Hate or Fear

I've been told, in this whole "gay rights" and "same-sex marriage" debate, that the reason we Christians are opposed to homosexual behavior in general and "same-sex marriage" in particular is likely two-fold. The less charitable reason is that we hate. If we don't hate, we at least promote hate, and, in the end, what's the difference? The more charitable reason is that we're scared. That, it seems, are our only two options. Now, I've never actually been told to my face that the reasons I hold the positions I do is either hate or fear, so I've never been able to ask more about it. Since hate isn't part of my structure, I dismiss it out of hand. But what is it that I'm supposed to fear?

I decided not to approach this from the usual direction. You know the usual direction. "I know they're wrong. Now, let's figure out how." I decided, instead, to ask, "What if they're right? Of what would I be afraid?" And I started examining the question from that angle. What is it about the questions of homosexual behavior and "same-sex marriage" that would frighten me in some way?

Well, there is the suggestion, perhaps, that my beliefs are threatened. That, of course, is nonsense. Denial of the truth doesn't make it untrue any more than affirmation of a falsehood makes it true. My beliefs stand on their own. If they are true, they will remain true regardless of who is in agreement. And if they're not true, why would I want to keep them? Of course, I have spent a great deal of time examining the possibility that they're not true and come to the conclusion that they are, so I'm back to the nonsense position. If society determines that Christianity is false and homosexual behavior is good, it won't change the truth and I don't have anything to fear there.

What about the possibility that, just as homosexuality was in the closet and came out, Christianity might need to go into the closet? I don't think that's an unreasonable possibility, given the current trends. Too many places are declaring Christianity "hate speech" and suggesting that religion is dangerous while practices like same-sex couples which used to be considered wrong are coming into a position of acceptability. Is that something I should fear? Well, if it is, I wasn't paying attention to the Bible that I hold to be true. In it, I am promised that the world will hate people who love Jesus. I'm promised that persecution results in benefits for the believer. Overall, I'm guaranteed that God works all things together for good for those who love God. No, that can't be a problem ... unless I'm simply ignoring the Instruction Manual I claim to believe.

So what is it I might be afraid of? Well, the truth is that there is some fear involved. I'm not afraid that the truth will be falsified. I'm not afraid that there might be consequences to my believing the truth. There is, however, some fear. I'm afraid that the truth, while remaining the truth, might get obscured. When the truth becomes obscured, it becomes less visible. When it becomes less visible, fewer people will notice it. And the truth here that is in danger of becoming obscured is the very Gospel. So if the Gospel gets obscured, while still being true and still being good news, it could very well be missed. And if people who badly need this Gospel end up missing it because they have obscured it, that would be catastrophic for them. I wouldn't want that to happen to people.

So, where am I now? Well, I still believe that homosexual behavior is undoubtedly immoral. That shouldn't bother people. I believe that theft, adultery, murder, and all sorts of things are immoral. Believing something is immoral is not the equivalent of hate ... unless you demand that everyone hates a thief, adulterer, murderer, and so on. I don't. And I still believe that logic dictates that calling the relationship between two people of the same gender "marriage" is a contradiction -- a logical contradiction. It's not even a moral consideration. It's not hate; it's called "thinking" (often used in place of "feeling" or "guessing"). And if there are negative consequences for these things, I suppose I have no choice but to accept them. It would be disappointing, with all the yelling about "tolerance" and "equal rights" in a country founded on freedom, to find that my views are not allowed, but if that's the way it is, I really have no choice but to accept it, right? I mean, my denial of the truth doesn't change it any more than their denial would change it. No, all I'm left with is a deep and abiding concern for those people who, in their rush to gain what they perceive to be their "rights", end up obscuring the only hope they really have available. That, I suppose, could be classified as fear. I would have to guess, however, that this isn't the fear they have in mind.