Why is the US Catholic church so obsessed with the gay issue?

[Lucretius]

Before my conversion, when I didn’t have a problem with gay “marriage” per se, I did have a problem with LGBT, because 1) publically, they act like immature children, and 2) they never appeal to rationality, but rather to strong emotions. A big problem with gay “marriage” advocates is that their arguments are easily reduced to absurdity, if they actually make an argument. Just read the illogical and nonsensical Majority Opinion on the recent decision!

A big problem with gay “marriage” advocates is the advocates themselves.

Christi pax,

Lucretius

 

[catholic1seeks]

There’s your answer.
I wouldn’t call it obsessing and overblowing the problem
when our religious…and other…freedoms are at stake.

We have a crisis in this country in
the form of a Supreme Court who has overstepped its bounds.
The same-sex marriage decision was merely a product of that.

There will be more decisions to come which defy the Constitution
if people don’t sit up and notice
what the Supreme Court is up to.
Thank God Americans are waking up, I say.

When I say that, I mean – yeah, of course it exists in some situations. But right now, no church is required to perform a gay marriage.

 

[catholic1seeks]

No one can deny that many gay “marriage” advocates have a hatred for Christianity.

Christi pax,

Lucretius

Nearsighted, steroetyped reply.

I think that same-sex civil marriage should be legal, but I have no hatred for Christianity.

 

[Lucretius]

When I say that, I mean – yeah, of course it exists in some situations. But right now, no church is required to perform a gay marriage.

In America, unlike other countries, the ordained, including Priests, are automatically given the right to civilly marry, with no test, questioning, whatever. I wonder how long it will be until someone tries to test how far they can go.

I wonder how long it will take for this situation to be reformed?

Christi pax,

Lucretius

 

[catholic1seeks]

Before my conversion, when I didn’t have a problem with gay “marriage” per se, I did have a problem with LGBT, because 1) publically, they act like immature children, and 2) they never appeal to rationality, but rather to strong emotions. A big problem with gay “marriage” advocates is that their arguments are easily reduced to absurdity, if they actually make an argument. Just read the illogical and nonsensical Majority Opinion on the recent decision!

A big problem with gay “marriage” advocates is the advocates themselves.

Christi pax,

Lucretius

Wait. You had a problem with gay people because they acted like “immature children”??

 

[Lucretius]

Nearsighted, steroetyped reply.

I think that same-sex civil marriage should be legal, but I have no hatred for Christianity.

I wrote “many gay “marriage” advocates” not “all gay “marriage” advocates.”

Christi pax,

Lucretius

 

[catholic1seeks]

Also, I know the Supreme Court decision just happened, but this focus has been happening long before this last week in Catholic circles.

 

[Lucretius]

Wait. You had a problem with gay people because they acted like “immature children”??

Gay people in the popular imagination often act like what we see at Pride events. I know many, if not most, gay people are not like that, but when you are a teenager bound to the Media, you really only get this kind of picture.

I still think those at Pride events who do all those things are immature.

Christi pax,

Lucretius

 

[Lucretius]

Also, I know the Supreme Court decision just happened, but this focus has been happening long before this last week in Catholic circles.

The suspense in waiting for the Court’s decision was killing us

Christi pax,

Lucretius

 

[catholic1seeks]

Gay people in the popular imagination often act like what we see at Pride events. I know many, if not most, gay people are not like that, but when you are a teenager bound to the Media, you really only get this kind of picture.

I still think those at Pride events who do all those things are immature.

Christi pax,

Lucretius

You didn’t say people at pride events.
Also, most people at parades or celebrations of various sorts act… more celebratory together.

I think nowadays, people are used to having more friends who are openly gay and so thankfully don’t have to rely on whatever media impressions there may be.

 

[catholic1seeks]

In any event, I think if the church here in the US focused more on, say, what Pope Francis is calling us to, or the fundamental gospel message of Jesus, the world would be more attentive, and church members would find Catholcism more enriching. After all, most Catholics disagree with the Church’s traditional teaching on these hot button issues.

