Hi guys,
First, I apologize that I’m unable to respond to every comment directed my way. I don’t mean to disrespect or ignore anybody, but I literally am unable to carry one side of the question all by myself in conversation with the entire forum. I hope you’ll understand.
So I’ve picked this post more or less at random and hope it will suffice.
My intention for today is to shift my focus from this issue to an examination of what might bring me back to the church. Coming soon to a thread near you…
]No one here has advocated calling homosexuals “horrible names”.
If I called your sex life perverted etc and worked to prevent you from legally marrying whoever you are married to, would you consider that an insult?
We can say we love black people, and we can even mean it sincerely, but if we insist they still must ride in the back of bus, our declaration of love is revealed to be empty.
To do so is to deny the very Catholic doctrine of the inherent dignity of the human person, and no Catholic ought deny this doctrine glibly.
If we support the “inherent dignity of the human person” we are then required to provide the same rights to others that we claim for ourselves. If I wish to marry the person I am actually in love with, I must extend this right to you as well.
If Catholics are willing to allow strangers outside of their community to tell them who they can marry, then we could revisit the question in that light, and logically apply the same rules to others as well.
This, too, denies the very Catholic doctrine of love of neighbor, and no Catholic ought to be beating up anyone behind the gym.
I agree of course, and am
not claiming Catholics are the ones doing the beatings. If sloppy writing on my part gave that impression, I apologize for the misunderstanding. I’ll work harder to tighten up my rhetoric.
However, Catholic ideology is indeed providing intellectual rationalization to those who do the beatings. Catholic ideology declines to make a decisive, clear, morally courageous break with a cultural ethos of repression which has plagued the gay community for centuries.
This is a shame as Catholics are well positioned to understand the challenges the gay community has historically faced, as Catholics themselves have faced some of the same oppression.
I am not directing my frustrations on this issue to those fundamentalist Protestant denominations who also want second class citizens for gays, because I have no hope for them, and am not one of them in any manner.
You should see my activism, my frustration, my attendance here, as a sign that I have not given up on Catholics, that I believe you to be an intelligent, educated, highly moral community, who have yourselves experienced the burden of repression, and thus are in a position to accept the gay community as
fully equal brothers and sisters.
I sincerely believe that both Catholics, the gay community, and the church itself would benefit from a display of such decisive moral clarity.
And so I call you to a higher standard than other Christian conservatives.
This is a sign of respect, if not always delivered with perfect grace, charm and diplomacy. I am a passionate person, and indeed sometimes somewhat of a jerk. There’s no reason for you to make my problem your problem. You already have enough problems of your own.
Careful, Typist. It is good for you to be here and be in dialogue with knowledgeable Catholics. But what you say is coming very close to “contempt for Catholicism” and is not tolerated here on the CAFs.
I do not have contempt for Catholics. I do not have contempt for Catholicism as a whole. As I’ve tried to share I am myself, at least in the cultural and genetic sense, a Catholic. I believe that by coming here and sharing these thoughts, I am embracing that part of my heritage.
I do have contempt for any part of any intellectual system which rationalizes the ongoing oppression of millions of people. I believe it is in the best spirit of Catholicism to stand up publicly and make that statement.
Take a moment before you press “submit reply” next time you’re feeling emotional about a comment.
If I was labeling Catholic sex as perverted, and was publicly calling for laws that would prevent Catholics from marrying other Catholics, would you be emotional? Wouldn’t some measure of emotion be appropriate in such a circumstance?
All I’m asking is that you extend that which you want for yourself to those around you as well.
