How do Christians justify their condemnation and hatred of the LGBTQ+ community?
“If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.”
– Leviticus 20:13
Many Christian pastors take the above line from Leviticus very literally. In 2012, a Kansas pastor claimed homosexuals should be put to death by the government. A pastor from Arizona supported the murder of gay people in 2013. Radio host Kevin Swanson suggested Christians should only turn up to gay weddings with a sign proclaiming the verse in full.
(Alan Boyle. “10 Religious Verses Used To Justify Terrible Atrocities.” ListVerse. March 20, 2014.)
The devastating impact of homophobia can’t be overstated. Thousands of people are attacked in the US for their sexual orientation. The FBI's Crime Data Explorer (2020) shows a consistent trend over the past 30 years for increased crimes against LGBTQ+ people. Hate crimes directed at LGBTQ+ people did decline in the early 2000s until 2004, and again in 2011 until 2015, but the overall trend is consistently upwards.
This particular statistic is especially impactful because while approximately 4% of the adult population identifies as lesbian, gay, or bisexual, only 0.6% of the population identifies as transgender, which means transgender people are experiencing dramatically more hate crimes on a per capita basis.
Now, the Bible condemns all sins, many as much as homosexuality – among these sins are lies, perjury, and enslavement.
“Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.”
– 1 Timothy 1:8-11
If other sins generated as much hate as homosexuality, Christians wouldn't have time to do anything but preach hellfire and damnation 24/7 to every living soul … included among them those politicians in Washington D.C. who lie and show absolutely no concern for any “sound doctrine.”
I jest, but don't forget this biblical commandment …
“He said to them, ‘Because of the hardness of your hearts, Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery’”
– Matthew 19:8-9
Pew Research (2014) reported that roughly half of first marriages in the U.S. end in divorce, and 67% of second marriages lead to divorce. That number jumps to 74% for third marriages. Even seniors divorce frequently: “gray divorce” is on the rise as people realize they still have many opportunities for happiness ahead of them.
(Gretchen Livingston. “Growing Number of Adults Have Remarried.” Pew Research Center. November 14, 2014.)
What are the main reasons for splitting up?
According to Bloomberg, some categories of “divorce causes” show similarities and differences among men and women:
Infidelity: 15.6 percent of men cited infidelity as a factor in divorce, while 25.2 percent of women cited it as one of the causes for dissolving a marriage;
Physical or mental abuse: zero percent of men cited this factor, while 9.2 percent of women cited it;
Drinking and/or drug abuse: nearly 14 percent of women cited this as a cause for divorce, while only 5.2 percent of men believed drinking or drug use to be a cause for divorce;
“Don’t Know” – more than 9 percent of men indicated that they did not know the cause for divorce, while zero percent of women indicated the same;
Incompatibility: just over 19 percent of both men and women cite incompatibility as a cause for divorce; and
Growing apart: just over 9 percent of both men and women cite growing apart as a cause for divorce.
(Paulina Cachero. “Americans Say Financial Infidelity Is Just as Bad as Physical Cheating.” Bloomberg. January 24, 2022.)
With just 15.6-25.2 percent of causes coming in as infidelity, that leaves huge numbers of divorcing sinners to hate … according to scripture that is. Still, no one I know is calling for their execution or eternal damnation.
So what's the hatred of homosexuals by religious people really all about?
Christianity And LGBTQ+ Loathing
Some faith groups seek new freedom today by asking their believers to apply beliefs in a way that oppresses or denigrates others, discriminates against them, and/or mounts political campaigns to deny them equal rights. These attacks typically:
Involve individual believers, faith groups, for-profit companies, or parachurch organizations as perpetrators, and
Involve individuals or couples as victims -- typically either women, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender persons or transsexuals.
Religious freedom once referred mostly to the believers' right to express religious ideas and to engage in religious practices. Now it is becoming mostly about the freedom for individuals, store owners, or religious groups to take actions that discriminate against others by limiting other people's human rights and freedoms, without the believers incurring negative consequences themselves.
During 2014, a group of "religious freedom to discriminate" bills were introduced into various state Legislatures including:
Colorado (HB 1771),
Oklahoma (SB 723),
South Dakota (HB 1220),
Utah (HB 332),
West Virginia (HB 322 & HB 2508), and
Wyoming (HB 83).
The intent of the laws is to allow individuals and companies to exercise their religious freedom to discriminate against sexual minorities such as lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender persons and transsexuals.
The bills take many forms: Some would:
Prohibit adoption agencies in the state from placing children in families led by same-sex married couples.
Prohibit a spouse in a same-sex marriage from adopting the other spouse's child. This would cause the state to recognize the non-biological parent only as a "friend" of the child, even though the extended family, and others, regard both spouses as parents. This could have fatal consequences during some medical emergencies.
Penalize government employees who issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples even in states where same-sex marriage is legal. These penalties may take the form of fines, firings, or attacks against their pensions.
Allow store owners -- particularly those in the marriage industry, like wedding photographers, wedding cake bakers, wedding organizers, wedding venue providers, etc.-- to refuse to supply goods and services to same-sex couples.
("Religious Freedom To Discriminate, oppress & denigrate in the U.S.” https://www.religioustolerance.org/state-right-to-discriminate-against-gays-bills.htm. Religious Tolerance. March 22, 2015.)