 

[Lucretius]

You didn’t say people at pride events.
Also, most people at parades or celebrations of various sorts act… more celebratory together.

I think nowadays, people are used to having more friends who are openly gay and so thankfully don’t have to rely on whatever media impressions there may be.

When I wrote “publically, they act like immature children,” I used “publically” with Pride Events in mind.

Christi pax,

Lucetius

 

[Lucretius]

In any event, I think if the church here in the US focused more on, say, what Pope Francis is calling us to, or the fundamental gospel message of Jesus, the world would be more attentive, and church members would find Catholcism more enriching. After all, most Catholics disagree with the Church’s traditional teaching on these hot button issues.

I think if people fell in love with the Gospel, including what Pope Francis calls the “fundamentals,” then resolving the “hot button issues” will logically follow. It was that way for me. I didn’t look at the Church and say “hey, they are against gay “marriage!” I’ll join them!” Quite the opposite, actually

You got to start with the right first principles.

Christi pax,

Lucretius

 

[TarkanAttila]

There are also many advocates of the right of gay people to marry who are Christians. The Episcopal Church just voted to allow its clergy to perform same-sex marriages and my own denomination, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, also allows it’s pastors to marry same-sex couples.

It is good to know where we stand then, eh, since even Christendom is being divided over this issue?

 

[Ophelia23]

Well, considering that gay “marriage” advocates are trying to teach kindergartners about sex, insist on having Christian bakers and florists do business with gay weddings all while acting innocent with “how does it affect you?” and “what impact does it have on your straight marriage”, you can kind of see why they’d be talking about it.

So it isn’t so much the US Catholic Church is obsessed with it as it they are responding to gay “marriage” advocates, many of whom are straight, who are the ones consumed by the issue for their own selfish, nefarious purposes. :yup:

I’m sure that gay “marriage” advocates would love for everyone to shut-up and agree with them, but that isn’t going to happen.

Exactly this!

 

[edwest2]

Several Catholic organizations in the US seem to be uncomfortably and awkwardly preoccupied with gay issues. Catholic Answers Live, a radio show I love, sometimes has specific shows dedicated to same-sex marriage or homosexuality. I just switched on EWTN on my TV and the show was talking about the “militant homosexual agenda.” Catholic bloggers and articles are always dedicating topics on this issue; everytime I go to NewAdvent.org, there is a good chance I’ll see a highlighted article casting the issue in a severe light.

My question is, what is this emphasis on this issue meant to achieve? Is it supposed to help those gay persons who are already struggling to find a place in the Church? Is it supposed to convince the “militant homosexual” activists? Is it supposed to reach out to those in the Church and the world who disagree with church teaching and accept homosexual relationships? Or is it supposed to comfort those who already agree with church teaching?

Maybe I am just sensitive. But I do not see the point with this over-emphasis. I could see how such a preoccupation would turn away those from the Church, as it is making me really disappointed with the USA church’s outreach to those on the fringes.

This reminds me of a call received by a high Church official by talk show host, Larry King. Mr. King asked his Catholic friend, “Why is the Church so obsessed about sex?” To which he got the reply, “Larry, you are the one calling me.”

So-called Gay Marriage was not even on the radar of most Americans not that long ago. It was a non-issue, but I watched as the issue changed. First, it was, “Leave us alone.” which was fine. Another message was, “Stay out of my bedroom.” which was also fine. Everyone’s privacy was respected. In the 1970s and early 1980s, I worked at a major hospital with LGBT individuals. We did our jobs. We got along. I did not think for one second what they did after work. One person decided to have “Sexual reassignment surgery” as it was called at the time. She now appeared as a he and returned to work. There was no outcry. Or protests.

