Hi, Kolbe,
Seriously, maybe there are better lists than CAF for you. I honestly do not know of any. No thread that is true to the Church’s teachings is going say, imply or hint that homosexual BEHAVIOR is disordered. Beyond this, i guess there are several ways to look at it, but maybe St. Paul summed it up best when it called whatever he had as a “…thorn for the flesh…”.(2Cor 12:7-10). And, yes, each in his own way needs healing and restoration in Christ. Now, let me address your other items …
For starters, we can stop saying the Church doesn’t use the term unless it’s talking about heterosexuality. Maybe there actually is such a thing as a homosexual orientation.
OK. The term ‘homosexual orientation’ is used by the Church. While I do not recall denying that it was used - if I gave that impression - I was obviously wrong, and I apologize. What I really mean is, 'What difference does this term mean?" We are still bound by the Natural Law and the Laws of God. We can look at any behavior as either ‘ordered’ or ‘disordered’ - and there are clear examples of both:
Drinking alcohol in moderation (or not at all) is ordered, while drunkeness is disordred
Eating for bodily nutrition is ordred, while gluttony is disordered
Sexual relations in marriage is ordred, while lust outside of marriage is disordred
Assertive and courage are ordered, while wrath and fury are disordered.
Proper use of worldy goods is ordred, while greed is disordred.
Self-Confidence is ordered while pride (excessive belief in one’s ability) is disordred
The simplest way to view this is that there is an ordered manner to express ourselves while giving honor to God. To ‘go over board’ or go off in the wrong direction is disordered and fails to give honor to God. I am really not aware of any other way to putting this and still remaining within the bounds set by the Chruch founded by Christ Himself that can not teach error.
Which begs the question - why was it discussed so heavily in this thread to begin with?
I really can not answer that question. I can, however, take a guess based on some of the posts on this topic I have read. Saying one is ‘oriented’ may be a form of short-hand that says, 'I am made this way, so whatever I do is expressing the real me. Sodomy is not sin because this is what I do, so stop discriminating against my behavior." By frequent and repeated statements that convey this idea, a whole new way of defining legal human relationships has been initiated. But, as I said, this is just my guess.
By the way, I go to a very Catholic therapist on a regular basis. I’ve also received spiritual direction for years. And although I slipped tonight, I’ve been trying to do a better job of following the advice of both my spiritual director and my therapist, which is this - stop going to that Catholic Answers forum. Quitting this place isn’t easy, but it’s definitely the healthiest thing. Peace!
As a general rule, it is always a good idea to discuss the ideas presented in therapy and then once fully understood, to begin to implement them. The idea is that you will get back with the therapist and report on the progress you have made. Being candid with your therapist allows this trained professional to make ‘mid-course corrections’ to one’s Plan of Care.
Ultimately, however, we all have a conscience. Our responsibility is to make sure that we have it properly formed in accordance with the teachings of the Catholic Church. For example, the person who is ‘oriented’ to alcohol and is now sober - sins when he consciously goes to a bar to ‘just have a little one’ - and winds up drunk. This person’s orientation is known, he has decided to ignore what he knows to be prudent behavior and goes to what, for other people is just a bar, but for him is a near occasion of sin. His ‘orientation’ did not make him get drunk - and sin - rather, it was his real choice to put himself in harm’s way and the results are predictable.
God bless
