Difference between Unnatural & Supernatural?

[switalabe]

Hi,

I recently saw a posting on FB from a FB friend of mine that criticized Church teaching on homosexuality. It went something like this: “how can a religion that believes in virgin birth, walking on water, and resurrection of the dead call homosexuality UNNATURAL?”

I think the idea is that miracles are unnatural in the same way that homosexuality is unnatural: “Things are not going the way they are supposed to go.”

How do I respond to this? Help?

Thanks, and peace be with you,
Ben

PS I would guess…that miracles are beautiful, while homosexuality is not…

 

[Peter_Plato]

Hi,

I recently saw a posting on FB from a FB friend of mine that criticized Church teaching on homosexuality. It went something like this: “how can a religion that believes in virgin birth, walking on water, and resurrection of the dead call homosexuality UNNATURAL?”

I think the idea is that miracles are unnatural in the same way that homosexuality is unnatural: “Things are not going the way they are supposed to go.”

How do I respond to this? Help?

Thanks, and peace be with you,
Ben

PS I would guess…that miracles are beautiful, while homosexuality is not…

Unnatural would be actions or events that thwart or are contrary to natural teleological ends. A mother killing her babies merely to convenience her own life would be unnatural because the natural purpose or end of motherhood is to bring into being new living beings, and nurture and care for them in order to ensure their prolonged existence; not undermine the very reason for her bringing those new creatures into existence in the first place by wantonly killing them.

Supernatural would be above and beyond natural ends and means, with no necessary or direct connection to nature. That is not to deny the supernatural may not have connections to the natural but that the supernatural would not depend upon the natural.

The natural may, in fact, depend upon the supernatural to sufficiently explain it, since the natural does not completely explain its own existence.

 

[Memaw]

Hi,

I recently saw a posting on FB from a FB friend of mine that criticized Church teaching on homosexuality. It went something like this: “how can a religion that believes in virgin birth, walking on water, and resurrection of the dead call homosexuality UNNATURAL?”

I think the idea is that miracles are unnatural in the same way that homosexuality is unnatural: “Things are not going the way they are supposed to go.”

How do I respond to this? Help?

Thanks, and peace be with you,
Ben

PS I would guess…that miracles are beautiful, while homosexuality is not…

Supernatural is above our understanding of the actions of God. Above nature, not against it. Unnatural is going against nature and thus against God’s will. God Bless, Memaw

 

[Rhubarb]

Your friend is arguing semantics. There is an ambiguity in the word “unnatural.” I think giving an account of natural/unnatural will be more difficult than separating unnatural and supernatural. I am not against homosexuality and even I can see there are clear distinctions to be made between miracles and human doings.