Then, LGBT activists decided to abandon privacy. They would become “out and proud” and begin a campaign to demonize the family and the Church. The Church, in particular, was wrong about its constant teaching regarding homosexual behavior to the point where certain things said in Church, as they’ve long been said, was eventually labeled “hate speech.” The public was subjected to a conditioning campaign that relied primarily on emotion and obfuscation. I remember billboards showing two gay men that encouraged a vote in support of same-sex marriage in my state. When it was voted down, a letter appeared in a major local paper calling my state: “The great hate state.” The newspaper later warned of a ‘brain drain’ as some homosexual couples threatened to leave to go to a “gay friendly” state.

The campaign was well orchestrated and conveyed by a mostly compliant media, that later included statements from certain corporate executives and politicians. After every defeat in the early days of the campaign, a lack of enough money and personnel was listed as the culprits. This escalated in one state where pro-LGBT persons went door to door to convince the average person. The strategy then shifted to convincing judges and even the President who “evolved” on the issue of ‘gay marriage’ and was immediately praised and was given additional support, which included money.

It was easier to convince a handful of influential people than millions of average people. I was sitting in my doctor’s office when an ‘out’ celebrity kept telling viewers to “stop being homophobic.” Now, how can one person demonize every total stranger watching that he or she should stop a behavior or mindset that he could not know they had?

Then, they started confusing little kids in public schools with storybooks that advocated gay marriage, like King and King. One father who learned about this objected to the school because he felt he should have been told. He was informed by the school that it “was not a parental notification issue.” Then little kids were given the ‘right’ to use either the boy’s or girl’s restroom according to what they felt was their ‘gender identity.’

According to CNBC, in reference to facebook, users can use “… a customizable option with about 50 different terms people can use to identify their gender as well as three preferred … AP February 13, 2014, 2:26 PM …”

Now a polygamist has filed for a marriage license:

usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2015/07/02/montana-polygamous-marriage-license-supreme-court/29612673/

The situation continues to escalate. It’s appropriate that Catholics be informed about such matters through legitimate Catholic outlets because the media will not, or report certain Church statements incorrectly or incompletely. Or find a way to say the Church is wrong.

God bless,
Ed

 

[unstoppable_II]

…
My question is, what is this emphasis on this issue meant to achieve? …

I think you should ask the same question of all the shows on TV that cast homosexuals in a similar light as cuddly teddy bears. I used to watch House Hunting until it seemed like every episode was about two homosexuals looking to buy a house. :sad_yes:

 

[Thorolfr]

Also, I know the Supreme Court decision just happened, but this focus has been happening long before this last week in Catholic circles.

I first came to CAF just after last year’s meeting of the Synod on the Family in which one of the questions asked was:

Homosexuals have gifts and qualities to offer to the Christian community. Are we capable of welcoming these people, guaranteeing to them a fraternal space in our communities? Often they wish to encounter a church that offers them a welcoming home. Are our communities capable of providing that, accepting and valuing their sexual orientation, without compromising Catholic doctrine on the family and matrimony?"

It also mentioned that same-sex couples can exemplify “mutual aid to the point of sacrifice (that) constitutes a precious support in the life of the partners.”

This seemed like a very hopeful sign to me that the Catholic church was going to try to reach out to LGBT people. But soon afterwards, there were articles like this one at CNN with the title, “Under conservative assault, Vatican backtracks on gay comments.”

cnn.com/2014/10/14/world/vatican-backtrack-gays/

As noted in an article in The Guardian about the final report from the Synod:

In the final report of an extraordinary synod on the family which has exposed deep divides in the church hierarchy, there is no mention – as there had been in a draft version – of the “gifts and qualities” gay people can offer. Nor is there any recognition of the “precious support” same-sex partners can give each other.

A paragraph entitled “pastoral attention to people of homosexual orientation” – itself a distinctly cooler tone than “welcoming homosexual persons” – refers to church teaching, saying there can be “not even a remote” comparison between gay unions and heterosexual marriage.

theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/18/catholic-bishops-backtrack-on-gay-welcome

This was all rather disappointing to me.

