Pastor Joel Osteen, the famous Texas Evangelical megachurch televangelist, told Fox News that he doesn’t hate gay people, but given the way he interprets his Bible, he is forced to believe that homosexuality is a sin — but that doesn’t mean he is a “gay hater” or a “gay basher.” That said, Osteen claims he doesn’t think anyone should be discriminated against, but marriage can only be one-man, one-woman.
“‘I believe the Scripture says that being gay is a sin,’ the pastor of Houston’s Lakewood Church told host Chris Wallace on ‘Fox New Sunday’ when asked to clarify his position on the issue,” The Daily Caller reports:
“But, you know, every time I say that, Chris, I get people say, ‘Well, you are a gay hater and you’re a gay basher.’ I’m not. I don’t — I don’t dislike anybody. Gays are some of the nicest, kindest, most loving people in the world. But my faith is based on what I believe the Scripture says and that’s the way I read the Scripture.”
Osteen added that certain rights and privileges should be afforded to gay couples, but he stopped short of saying that gays should have the right to marry.
“I think we shouldn’t discriminate against anybody,” he said.
“So, I think — yes, I don’t think there is an issue where somebody couldn’t go visit a gay loved one in the hospital. I don’t think that’s right. They love each other. So, I think there should be some. I’m not for gay marriage, but I’m not for discriminating against people.”
Last year, Joel Osteen suggested that homosexuals are not whole persons, and that if they are loved enough they will stop being gay, and that he didn’t believe homosexuality is “God’s best” for a person’s life.
Just to be clear, using the Bible to discriminate against gay people is discrimination. The same excuses were used for centuries when the topic was interracial marriage: “the Bible says.”
America is not a society that looks to the Bible for our laws — we are a secular society that is comprised of people of faith and people who are not of faith. And there are a great many in both camps who believe in marriage equality. In fact, in poll after poll after poll for several years now, the majority of Americans support same-sex marriage equality.
Pastor Joel Osteen can take his anti-gay, anti-equality message wherever he likes, but the vast majority of Americans do not agree with him. In time, he will be viewed as his forefathers today are viewed. The question is, will he change or will he be relegated to the dustbins of history?
Friends:
We invite you to sign up for our new mailing list, and subscribe to The New Civil Rights Movement via email or RSS.
Also, please like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter!
{ 10 comments }
I don't hate Joel, either. I just think he's one stupid fuck that doesn't deserve a dime since his blather is worthless bullshit
Is there any form of anti-gay bigotry any more condescending and obnoxious than "hate the sin, love the sinner"?
Love the sanctimonious, hate their sanctimonious bullshit.
None of the few passage in the Bible that condemn certain forms of sex between people of the same gender shows any awareness of the orientation to which we now apply the terms "homosexual" and "gay." People wish to supress gays because we threaten their patriarchal worldview. They then read their own malaise with homosexuality into the Bible. While it is true that the Bible generally takes patriarchy as a given, it's narratives and insights often undercut patriarchal assumptions. The best line of debate is to assert that the Bible, in its general thrust, opposes all forms of domination, though there are many passages where the Bible falls short of its own highest insights and values. Ultimately, though, the fight against patriarchy will not be won through the succession of generations, not debate. To most young people in technologically advanced democracies, the notion that the feminine is of less worth than, and needs to be dominated by, the masculine is passe' and obnoxious. As patriarchy wanes, so does homophobia. The best rhetoric for promoting that change is not debate, but simply, openly and unapologetically defying gender stereotypes. There is no shortcut.
We need to get the word out to religious communities that anti-gay people are twisting God's words to suit their agenda.
Homosexuality is not a sin. The Bible is constantly being taken out of context to support anti-gay views. Scholars who have studied the Bible in context of the times and in relation to other passages have shown those passages (Leviticus, Corinthians, Romans, etc) have nothing to do with homosexuality. These passages often cherry-picked while ignoring the rest of the Bible. The sins theses passages are referring to are idolatry, Greek temple sex worship, prostitution, pederasty with teen boys, and rape, not homosexuality or two loving consenting adults.
http://www.soulfoodministry.org/docs/English/NotA… http://www.jesus21.com/content/sex/bible_homosexu… http://www.christchapel.com/reclaiming.html http://www.stjohnsmcc.org/new/BibleAbuse/Biblical… http://www.gaychristian101.com/ http://www.mccchurch.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=… http://www.wouldjesusdiscriminate.org/biblical_ev… http://www.soulforce.org/article/homosexuality-bi… http://www.goodhopemcc.org/spirituality/sexuality…
This is the perfect example of how anti-gay people change the bible's words for their anti-gay agenda.
Corinthians 6:9-11
Let us examine that very closely.
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate [malakoi], nor homosexual offenders [arsenokoites], nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God.
First of all, before we address this line, let us consider one thing. Supposedly taken from a 2000+ year old book, understand that the word "homosexual" was not coined until 1869 by Austrian-born novelist Karl-Maria Kertbeny. So how it happens to be included in a true reading of the particular biblical passage should make you ponder how accurate the interpretation actually is. So man changing the words of the Bible to conveniently spread their anti-gay agenda?
Absolutely.
Paul was attempting to educate the new Christians in Corinth as to what Godly living was all about. In verses 9-10, he listed ways of living that were not compatible with a Christ-centered life. In verse 11, Paul reminded them that they had been saved out of those destructive ways. There are two Greek words in I Corinthians 6:9, which sometimes are translated with a homosexual connotation.
First word, "malakoi" or "malakos" – it literally means soft or mushy; it can mean spineless, wishy-washy or without backbone. "Malakoi" was used four other times in the New Testament and it always meant "soft." The context of I Corinthians seems to imply a moral softness or decadence, a failure to stand up for what is right and godly. It is significant that for several hundred years there was no sexual connotation assigned to this word.
