The Christian faith is reasonable and appeals to a reasonable person. Antagonists of Christianity seek to make God’s laws and standards seem unreasonable and mean-spirited. They are anything but that. All of God’s commandments are given in love for us. They are not burdensome. It is up to the faithful Christian witness to be able to articulate this and to answer the objections which gay activists raise which would make God and His law appear to be other than it really is.
God’s laws are reasonable because they protect us from harm and provide us with that which is truly worthwhile. Involvement in homosexuality brings with it numerous consequences: physical injury and a high risk of sexually transmitted disease being two obvious results. Consider the following facts:
- Homosexuals’ life expectancy is nearly 30 years shorter than heterosexuals.
- Two thirds of AIDS cases involve homosexual men even though they make up less than 3% of the population.
- Homosexuals are far more likely than heterosexuals to engage in other dangerous behavior such as smoking, alcohol abuse and the use of illegal drugs.
- Homosexuals are more likely to attempt suicide.
On the contrary, heterosexual marriage provides the basis for a family and the rearing of children. It brings physical and spiritual oneness to its partners.
In spite of these obvious benefits and consequences, gay activists make the following arguments:
“Sexual orientation is determined by genetics. To be heterosexual is no more wrong than to be black. It’s the way you are born”
Not true. From a physical perspective, people are born either male or female and they physically “fit” with one of the opposite sex. From a biological perspective, males have sperm and females have eggs which unite to form a new life as a result of sexual intercourse.
Concerning orientation (desire, or whom you become interested in), there is NO evidence that anyone has ever been born homosexual. People develop their sexual orientation as they grow up, and this development is influenced by a number of factors. The overwhelming majority of people develop heterosexual orientations, but even many of these develop unhealthy, selfish or abusive sexual desires.
Obviously, to be born of a certain skin color is neither right nor wrong. But homosexuality is a behavior, it is not a physical characteristic like skin or eye color. It is obvious that physical characteristics are determined by genetics, but there is no evidence that a person’s desires are the result of genetics.
However, even if it could some day be proven that a person is born with a “gay gene”, this would not make the behavior right. Some people’s genes make them more disposed to alcoholism or obesity, but this would not say that drunkenness or gluttony are, therefore, acceptable behaviors. Some psychologists are trying to say that all behavioral problems are genetic, but the Bible says we must identify wrong behavior as sin and take responsibility for it by repenting before God.
At the same time, it is also important to recognize that all people are born with an innate sinful nature, which the Bible refers to as “the flesh.” Everyone has sinful desires and, for most people, those desires are very strong. But rather than say we were “born this way,” the Bible calls us to deny ungodly desires. Gay activists are wrong to contend that because someone has a strong desire for something, it is therefore right. You may be angry and have a strong desire to murder, but that doesn’t make it right. You may have a strong desire for pornography or to commit adultery, but that desire does not condone the action. Rather, you must identify that the desire is wrong and refuse to act upon it. This goes for homosexuality as well.
“But what about all of the scientific data which proves homosexuality is genetic.”
Such data is both scarce and inconclusive. Below is a brief look at the data on this subject.
Different Sized Brains: Dr Simon Levy rocked the medical world in 1991 when he presented evidence that homosexuals had a different sized hypothalamus (part of the brain) than did heterosexuals. But his research was very faulty. He compared the size of the hypothalamus of men who had died of AIDS to those who had died of other means and found those with AIDS had a smaller hypothalamus. But Dr. Levy assumed ALL those who died of AIDS were homosexual and all of those who died of other means were heterosexual. He had no data to support these assumptions. Secondly, he could not answer the question of whether or not the AIDS disease could have affected the size of the hypothalamus – a very real possibility since AIDS has devastating affects upon the entire body. The obvious question, “Did AIDS cause the smaller hypothalamus or was the smaller hypothalamus genetic and a cause homosexuality?” was never answered or proven. It should also be noted that Dr. Levy is himself a committed gay activist diligently looking for physical evidence causing homosexuality. Undoubtedly, his personal bias greatly affected his research techniques in this case.