 

[ctb95]

There are also many advocates of the right of gay people to marry who are Christians. The Episcopal Church just voted to allow its clergy to perform same-sex marriages and my own denomination, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, also allows it’s pastors to marry same-sex couples.

And this reveals the moral relativism of the Episcopal Church and the ELCA.

 

[unstoppable_II]

Several Catholic organizations in the US seem to be uncomfortably and awkwardly preoccupied with gay issues. Catholic Answers Live, a radio show I love, sometimes has specific shows dedicated to same-sex marriage or homosexuality. I just switched on EWTN on my TV and the show was talking about the “militant homosexual agenda.” Catholic bloggers and articles are always dedicating topics on this issue; everytime I go to NewAdvent.org, there is a good chance I’ll see a highlighted article casting the issue in a severe light.

My question is, what is this emphasis on this issue meant to achieve? Is it supposed to help those gay persons who are already struggling to find a place in the Church? Is it supposed to convince the “militant homosexual” activists? Is it supposed to reach out to those in the Church and the world who disagree with church teaching and accept homosexual relationships? Or is it supposed to comfort those who already agree with church teaching?

Maybe I am just sensitive. But I do not see the point with this over-emphasis. I could see how such a preoccupation would turn away those from the Church, as it is making me really disappointed with the USA church’s outreach to those on the fringes.

If it is overemphasized, homosexuals caused it. Consider the following real cases:
“Transgenderism and Unemployment: What Really Matters”
By Bruce Robinson
August 10, 2014
"…Thus, the perfect trumps the good, and all of California’s children must be subjected to massive
classroom, locker-room, and bathroom behavior modification. Late last year, this public-school
pogrom suddenly became very personal for me when I received a phone call from my grandson. He and
his twin sister, both high school juniors in the Windsor Unified School District (Sonoma County), had just been subjected to a series of classroom lectures by transgender spokesmen and ordered by their English teacher to write a paper defending the special rights of their LGBT schoolmates.

‘Grandpa,’ my grandson protested, ‘I don’t know what to do. I don’t believe in any of that stuff!’”
Note: Never mind that homosexuals have been lying about not wanting special rights, what the student
was ordered to do is to write and sign a loyalty oath. Loyalty oaths have been unconstitutional since the 1950s. I give the student, young as he is, a lot of credit for knowing truth from falsehood, though.​

Lawsuit: Glowacki
June 20, 2013
ANN ARBOR, MI – The Thomas More Law Center today announces a victory in their lawsuit against
teacher Johnson McDowell of Howell High School in Howell, Michigan.

The Court declared the teacher’s actions in punishing [student] Daniel Glowacki for expressing his beliefs against homosexuality violated “Daniel’s First Amendment rights.” In its findings of fact, the Court described how the teacher initiated a discussion about homosexuality. The teacher wore a purple t-shirt and was promoting the homosexual agenda. In response, the Plaintiff, 16 year-old Daniel Glowacki stated that homosexuality was against his Catholic beliefs. The teacher, admittedly, became angry and threw Daniel out of class because he disagreed with Daniel’s beliefs.​

“Ask God what your grade is.”
Regular Torch readers will likely remember [student] Lopez’s shocking story: In a Speech 101
class, Lopez delivered remarks referencing his religious views as part of a class assignment,
including expressing his view of Biblical morality and his conception of the proper definition of
marriage. Following the speech, Lopez was called a “phăshist băstärd” by his professor. When Lopez
asked for a grade, the professor recommended that Lopez “Ask God what your grade is.” Additionally,
Lopez was told by his professor that he had likely violated LACCD’s policies as a result of his
speech.

How would you react if your child came home with similar stories? These are not “only four” cases; there’s a whole cottage industry of legal advocacy groups defending students et al from brainwashing because that is what it is.:sad_yes: