Over the years, anti-LGBTQIA+ organizations are trying to look like they softened their attitudes towards us. They write articles encouraging people to “be kind” and follow Christ’s example of loving everyone. Sometimes they’ll even admit to the history of bigotry churches have been guilty of. Sounds great, right? But then I looked at the language these articles use. And at the bottom of things, there’s no real change. Let me show you.
Biblical? Love?
This article from 2021 that appears in the Liberty University student paper had this to say:
“CHRISTIANS NEED TO BE GROUNDED IN BIBLICAL LOVE…”
Okay, grounded in Biblical love. What does that look like? Well…
“The church should stand in opposition to any sin, and the acceptance of homosexuality stands as the latest opponent of Christianity in the culture war for society.”
“The movement infiltrated the pivotal facets of civilization, including the entertainment industry, educational system, and government.”
“Above all else, the Bible commands Christians to love others — even LGBTQ+ members — as Christ loves us.” Ah. Even LGBTQ+ members. As if somehow we’re harder to love. And in this entire article, we’re some sort of infiltrating movement. Not people at all. And definitely not anyone they would know.
Medicalizing Us
The Christian Post had a 2011 article called “How Are Christians to treat homosexuals?”
Homosexuals. I noticed this word a lot. They consistently use this old, medicalized, dehumanizing word. The writer dangles the promise of understanding: “Treating other people as we would like to be treated is a familiar rule for Christians found in the Bible. So, why is it so confusing in today’s world as to how Christians should treat those who consider themselves homosexual?”
Only a few sentences later:
“They argue there is nothing wrong with homosexual behavior and that anyone who thinks of it as sin is “intolerant” and guilty of a hate crime. Moreover, many Christians play into those charges by focusing on the sinner, not the sin.” And then the fake victim whining starts.
“Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), asserts that at the heart of the gay campaign for marriage equality is a desire to oppress religious people. Brown wrote an article to his readers this week arguing that gay citizens are actually treating religious leaders and opponents to gay marriage as second-class citizens.” And the final clincher:
“JoHannah Reardon writes in an article published in Christianity Today this week that Christians are commanded to love each other no matter what path they take in life. “That doesn’t mean we excuse sinful behavior, but it does mean we listen, understand, and sacrifice our own comfort and preconceived ideas to represent Christ well..” (emphasis mine)
Ah, the great sacrifice of trying to represent Christ to “those people”. We’re SO lucky they’re willing to be uncomfortable. *sarcasm*
https://www.christianpost.com/news/how-are-christians-to-treat-homosexuals.html
Far right bigots are the “real victims”
The Billy Graham Association went a slightly different route with their 2021 article. They wrapped their recommendations around advice from an ex-gay man. It’s also got a bit of an odd opening:
“The Pew Research Center shared last year that the majority of people who approved of homosexual lifestyles didn’t consider religion important in their daily lives. Later in 2020, a separate report found that nearly half of adults identifying as LGBT claim to be religious.”
Hmmm. We “claim” to be religious. And people who are our allies aren’t into religion. That’s a soft way of implying that we’re a godless lot.
“Somewhere in the last decade, ‘I disagree with you.’ came to mean ‘I hate you.’ … Although we are not forced to bow down to a golden image, we are pressured to bow down to the great god of Public Opinion.” They let the ex-gay man say this stuff. This is where they’re smarter than most of the groups who write these articles. This way they can’t be bigoted. They’re just letting the person with lived experience speak their truth.
“Consider these 5 Biblical truths as you minister to your LGBTQ loved ones: No matter what identity a person chooses, that individual was created in the image of God. Genesis 1:27 is very clear.” God loves you, even when you’re choosing this sin. *annoyed sigh*
“Cook reminds his readers, there are gay pride parades but not gossip pride parades.”
I can’t even.
“Proclaiming Christ, even in love, is counter-cultural. Expect backlash, particularly from a society that continually normalizes and promotes all sexual sin via media platforms. LGBTQ characters account for 9.1 percent of series regular characters on scripted broadcasts..”
They’re constantly lying about being “punished” for their beliefs. And this idea that America loves LGBTQIA+ people so completely is ridiculous.
WWJD? Be Nice to People for a Reward!
This article starts off VERY promising.
“Loving those in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community means, in part, we do not condone acts of persecution against them—we do not excuse violence, injustice, or any behavior that brings harm. Doing good to those in the LGBTQ community means we are proactive in aiding them in times of trouble.” They move to talking about the parable of the Good Samaritan as an analogy for helping us.
“As far as the Samaritan in the parable knew, the Jew he rescued might well have cursed and insulted him the day before. The man lying beaten and bloody in the ditch would have expected no help from the Samaritan, separated as they were socially, politically, and religiously. The point of the parable cannot be overstated. The Samaritan had every reason to think the Jewish man hated him, yet he showed love, and Jesus explicitly said that we are to “go and do likewise”
I mean, this is actually a pretty good parallel to the current situation between our communities and the far right. I’m impressed. And then, slowly, things start to slip.
“Whether or not sin is involved is likewise immaterial. Jesus rescued an adulterous woman from the persecution of a mob without condoning her sin. To show compassion is not the same as endorsing a person’s lifestyle.”
“Love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” (emphasis mine)
And there we are. Yes, the author is quoting Scripture. But no one forced them to choose those verses. There’s a reason they did it, even if it was just subconscious. *sigh* And of course, be kind with YOUR reward in mind. Isn’t that what Jesus said?
https://www.gotquestions.org/LGBTQ-persecution.html
There’s A Small Light
But I don’t want to leave us completely without hope. I read an article in Baptist News Global from this past April. It’s called “Let’s Show Christian Kindness to LGBTQ People and Their Advocates”. He opens the article with a story.
He talked to a young gay student who was kicked out of his home. This student had only ever heard hateful things about LGBTQ people from religious folks. So this professor mostly listened to him, and pointed him to some resources he knew were non-judgmental. Then:
“But a few days later, I was summoned by a university administrator to give an account of my meeting with this gay student. When I related what I had done — listen to his story and suggest some helpful reading material — I seemed to be cleared of wrong-doing. The administrator explained, however: “If you had told him that homosexuality was OK, we would have a problem.” The ominous implication was that I would be reprimanded, and possibly might even lose my job, despite my tenured position as full professor.”
The next paragraph:
“There have been public recriminations, sermonic finger-pointing, misinterpretations or selective reading of Scripture, ineffective and even cruel conversion therapy of the young, discriminatory policies at churches and church-related schools and universities, the outing of LGBTQ persons without their consent and the denial of who these persons truly are, as beloved creations of God.”
I started blinking. Did this guy actually get it? I read on.
“In what ways are some Christians dishonest and unkind about their LGBTQ neighbors?
First, they are dishonest about who these people are. Second, they are dishonest concerning the gay agenda. Rather than understand that LGBTQ persons are organizing and advocating for basic human rights, for equality of opportunities, and acknowledgment as fellow Americans, some Christians fear there is an “agenda” that is nefarious…Third, they are dishonest about what it feels like to be so socially isolated…Fourth, and much more damaging, some Christians are dishonest about their own unwillingness to acknowledge the incredible harm of judgmentalism…Finally, some Christians are dishonest concerning how Jesus would respond to the LGBTQ community.“
“The problem, perhaps, is that Christians know exactly how Jesus would respond, but they are not courageous enough to follow in his footsteps.”
Damn. Okay. 🙂 This article is really good. No quotation marks around words like “Christian” to mock our beliefs. No use of “homosexual” to dehumanize us. The author makes a lot of good points. If you want to read the rest of it, here’s the link:
I read more articles and found the same basic problems over and over again. If I had included all of them, this post would have been as long as a CVS receipt. Sadly, even though it’s 2023, my recommendation is to pay close attention to the words “loving Christians” are using to talk about us. We still can’t let our guard down.
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