Dear Susan: Why Are Anti-Gay Christians REALLY So Afraid?

When you talk to a non-affirming Christian, do you ever wonder why they seem so passionate about the gay “issue” – why it seems to mean so much to them? Most don’t have a family member who is LGBTQ, they ignore other “sins” – so what is the big deal?

The answer is that they are afraid. Terrified to be precise. Of what, gays? Nope. They are afraid of change. But why??

One of my readers wonders the same thing, and I look forward to answering it today.

I write Dear Susan posts most every Friday. Sometimes they are poignant, sometimes thought-provoking, sometimes tender, sometimes funny… but hopefully always worth the read.

Dear Susan,

I have a question, why are the anti-gay, non-affirming Christians so afraid of change? I have heard all their arguments, but why are they REALLY so afraid?  I mean, how are they affected by how I live my life?

Gay Christian

Dear Gay Christian,

Great question. Non-affirming Christians are afraid of you living out your LGBTQ life, because it takes a foundation piece out of their highly polished, veneered, well-manicured worldview. To take out this piece on homosexuality threatens the world as they have put it together.

It has everything to do with them and nothing to do with you – which is sad, because the consequences have everything to do with you, and nothing to do with them.

If they can box-in your freedom, they can keep their worldview intact. Their worldview is make-believe – it’s about a world of reduced-risk, about putting the monsters of randomness and danger in the closet (ha), and shutting the door tight.

You are a casualty of that need to seal up the world in a ziplock bag. I hope you can you see that (how much it DOESN’T have to do with you).

Also, it is often about identifying a group of “others” as somehow “less than,” to feel better about oneself. This comes from a lack of understanding of the fullness and completeness of God’s love. (That love is what we should be teaching every Sunday morning, hm?)

To invalidate LGBTQ people because it jeopardizes their worldview is terribly selfish. And to do so “in Jesus name” is absolutely unBiblical and unChristlike.

Anyone claiming the name “Christian” really needs to open up their box and focus on their own fear and their own relationship with God – not others.

I wish all of this were not so. I have seen the pain in my own gay children, I have seen it in countless LGBTQ and their families, and I hear it in your words. I’m sorry for your pain, and I look forward to better days ahead!

– Susan