Identical Twins: In 1991, psychologist Michael Baily and psychiatrist Richard Pillard surveyed homosexual men about their brothers, and found that of homosexuals who had identical twin brothers, 52 percent of those twins were also homosexual. 22 percent of those who had fraternal twins said that their twin was gay, and only eleven percent of those who had adopted siblings said that their adopted brothers were also homosexual. The figure with twins was far higher than the percentage of homosexuals in the general population, thus leading them to conclude that this is evidence of a genetic link. However, there are serious problems with this study and its conclusions. For instance, most psychologists who don’t believe homosexuality is caused by genetics do believe that it is highly influenced by a person’s environment (family upbringing, etc.). The twins in these studies were all raised in the same home by the same parents, which allows for no control group (i.e. there was no evidence that twins separated at birth had a higher rate of homosexuality than the general populace).
Secondly, if homosexuality is caused by genetics, why were not 100% of the identical twins also homosexual? They had identical genes, but only half the brothers were homosexual. Obviously, there must be other factors leading to their homosexuality.
“You are being intolerant.”
To be tolerant means that you accept a person even though you disagree with what he believes, says or does; you tolerate something you disagree with out of respect for the person holding those views. However, the word is being redefined in our day to mean that you not only respect the person, but that you accept his beliefs, ideas and behavioral choices as being just as legitimate as your own. Thus, to believe that someone is wrong is often called judgmental, bigoted and intolerant.
Everyone has some things they think are unacceptable – or intolerable. Tolerance is only a virtue if what you tolerate really is a matter of opinion and not a matter of right and wrong. It may a virtue to tolerate a different political view or someone’s irritating habits, but certainly it is not a virtue to be tolerant of murder, theft, rape, child molesting, etc. If a homosexual behavior is wrong, sinful and dangerous, it is no virtue to tolerate it.
We must also distinguish between saying a behavior is wrong and what action should be taken because in regards to the wrong behavior. Many assume a belief that homosexual behavior is wrong implies that you are calling for strict laws forbidding it. However, people should be able to discuss the morality of a behavior separately from the issue of what government should or shouldn’t do about it.
“You are being judgmental.”
Actually, we are only agreeing with what God tells us in the Bible. We are not the judge, God is. God has told us exactly how He will judge us and is very clear in explaining to us what is right and what is wrong.
Actually, all people make judgments that some things are right or wrong. The key issue is what standard we use to make those judgments. Many people simply follow their own feelings or experiences in judging something to be right or wrong. As Christians, we use the Bible as our ultimate authority when it comes to discerning what is right and what is wrong. In so doing, we are not judging, but simply agreeing with the judgment of God.
“You are preaching hate.”
Although there are undoubtedly some who are very hateful toward homosexuals, it is not hate to urge them to forsake this dangerous and sinful life-style. It is not loving to stand by and affirm someone in a destructive way of life. Love gets involved and seeks to lead people to a better way.
We must also not think it is “hate” simply because we disagree. Honest people can disagree strongly and yet do so from the best of motives. Labeling someone as hateful simply because they don’t agree with you is a personal attack the clouds the real issues being discussed.
At the same time, we must realize that many homosexuals have been mistreated and feel as if they are hated. As Christians, we must be sensitive to past experiences and then go the extra mile in showing them love and compassion. Our faith is to be known for its love and we must live, act and speak in such a way that we could never be fairly accused of hate.
“It’s people like you who drive gay teenagers to commit suicide.”
Actually, most people commit suicide when they have lost hope that life can get better. Whether it be a divorce, financial ruin, loneliness or some other problem, when a person concludes that they will never improve their situation they sometimes conclude they might as well end it all.
The Christian message is a message of hope and love. We tell the homosexual that they can come to Jesus, be forgiven and become a new person. (There will be more on overcoming homosexuality in a later section.) If they do not like being a homosexual, there is another way – a way out.
Compare this with the message of gay activists. Their message (supported by many psychologists, counselors, teachers, politicians and media figures) is that a homosexual is born gay, they can’t ever change and they might as well learn to accept themselves as gay. Such a message condemns an unhappy homosexual to a dreaded future where real change is impossible and robs them of any hope they may have of leading a heterosexual life.
