P
Prodigal_Son
Guest
I’ve been reading a collection of Orthodox spirituality lately, called the Philokalia. It’s really excellent, although like everything except Scripture, you have to discern what’s true and false in it. But anyway, I’ve noticed something characteristic about these authors’ approach to sin. They see sin as attack from external spiritual powers, first and foremost. This is consistent with the way modern Christians approach many sins, but it is inconsistent with the way modern Christians approach homosexual sins.
Generally we have two camps on homosexuality: (1) Homosexuality is a unique sort of perversion that either needs to be cured or just “coped with”, but is certainly not common to all, and (2) Gay people are another kind of person, and their desires should be accommodated.
Both of these approaches see gayness as special or unique. The first approach sees it as a unique sort of psychological flaw; the second as a unique sort of good thing, I suppose. These ancient authors, though, see something completely different. They have no notion of “psychological flaws”. They just think that we are all so massively weak in comparison with demonic powers that we will all tend to fall in a variety of ways without Jesus. Some will fall to homosexual temptation, some won’t. Big whoop. The devils don’t care what your temptation is; the devils care whether they can find something to tempt you with effectively. If these spiritual powers find homosexuality to be a weak spot in ANYONE’S armor, they will go there. No one is “straight”. But with some people, homosexual temptation doesn’t become an issue, since the devil sees much shorter paths to their downfall.
Reading this stuff is just so refreshing, as a man who has experienced homosexual temptation. I can tell you right now that the devil wants me to think this is a “special” thing about me, and every time Christians act like it is a unique psychological malady, that plays into the devil’s hands. I benefit from seeing it as another way I am human – and as a temptation, as a challenge in the way of me being divine. There is no unique and special spiritual life for gay people: “others should be Ignatian, but gay people should see a psychologist to ‘fix’ them”. No, there are just people, and we all need to consider what approach God wants for us, as we fight to be the men and women He made us to be.
Thoughts?
Generally we have two camps on homosexuality: (1) Homosexuality is a unique sort of perversion that either needs to be cured or just “coped with”, but is certainly not common to all, and (2) Gay people are another kind of person, and their desires should be accommodated.
Both of these approaches see gayness as special or unique. The first approach sees it as a unique sort of psychological flaw; the second as a unique sort of good thing, I suppose. These ancient authors, though, see something completely different. They have no notion of “psychological flaws”. They just think that we are all so massively weak in comparison with demonic powers that we will all tend to fall in a variety of ways without Jesus. Some will fall to homosexual temptation, some won’t. Big whoop. The devils don’t care what your temptation is; the devils care whether they can find something to tempt you with effectively. If these spiritual powers find homosexuality to be a weak spot in ANYONE’S armor, they will go there. No one is “straight”. But with some people, homosexual temptation doesn’t become an issue, since the devil sees much shorter paths to their downfall.
Reading this stuff is just so refreshing, as a man who has experienced homosexual temptation. I can tell you right now that the devil wants me to think this is a “special” thing about me, and every time Christians act like it is a unique psychological malady, that plays into the devil’s hands. I benefit from seeing it as another way I am human – and as a temptation, as a challenge in the way of me being divine. There is no unique and special spiritual life for gay people: “others should be Ignatian, but gay people should see a psychologist to ‘fix’ them”. No, there are just people, and we all need to consider what approach God wants for us, as we fight to be the men and women He made us to be.
Thoughts?