Second word, "arsenokoitai" or "arsenokoites" – it literally means, "males having sex." Early commentaries on I Corinthians related "arsenokoitai" to male temple prostitutes and to men having sex with boys. (Idolatrous prostitution and pedophilia are always wrong for those seeking to honor God.)
Homosexual relationships were known in the Greco-Roman culture of Paul's day. The Greek word commonly used in reference to adult male same sex partners was "arrenokoites." Paul did not use this word. Instead, he created his own, "arsenokoitai." If Paul had intended to condemn all adult male same sex partners, he would have used the common word for it.
For those of you claiming homosexuality is a "lifestyle", that is a false and ignorant statement. Homosexuality is not a choice. Just like you don't choose the color of your skin, you cannot choose whom you are sexually attracted to. Virtually all major psychological and medical experts agree that sexual orientation is NOT a choice. Most gay people will tell you its not a choice. Common sense will tell you its not a choice. While science is relatively new to studying homosexuality, studies tend to indicate that its biological.
http://www-news.uchicago.edu/releases/03/differen… http://www.newscientist.com/channel/sex/dn14146-g…
Gay, Straight Men's Brain Responses Differ http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,155990,00.htm… http://www.livescience.com/health/060224_gay_gene… http://www.springerlink.com/content/w27453600k586… http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2008/06…
There is overwhelming scientific evidence that homosexuality is not a choice. Sexual orientation is generally a biological trait that is determined pre-natally, although there is no one certain thing that explains all of the cases. "Nurture" may have some effect, but for the most part it is biological.
And it should also be noted that:
"It is worth noting that many medical and scientific organizations do believe it is impossible to change a person's sexual orientation and this is displayed in a statement by American Academy of Pediatrics, American Counseling Association, American Association of School Administrators, American Federation of Teachers, American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association, American School Health Association, Interfaith Alliance Foundation, National Association of School Psychologists, National Association of Social Workers, and National Education Association."
Children will not be harmed by gay marriage. Let's examine research and prove what anti-gays are saying wrong. Also note, that "children" are completely irrelevant to gay marriage, because that issue is about gay adoption, which is not related.
http://www.livescience.com/6073-children-raised-l…
"In general, kids in both heterosexual and lesbian households had similar levels of academic achievement, number of friends and overall well-being."
http://www.magneticfire.com/2010/02/19/1119/
"Goldberg’s new book is the first full-length analysis of the research on gay parenting, summarizing research data on the subject from the 1970s to the present day. The research is consistent in suggesting that the outcomes and well-being of children raised by gay and lesbian parents are no different than those of children raised by heterosexual parents."
http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20051012/…
"Studies from 1981 to 1994, including 260 children reared by either heterosexual mothers or same-sex mothers after divorce, found no differences in intelligence, type or prevalence of psychiatric disorders, self-esteem, well-being, peer relationships, couple relationships, or parental stress."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/1008…
"In a study published this month in the journal Demography, Rosenfeld concludes that children being raised by same-sex couples have nearly the same educational achievement as children raised by married heterosexual couples."
http://www.apa.org/pi/lgbt/resources/parenting.as…
"As this summary will show, the results of existing research comparing lesbian and gay parents to heterosexual parents and children of lesbian and gay parents to children of heterosexual parents are quite clear: Common stereotypes are not supported by the data."
There is no psychiatric, medical, or scientific basis for viewing homosexuality as pathological. In lay terms, there is no objective basis for viewing homosexuality as “sick” or "abnormal". Consequently, this means that homosexuality as a sexual orientation is normal and healthy. Increasingly, research shows hetreosexuality and homosexuality to be distant points on a spectrum of sexual orientation.
.
“Lawrence v. Texas” made the criminalization of homosexuality unconstitutional. There is no legal basis for homosexuality to be considered "wrong". Ever since “Lawrence v. Texas”, there has been a decreasing and shrinking legal basis for discrimination against homosexuals. “Don’t Ask / Don’t Tell” is gone. The “Defense of Marriage Act” is on the judicial ropes. Because of "Lawrence v. Texas" and "Loving v. Virginia", the constitutional acceptance of same-sex marriage is inevitable.
.
There is no absolute and no singular and no universal interpretation of the Bible.
.
There is no rational basis for opposing homosexuality. Without a rational basis, opposition to homosexuality is irrational and, therefore, is a prejudice. Being prejudiced is not being Christian.
The fact is that anyone who is gay is going straight to Hell like it or not. You cannot change God. This has happened over and over again and again throughout history (Noah's days when God destroyed the Earth and Sodom and Gomorrah). Gays have always been destroyed just like other sinners. They are no different. You must walk away from the sin of homosexuality and start living a life of pain and suffering and enduring while living the life that God chose for you if you want to be saved. Turn from your wicked sin now before you die and no longer have a choice. God WILL KILL YOU. Are you more powerful than God? If so lets see you challenge him tough guy. Read the Bible and learn truth. It goes this way… there is only one truth and that is God. For instance, in a car accident there is only one truth… only 1 thing that happened… but from human witnesses you could get 20 different stories on what just happened – even if there is a video of the accident happening. That is because humans are flawed. We cannot clearly see everything… We cannot clearly see truth. To know truth (about yourself and about all things) you must go to the person that created you… that is Jesus Christ. He taught everything in the Bible that is right and wrong. If you go against him… he will be forced to destroy you because you have chosen to be his enemy. See that? You choose your position now. Then death awaits you. If you do your best to follow Him, he will save you from death and give you eternal life but the choice He gives to you for your destiny.
Comments on this entry are closed.
{ 1 trackback }