M
michelleds
Guest
True, Mark.Grace & Peace!
I hope, Michelle, that at this point in our relationship (such as it is) we both realize that when it comes to psychoanalyzing each other and guessing each other’s motivations, *neither *of us is in possession of very well-honed skills.
Under the Mercy,
Mark
All is Grace and Mercy! Deo Gratias!
VERO CRAS!
Now, I want to point out where I agree with you.
As I’ve said a couple of times on this thread, and ISoG even quoted me saying it:Before we do anything, we must love. Out of our obligation to love comes any and all of our other responsibilities to each other. [snip] Others’ disagreements read, to me, as if they were saying, “No–when you encounter gays, above all you must correct or chastise them.”
I am of the impression, and several posters have said as much, that they either (a) would be uncomfortable having an apologetics discussion or debate in real life, or (b) would handle the situation very differently depending on the situation. Please note that some posters are coming at this from a one-on-one with someone you know situation and others are coming at it from an encounter on a street situation. Seeing where someone is coming from is important for both sides.I would like to add something that is so frequently overlooked and ignored–every single person has a personality and a style and maybe even a mission. What is important as an area of apologetics to person A won’t be the same priority for person B. While person A has a gruff style, person B is sweetness and light. it doesn’t mean that that one is better than the other or one is wrong. I think it’s silly to expect us all to deal with the same situtation in the same way or to have the same effects.
Someone’s dear friend of 10 years, a cradle Catholic, crying and asking for advice is a far different situation than being accosted at the Pizza Hut by your waiter demanding to know if you’re a homophobe because you’re wearing a crucifix. while I would pray that I would handle both situations with love, I don’t think I should probably try to hug the Pizza Hut dude.
In loving others, I would extend that love to the posters on this thread and make the most favorable assumption about them, not the least favorable; to-wit, I would assume that the posters on this thread would respond lovingly and appropriately should they find themselves in a situation–whether it be a debate, a consolation, or a discussion.
Mark, your comments about love have made me think quite heavily the past couple of days. I want to make sure that I don’t get so carried away with the intellectual aspects of the argument that I neglect loving my neighbor.