Love is Not a Sin

It’s high time for me to come out of the closet. No, I’m not gay, but as a recovering conservative Christian, I’ve been too closeted in my support of LGBT rights. It’s not that I have not publicly supported the LGBT community, I have and have written many times about my frustrations with the way conservative Christians treat the topic of homosexuality. However, I’ve been too wishy-washy in attacking the idea that homosexuality is a sin. I’ve always waffled, saying I’m not sure if it is or not. I’ve been consistent in saying that even if homosexuality is a sin, it’s no different than any other sin and should not be singled out in a way that excludes LGBT people from following whatever faith they choose in whatever church they choose. I used to think that was very progressive of me, but I’ve grown to see that it really wasn’t. I’ve pondered the scriptures, I’ve studied the historical and cultural contexts involved in the mentions of homosexuality in the Bible, and I have done a lot of soul searching. So, I’m ready to come out of the closet to make a definitive statement: I do not believe homosexuality is a sin.

It would be perfectly fine to end this piece right there and let it stand on its own, but I’m going to give a few bullet points as to what brought me to this solidified belief. At the end, I’ll also share a song I wrote and recorded to accompany this piece.

• We are created in God’s image–ALL OF US.
• God’s plan is mysterious and God doesn’t make mistakes.
• Homosexuality is NOT A CHOICE. People are born the way they are born, you know, just as God created them.
• There are hundreds of laws in the old testament that conservative Christians ignore because they are the “old law” that Jesus replaced. They also write them off because they say society has changed. Yet, they continue to hold firm to the passage in Leviticus about homosexuality as if society hasn’t changed for that one.
• The sins referred to in Leviticus and in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah–where homosexuality is concerned–are related to lust and the abuse of children, not at all about a loving and committed same-sex relationship.
• Jesus never said a word about homosexuality.
• Jesus said there are two laws that stand above all others; love God with all you have and love your neighbors as you love yourself. Guess what…the LGBT community are your neighbors.
• This means it is not a choice to love one another, it’s a biblical law that stands atop the list.
• The message that conservative Christians are sending to the LGBT community is 180 degrees away from love.

I’m done waffling, riding the fence, and sugar coating.

LOVE IS NOT A SIN

That’s all I have to say about that.

Here’s the song.