to the extent that suicide appears to be the only escape is a sin. Condemnation that forces homosexuals to deny their homosexuality even to themselves is a sin. Untold lives have been wrecked and profound misery inflicted, not by homosexuality itself but by sinful reactions to it. Heterosexuals should ask themselves if they remember making a conscious choice to engage in heterosexual rather than homosexual relations. They should spend a little time imagining that they are part of a despised 10 percent of the population while everyone else is an acceptable homosexual. How would it feel to be hated for loving and being attracted to someone of the opposite sex? Would the hate strike the very heart of one's being? How long would the hate be tolerable? What escape would be available? Sexuality is so deeply rooted and such an essential part of a person that rejecting that sexuality without rejecting the person is impossible Anyone who hates homosexuality cannot do so without hating the homosexual. Those who claim to love homosexuals and hate homosexuality are lying, and that's a sin, too. There is no shortage of sin; yet some Christians get so upset about consensual lovemaking between those of the same sex that they completely ignore genuine evils. I suggest that they examine instead the greed that leads to hunger, homelessness and lack of medical care, not only in Third World countries but in the United States, as well as pollution for profit, hate, injustice and war. Those Christians obsessed with sex might rail instead against adultery, which at least makes the 10 Commandments. Though sexuality is an essential part of one's being, it is not the only aspect of any person's life. Most of us spend only a minute part of our time in actual sexual encounters. Then why judge any person solely on the basis of sexual activity? Even someone who is absolutely convinced of the wrongfulness of homosexuality, if determined to judge what should be left to God, might at least consider looking at the whole person. Such an approach might not be as much fun as pointing fingers and quoting scripture, but it could approach fairness. Who knows? Maybe the homosexual under scrutiny would prove to be morally superior to the heterosexual examiner. Dianne Urban is a Manhattan attorney.