Gayfinland: gay, coming out, gay youth, gay relationships, gay issues, politics, religion, products

Answers to Some of Your Questions (continued)

I have serious concerns about the way people use the Bible to their own bent regarding homosexuality.

The Bible has been used to justify oppression, hatred, and discrimination against people of colour, certain ethnic groups, the poor, women, people of other religions, and people with disabilities in the not too distant past. It is interesting that supposed Christians would do things so against the teachings of Christianity.
If homosexuality were such a critical issue in the Bible, why was there not a commandment saying something like "thou shalt not have sexual relationships with people of the same sex."
I do not recall reading ANYWHERE in the Bible that hatred, cruelty, and discrimination are positive things or things to display when one group doesn't subscribe to another group's practices, beliefs, etc.
Jesus did not seem to have anything to say about homosexuality. If homosexuality were as important as people seem to think, why was Jesus not extremely concerned and using his teachings to ensure that people would avoid such a thing?
With all of the planets, stars, possibly life forms, and issues in the universe, WHY would God be so concerned about the sex lives of a minority of one particular species on one small planet?
Where anything remotely having to do with homosexuality is brought up in the Bible, there are usually other social problems at issue, such as lust, idol worship, rape, and inhospitality. In other words, it cannot be said that the Bible condemns loving homosexual relationships between two true homosexual people.
During Biblical times, mortality and morbidity were quite high and life expectancy was quite low. I will buy the argument that people of Biblical times were concerned about continuing bloodlines, teachings, and beliefs through their children. In today's world, however, mortality and morbidity in developed countries are very low and the life expectancy quite high. Perhaps people were created homosexual to enhance society without necessarily procreating.
(Here's my favourite) I believe Mark 12:28-31 states that we must "Love the Lord [our] God with all [our] heart and all [our] soul and all [our] mind and strength" and to "Love [our] neighbour as [ourself]" and that "This is the ultimate commandment and anything considered to be sin does not adhere to it." (Sounds like "LOVE IS NEVER WRONG" to me.)

It seems to me that homophobia and heterosexism are being displayed and taught by a certain subpopulation that is unhappy because traditional gender roles and patriarchal structures are not holding much water anymore. This would hold with the fact that white, affluent males who used to be in power (and used to be the only people who could vote) used Biblical teachings to oppress people of colour, the poor, and women.
Read what religious leaders have to say about homosexuality.

Fundamentalist Religions

I am afraid of the fact that fundamentalist religions teach people not to think for themselves and, instead, have a "do as we do, think as we think" philosophy. To neither think nor use critical judgment and problem-solving based on your own experience is to be somewhat subhuman. I wonder if that's what happened during the time of Nazi Germany...
"Fundamentalism: The doctrine that there is an absolutely powerful, infinitely knowledgeable, universe-spanning entity that is deeply and personally concerned about my sex life."
--Unknown
See also Homosexuality and the Bible

The Disney Boycott

The Disney boycott seems hysterical to me. I have read and listened to "justifications" for it and have concluded that the arguments are either based on (1) a fear of "contaminating" our pure heterosexual society, (2) outdated religious teachings/dogma, and/or (3) stereotypes and ignorance. Although arguments based on these things should be considered, they should not be used to the exclusion of logic and empirical understanding. If I had children, I would feel better about bringing them to Disney theme parks now since judgmental, bigoted, ignorant people would not be there in such large numbers.
See also Homosexuality and the Bible