Confused

Someone here is confused. It's either me ... or the pope. Or, perhaps, both. Yesterday the pope declared (to a reporter) that criminalizing homosexuality is a sin. Do you get that? It is a sin to criminalize what the pope regards as a sin. So I'm confused because it seems as if the pope is confused.

Without defending or opposing the criminalization of a sexual behavior (I oppose the use of the term "homosexuality" as it is exercised today as a "born this way" condition, an identity by birth, a condition without choices), let's think through the pope's position: It is a sin to criminalize sins. Now, we routinely criminalize acts such as murder, theft, rape ... all sorts of sins. The pope apparently doesn't object. But his logic is, "Persons with homosexual tendencies are children of God. God loves them." Now, Mr. Pope, you and I agree (to a point) on this. I don't go full-on "children" since Scripture describes a special class of "children" -- the adopted -- who are not in the same category as "children" -- the created. But God loved the world in this way -- He sent His only Son so that whoever believed on Him would not perish. In that sense, God loves them. Beyond that, we all agree (or, at least, we all should agree) that God loves sinners (Rom 5:8). The pope and I agree to that point. Does that mean, then, that we cannot criminalize the behavior of those whom God loves? That doesn't make any sense at all since God Himself did it. (See, for instance, Exo 20:1-17.) Since God criminalizes sinful behavior, can we humans classify that as sin? There are reasons to criminalize some moral issues and not others, just as there is a need to criminalize some purely practical things (like speeding laws) and not others. But "God loves them" is not a reason not to pass laws on a sin issue.

It is, of course, the product of confusion. We get confused by the term "homosexuality" thinking that is an innate condition over which we have no choice in our actions and any such choices are, therefore, good. God disagrees. We get confused by the term "love" thinking that it cannot include rules or judgment. God disagrees. We get confused by the concept of "law" thinking that it is a human endeavor aimed at making better people. God disagrees (Rom 3:20). And Scripture is abundantly clear that "antichrists" (1 John 2:18) will come "out from us" (1 John 2:19) as a demonstration that "they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us" (1 John 2:19). So let's not allow ourselves to be deceived ... as is our tendency (Jer 17:9).