Robert Boston, Director of Communications at Americans United for Separation of Church and State, says …
"Increasingly, conservative religious groups are using religious liberty as a sword to lash out at others. The religious freedom guaranteed in the First Amendment is an individual right, the right of personal conscience, not a license allowing religious organizations to discriminate against and control others.”
(Robert Boston. Taking Liberties: Why Religious Freedom Doesn't Give You the Right to Tell Other People What to Do. March 4, 2014.)
Do you want recent proof of religious hatred? On June 15, the Boise, Idaho Police Department reported that they are aware of a Boise pastor's sermon calling for LGBTQ people to "be put to death", but says it does not meet the legal requirement for criminal hate speech or malicious harassment.
In a May sermon, Pastor Joe Jones of Shield of Faith Baptist Church in Boise told his congregation "put all queers to death."
"When they die that stops the pedophilia," Jones said.
Idaho Code for Malicious Harassment is defined as "It shall be unlawful for any person, maliciously and with the specific intent to intimidate or harass another person because of that person’s race, color, religion, ancestry, or national origin."
Idaho Code does not include Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity.
Along with Pastor Jones calling for LGBTQ people to be killed, The Associated Press reported North Idaho Lawmaker Rep. Heather Scott, told an audience that drag queens and other LGBTQ supporters are waging “a war of perversion against our children." Several Republican lawmakers across the country are actively trying to write legislation banning kids from Drag performances.
(Jake Garcia BPD: Local Pastor calling for LGBTQ people to be 'put to death' is not hate speech under Idaho Law.” Idaho News 6. June 15, 2022.)
If extreme Bible-thumpers in Idaho are going to assume gays profile a typical abuser, they should consider a 1994 study published in the journal Pediatrics in which three researchers examined 269 cases of child sexual abuse handled by a regional children’s hospital.
Researchers examined charts related to each of the cases — 78% of which involved girls and 22% of which involved boys – to determine the alleged offender’s gender and whether they were reported as gay, lesbian or bisexual.
They found that only two out of 269 individuals accused of child sexual abuse identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual — that’s 0.7%. That means that 99.3% of the time, the pedophile was actually heterosexual.
(C Jenny 1 , T A Roesler, K L Poyer. “Are children at risk for sexual abuse by homosexuals?” Pediatrics. July 1994.)
Contrary to opinions
popularly held by professional and lay persons alike, the child
molester is a relatively young heterosexual man who is neither
insane, retarded, nor sexually frustrated. About 60% of children who
are sexually abused are abused by the
people the family trusts.
Homosexual individuals are no more likely to sexually abuse than
heterosexual individuals.
(A N Groth, et al. “ STUDY OF THE CHILD MOLESTER - MYTHS AND REALITIES.”LAE JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CRIMINAL JUSTICE ASSOCIATION Volume: 41 Issue: 1 Dated: (WINTER/SPRING 1978) Pages: 17-22.)
(H N Snyder. “Sexual assault of young children as reported to law enforcement: Victim, incident, and offender characteristics.” Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics. 2000.)
Conclusion
Today in the United States the Religious Right has hijacked the Christian faith and completely disregarded the teachings of the founder of Christianity, Jesus Christ, by supporting discriminatory governmental policies and advocating laws legalizing discrimination against anyone whom they deem as noncompliant with their religious beliefs.
Yes, I see this as religious hatred – a deep-seated though often publicly denied abhorrence that attacks the same principles that guarantee their rights of freedom of religion. The church should not be a sanctuary for the righteous, but rather a place for tolerance and acceptance – a place for all to connect with God.
Christians will tell you they don't approve of homosexuality but they "love" the sinners whom they judge to be living in sin. Some try to pray gays out of the lifestyle while others simply don't want to talk about it. Very few will profess their aversion as any form of active resistance leading to discrimination.
Yet ...
Christianity's main rule of human behavior, the Golden Rule, tells its followers to treat other people as they would wish to be treated. This is referred to as an "Ethic of Reciprocity." To me, this ethic is paramount to the faith and the most important scripture concerning acceptance of gays.
John S. Spong, a retired bishop of the Episcopal Church, distributed an essay titled "Understanding Religious Anger" in August 2006. He noted that it is common for religious people to express anger towards individuals of other denominations or faiths.
He wrote:
"When one looks at the history of religious persecution, which has included such things as excommunication, torture, and the burning of heretics at the stake, there is ample evidence of hostility associated with Christianity. When one adds to that the Crusades designed 'to kill the infidels,' a history of anti-Semitism, and the wars between Catholics and Protestants, the picture of religion as a source of anger in human society, victimizing people in every generation, becomes clear …
"Perhaps the time has come to recognize that Christianity was never meant to be about religion; it is to be about life. The achievement of personal security is the goal of religion. The ability to live with integrity in the midst of the insecurity of life is the goal of Christianity. Religion seeks to control life with guilt. Christianity seeks to free people to be all that they can be. There is a vast difference. Perhaps it will take the death of religion to open us once again to the meaning of Christianity, even 'Religionless Christianity.' For the purpose of Jesus was not to make us religious but to make us fully human."
(J.S. Spong, "Understanding Religious Anger," Bulletin. August 22, 2006.)
“Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.”
– Romans 13:8-10 ESV
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