Two Good Approaches

There is an outstanding op-ed piece in the 7/18 edition of the Los Angeles Times (free registration required) written by Michael McGough that addresses two ways that gay people and their advocates can make points against the condemnation the Religious Right is so determined to judge them with.

First, there is more than one way to interpret scripture, as I have pointed out on this blog before. He refers to a great website for this exercise, www.truthsetfree.net, reserched by Justin R. Cannon, a student at Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana.

McGough also points out another approach, "There is an alternative to passage-by-passage literal arguments — one that calls for the courageous assertion that Scripture can be reinterpreted.....on the basis of the lived experience of Christians, guided by the Holy Spirit."

Regarding the "clobber passages" that are often used to support the arguement that homosexuality is a sin, McGough concludes, "however you read them, they were never meant to be the end of the lesson."

Wise words indeed! I strongly recommend you take time to read the entire editorial.

Gay Children

I've been corresponding with Bill Ware, who writes a blog titled Ware Farms. Bill writes about gay issues from a perspective consistent with his background in psychology.

I am linking to a piece he wrote about the trial of the man in Tampa who, in trying to "toughen up" his son, wound up beating him to death. In it he reprints a heartfelt letter he wrote to a local newspaper about raising gay children with love and understanding, not the hate and condemnation the religious right preaches. It is very much worth reading.