There is an important irony here. Many
in the gay community have been pushing for greater monitoring of
bullying in our schools; of which I fully support. In fact, I have
featured some stories on my blog about kids who were mercilessly
teased and then committed suicide. That happened to me back in
grade-school. I got called “fag” a lot. I forgot what that felt
like. Now, the Lords is reminding me. My heart goes out to children
who get kicked around by ignorant classmates. But I also have a
problem with the gay agenda which puts children at risk by making
coming-out look easy; even necessary. Although some of my brothers
and sisters in the gay community have written comments that disagree
with my positions, they are still courteous and respectful. But I am
shamed that the majority have been profanity laced and hate filled.
This kind-of supports what I write about in my upcoming book (I am having it self-published,) that
a narcotic group mentality often takes over those that enter the gay
life; I was one of them. We intermediately attack anyone who
disagrees with us, rather than listening to what they have to say.
But remember, words have power. The Lord has armored me and I love to
take arrows for him. But some in this world may not have that Faith.
God bless you all.
Joseph Sciambra: How Our Lord Jesus Christ Saved Me From Homosexuality, Pornography, and the Occult
There is a growing phenomenon where the bigots are trying to say they should not be subject to ridicule. Imagine Hilter saying "you might disagree with me, but please don't be mean to me."
ReplyDeleteIt is strange when the most intolerant people ask for tolerance of their views: "I will speak disparagingly about others, but please don't speak disparagingly about me."
Well said !!!
DeleteHi Joseph,
ReplyDeleteI've been looking over your posts for the past few days, and as an openly gay man in his early 20s who has been with his long-term partner nearly 6 years, I felt compelled to write something to you.
I was raised in a very, very strict Christian household,the youngest child, and aware from the age of about 7 or 8 that I was gay. And I mean gay, no attraction to girls whatsoever. And I hated myself for it.
Growing up and going to school, I dated girls to keep my cover but despite this, people still suspected I was gay and called me fag and battyman, to my face and behind my back.
I no longer go to church or speak to many people from my 'Church family'. I came out at 17 to a small group of church friends, who unanimously rejected me. It was as if I was dead to them.
But instead of living in shame as they would have hoped, I've instead gone on to make a happy, successful life for myself where I am very openly gay with everyone at work and in my inner circle. I pray to God as I used to, I try to treat others how I would want to be treated and I try to grow as a person from day to day.
Although I didn't know it at the time, I believe God (in whose image I have been made) allowed me to go through those things because he knew I was strong enough to take it, but also because he wanted me to be a disciple to others, gay and straight.
To prove that a belief in eternal life and gay love are not mutually exclusive. To go out there and offer friendship to those the church has wrongfully accepted, by allowing them to be all their beautiful gay selves can be without feeling shunned by God.
I disagree with all the hateful comments that have been written about, as no one deserves to be treated that way. If you have gone through the things you mentioned in previous posts, then it seems that there are some men and women who have abused, rejected and mistreated you.
But I want you to know that gay men like me are out there, embracing our sexuality and fighting the good fight without sacrificing our faith. The gay community (actually, I'm going to say communities, as we're far too rich and diverse to fit under one umbrella, rainbow-coloured or not) are full of such people.
I suspect that you may not have heard this enough in life, but on behalf of the gay community, we love you. Regardless of what you write on here. It's clear that you are a victim of the same relentless, persistent homophobia that has plagued society for centuries. Your struggles are a reminder that even in later life, it's possible to be overwhelmed by homophobia, a reminder of how easy it is to go back into the closet once you've vacated it. Far harder to live in the world openly gay with the weight of the world on your shoulders.
But it's fundamental that we come out! It's essential that we don't crush our potential. And I want you to know that one day, when you are ready to return to the gay communities of the world, you will find us there welcoming you with open arms. We'll be there, ready to remind you how special you are and that God made you as you are, and no person on the Earth has the right to take that from you.
We look forward to welcoming you back and wiping away your tears, our long lost prodigal brother.
Best wishes :-)
Thank you for the heart-felt post. I am sorry that some so-called “Christians” rejected you. But they are not God, nor do they represent Him. I go into this much deeper in my book, but from my own experiences, what you describe as a rather staid homosexual existence I found to be very rare indeed. Now, I do understand that I lived in the homosexual mecca of San Francisco, and there are other gay men living in other areas of the country, but I often felt that San Francisco truly represented a microcosm of the gay experience. And it was completely saturated in sex. This was even the case when I “came-out” at the age of 19 in the late-80s, during the near height of the AIDS crisis. I do realize that some men are promiscuous early on and then settle down later, but some guys never survive those early years or are unable to stop their destructive life. I was one. I reach out to these men. Presently, I have never been so happy. But I often think of my brothers still enslaved to their passions, and that is why I speak out. God bless you always.
DeleteYou wrote these lies and you wonder why people are upset? How fan you pretend to be.a Christian?
ReplyDelete"As a former gay rights activist, I can completely concur with his supposition. I will explore this further in my book; but Gay culture and Nazi ideology are very similar in that they: idolize the supremely masculine male, have a strident adherence to their own ideology, and an extreme hatred for all those who disagree with them."
You do not love the gay community and you obviously are not a Christian. You are a hypocrite.
"But I also have a problem with the gay agenda which puts children at risk by making coming-out look easy; even necessary."
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with you about this, Joseph. Those children who committed suicide couldn't possibly know for a fact what their true sexuality was, being children they didn't have enough life experience to make such a determination. And if they didn't know, then how would the bullies themselves know that they were gay? Bullying is not concerned with actual facts; it's all about persecuting someone whom the bullies want to pick on for whatever reason. The reason that these poor kids committed suicide would most likely be because of the persecution and bullying itself (for being gay), and not so much about whether or not they're actually gay. There's a difference between the two and I think that it's important to be clear about this difference. For the sake of the kids, so that they didn't die in vain or to simply be hijacked for a group's particular agenda. Thanks Joseph for your thoughts on this.