{"id":10228,"date":"2016-02-02T23:22:52","date_gmt":"2016-02-03T03:22:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/evetushnet\/?p=10228"},"modified":"2016-02-02T23:22:52","modified_gmt":"2016-02-03T03:22:52","slug":"meet-the-gay-christians-who-are-swearing-off-sex-two-dudes-you-may-already-know-and-one-you-might-not","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/evetushnet\/2016\/02\/meet-the-gay-christians-who-are-swearing-off-sex-two-dudes-you-may-already-know-and-one-you-might-not.html","title":{"rendered":"“Meet the Gay Christians Who Are Swearing Off Sex”: Two Dudes You May Already Know And One You Might Not"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Mic.com quotes Ron Belgau and Wesley Hill, who may already be familiar to my readers; but to me the most poignant and powerful lines were from Seth Crocker, whom I\u2019ve read now and then but tbh haven\u2019t followed as closely:<\/p>\n

\n

Seth Crocker, 28, is also a celibate gay Christian. A blogger for Building Bridges in War Zones<\/a>, Crocker referred to his decision to abstain from sex as a \u201cpersonal thing,\u201d which stems from his belief that being in a relationship with God means making difficult sacrifices.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about humility\u2014I feel like this is what God teaches in scripture, but I could be wrong,\u201d Crocker said. \u201cAt the same time, I understand how hard [celibacy] is\u2014how it can feel isolating and lonely\u2014and I can understand why someone would pursue a relationship with someone of the same sex\u2014to have that love and companionship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crocker chose to become celibate after entering Exodus International<\/a>, a now-defunct nonprofit aimed at converting gay men to heterosexuality, during his senior year of college. \u201cI didn\u2019t understand how I could be gay and be in a relationship with God,\u201d he said of his decision to enter the ex-gay movement. \u201cI felt like as long as I was pursuing straightness, God would make me OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

After Exodus\u2019 plan for change didn\u2019t work, Crocker left the ex-gay movement when he was 22. He felt intense anger at the religion he grew up in. \u201cI was mad at God,\u201d he said. \u201cI thought God failed me.\u201d A year later, Crocker decided to become celibate.<\/p>\n

What resonated with Crocker about celibacy was that it offered a rare positive outlook for those who might be struggling with their sexuality.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s quite liberating when you can look past that to see what the Gospel is actually saying\u2014that we\u2019re called to be like Christ, who did not have a significant relationship with another human being,\u201d Crocker said. \u201cIt\u2019s an amazing model of what we can do. It can be a really fulfilling life when we feel called to something outside of ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

more<\/a> (lol Christ had plenty of \u201csignificant relationships\u201d! Mary, John, Joseph, John the Baptist, and like a minimum of ten other disciples would all like to have a word\u2026 but no, I mean I know what he means, and \u201cvirgin = no significant relationships with other humans\u201d is probably the ultimate Freudian slip)<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mic.com quotes Ron Belgau and Wesley Hill, who may already be familiar to my readers; but to me the most poignant and powerful lines were from Seth Crocker, whom I\u2019ve read now and then but tbh haven\u2019t followed as closely: Seth Crocker, 28, is also a celibate gay Christian. A blogger for Building Bridges in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1071,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,7],"tags":[1264,11,30,372,550,73],"class_list":["post-10228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-gay-catholic-whatnot","category-mackerel-snapping","tag-gay-catholic-whatnot","tag-his-banner-over-me-was-love","tag-mackerel-snapping-2","tag-ron-belgau","tag-seth-crocker","tag-wesley-hill"],"yoast_head":"\n"Meet the Gay Christians Who Are Swearing Off Sex": Two Dudes You May Already Know And One You Might Not<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Mic.com quotes Ron Belgau and Wesley Hill, who may already be familiar to my readers; but to me the most poignant and powerful lines were from Seth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/evetushnet\/2016\/02\/meet-the-gay-christians-who-are-swearing-off-sex-two-dudes-you-may-already-know-and-one-you-might-not.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\""Meet the Gay Christians Who Are Swearing Off Sex": Two Dudes You May Already Know And One You Might Not\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Mic.com quotes Ron Belgau and Wesley Hill, who may already be familiar to my readers; 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