Thursday, March 20, 2008

The Day of Silence and the Day of Truth

With April right around the corner the two competing protests are gearing up. The Day of Silence is sponsored by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) and is billed as a student led (high school and college level) protest against the oppression of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth. It’s scheduled this year for April 25th.

While I sympathize with the cause, I’m a little uncertain about the methodology. The plan is to remain silent for the entire school day while handing out cards explaining why should the need arise. It sure sounds like it’s going to make any interactive educational exchange a tad difficult to achieve.

The Day of Truth is scheduled for April 28th and is sponsored by the Christian Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) with support from other conservative Christian groups such as Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council. Their basic position is that homosexuality is sinful and destructive behavior and they have the right to say so. This they call having an “honest conversation about homosexuality.”

I call it prejudice.

To be honest with you I don’t know why some folks have their sexual wires crossed but the scientific evidence appears to point to it being totally non-voluntary. Roughly equivalent to having blue eyes or being left handed.

On the other side of the fence, homosexuality appears to be condemned in the bible, or at least that’s how conservative Christians interpret the passages in question, so Christianity condemns it as sinful.

Now, what exactly are we going to talk about? Christianity is convinced it’s a sinful choice, science appears to be leaning toward it’s an involuntary characteristic rooted in either genetics, hormonal exposure or both. Does anyone really think there is a snowball’s chance in hell that the average conservative Christian can be made to accept that maybe, just maybe, homosexuality is beyond the control of gays?

In order to be willing to consider such a position, they would have to be willing to consider that their bible is wrong. If they haven’t accepted evolutionary theory, which isn’t even a moral question, they’re sure as hell not going to accept that homosexuality may be natural.

This is their idea of “truth.” Homosexuality is sinful behavior based upon a couple of passages written by a group of ignorant savages 3,000 years ago. I mean, why not roll out the old “truth” that Genesis 9:26-27 justifies keeping blacks as slaves?

Hey, feel free to express your opinion. It’s your right under the First Amendment. But how about at least being honest about what that opinion is? It’s not a call for an “honest conversation” it’s a condemnation. You’re entitled to your opinion and I’m entitled to think your opinion stinks to high heaven.

1 comment:

pablo said...

I think the underlying issue that your article is pointing us at is the notion of free will. Do humans possess free will? If so, then we are forced to accept that humans are responsible for ALL their actions, "good" and "bad". If not, then we need to ask ourselves what is actually meant by "good" and "bad"? If you accept that humans are not responsible for some of their actions - on what basis do we discriminate between "bad" actions that are chosen, and "bad" actions that are enivitable on the basis that the disposition is built into their genetic makeup? are people genetically dispositioned for murder? I would think not..