SportsGuy92 wrote:I think you need to hear about what my views on homosexuality are in order to understand where I'm coming from. Because of my religion, I believe that gay sex is a sin. However I don't have anything against people for being attracted to the same sex. If one of my friends ever told me he was gay, he would have my full support just as long as he didn't try to start flirting with me. So while I believe sexual acts between gay people are wrong, I was just trying to speak out against homophobia with my post. Most other Catholics who are not bigots have the same views. For example, last year, when I had began a new theology class at my Catholic high school, I had been assigned a teacher who has the reputation of being a hard core conservative both in politics and religion. Throughout the course, he would make these opinions well-known to us. But on the first day, he gave us a handout that he had written which, among other things, railed against homophobia, especially the way certain popular musicians use it in their songs and make it more culturally acceptable. So, I just see the way some people who might have been accused of being gay in the past for not liking sports and then use the same kind of insults now as hypocritical.
***NOTE***: any commentary about religion is not meant to start a religious debate between anybody here. There are plenty of other websites on the Internet for that purpose.
As many of you here all know, I'm in the process of converting to Judaism. I go to a Reform Synagogue Saturday mornings on Shabbot for Torah Studies and Religious Services.
Reform Jews and Conservative Jews are more tolerant of gays. It's the Orthodox Jews who take a much stronger stance against homosexuality.
There is scientific evidence that shows that people are not gay by choice, that it has to do with how their brains are neurologically wired. Therefore, since people can't help being gay, then the Reform Jews do not see it as being sinful.
For example, I'm left handed. I was born that way. It has to do with how my brain is neurologically wired. There is some differences in our brain structures. We have twice as many nerve fibers between the two hemispheres of the brain and the two hemispheres are not as specialized. With right handed people the speech center is located in one hemisphere of the brain. But in us left handed people we have the speech center in both hemispheres. But it is more dominant in one hemisphere. This is the reason why left handed people can recover their speech much faster after a stroke.
Being left handed has many advantages, but it also has many disadvantages. We make up only 10% percent of the total population, but according to US Army data from an article I once read in Science Digest Magazine, we make up about 45% percent of heavy smokers, 30% percent of alcoholics, 30% percent of suicides and I read somewhere that being left handed increases your risk factor of getting Type 2 Diabetes by an additional 5 to 10% percent. Yet, we only make up 10% percent of the total population.
Many years ago, schools use to force left handed children to use the right hand. In the middle ages, left handed people wore more likely to be accused of witchcraft and burned at the stake. Being left handed was seen as evil.
But modern science has shown, we can not change left handed people over to being right handed, so being left handed is no longer regarded as being sinful.
We can't help being left handed. It is how our brains are wired.
The same is true for homosexuality. They can't help being gay. It's how their brains are wired. So, in that case, how can it be a sin? I say it is no more sinful than being left handed.
My Rabbi, he supports science. Back in February, on shabbot, we even honored Charles Darwin's 200th birthday. My Rabbi supports teaching Evolution in our schools, and he's against some of these religious groups trying to force the teaching of creationism, or what they now so euphemistically refer to as "Intelligent Design" or ID in the school curriculum.
Yes, I do believe in God, but I am an evolutionist.
During our Torah Studies we have discussed issues such as homosexuality, and evolution, etc. etc. And also, how we have had to revise our thinking of the universe over the years, therefore, we do not take everything in the Torah so literally.
Also, I need to add, that while many Christian religions (Except Catholics) regard the drinking of alcoholic beverages as sinful, this is not so in Judaism. After the religious services we go back to the room were we have our Torah Studies for a small cup of wine and some bread. The Rabbi sings the Beracha, a blessing over the wine and another blessing over the bread. One day, on Shabbot, someone brought some Kosher beer to the synagogue. Some of us had wine, and some of us had the Kosher beer instead. First the Rabbi sang the Beracha over the wine, then he sang a special Beracha over the Kosher beer. So, there is the usual Beracha for wine, and a special Beracha for Kosher beer.
Drinking wine or beer, or any alcoholic beverage is not sinful. Only drunkenness is sinful, but moderated drinking is not.
I also would like to add, that I get a real kick of some of the stories in the Torah and the Tennackh. My favorites are the stories about Esau and Jacob, and the story of Samson.
Esau was not so bright, and sold his birthright for a bowl of red lintel soup. Jacob was very smart, and a bit of a con man. If Esau were living today, he would be the typical redneck, or
Gerdon Edom, the Hebrew word for redneck, and if Jacob were living today, he would be the typical nerd or geek.
Now Samson, if he were living today, he would be the typical dumb jock, thinking only with his little head instead of his big head!
OK, I'm well aware that this is not a forum for discussing religious issues, but I felt the need to make my position clear.
FOOTBALL IS BLASPHEMY!!!
OK! Just kidding!!!
