Nature vs. Morality
So I think it's about time I talk about it; the most controversial issue in American society today: Gay rights. 😯 - I can hear the mind gasps already. But before I jump into the main body of the discussion, there are 2 premises that must be established and agreed upon:
Ordinarily, this point should go unchallenged. However, recent arguments claim that it is “natural” and therefore justified. This to me is an unforgivable fallacy: this idea that nature can be a justification for moral behaviour. But we'll talk more about that later. For now, note this down as premise #1 [P1].
- Homosexuals have been unfairly treated, abused, and persecuted, for centuries; With no one but religion to blame for their mistreatment.
This should also go unchallenged. But I know some might question the use of the term “unfairly.” Yet another point to be discussed in the main body of this piece. Again, for the time being, note this down as premise #2 [P2].
Now, going back to P1, it is my opinion that every sin known to man is natural; and that morals exist to impose restraint and order upon the avarice and chaos of our nature.
For example: People naturally want to own things that they like. It is a base desire, with no limit or fixed target - and it is from this desire we get sins of greed, envy, lust, and jealousy. Similarly, people naturally want to get rid of things that they don't like. Also a base desire without target or limitation. As a result we see acts of murder, vandalism, and all around destruction. Yet I am sure we can all agree, that these acts are wrong (thanks to our morals).
Thus, whether you believe these morals are God-given, innate, or even acquired, there can be no doubt that they are beneficial; and furthermore, that they generally work in direct opposition to the deviant excesses of our natural behaviour.
So how could anyone possibly think, that natural is morally correct!? The mere thought baffles me...
But back to homosexuality. Sex itself, is also a base desire. So as base desires go, it should come as no surprise that it really has no fixed target or limitation.
This can be seen in homosexuality, bestiality, pedophilia, ménage a trios, and even masturbation. People like to have sex (preferably with things that they are attracted to); and given half a chance they will have it with anything, and everything, in any number available, that fits that description.
Usually however, "that description" is of the opposite sex - and whether you believe (like me) that this is the way God intended, or whether you don't, it should ideally have been irrelevant to the discussion of gay rights. Because gay rights should have been about not being subject to discrimination and abuse.
Which brings us over to P2: the unfair treatment of homosexuals in society. First let me clarify the kind of treatment I'm talking about. I am talking about homosexuals who get lynched for no reason other than sexual preference; who get denied entry to certain otherwise "public" areas; and who can't work in certain professions. This type of unfair treatment clearly infringes on human rights, and is in fact not very different from the plight of the Black Man in America some few decades ago (and even still, in some places).
So it is really quite unfortunate that unlike the Whites who committed racial hate crimes against the Blacks, those who perpetrate hate crimes against gay people often do so in the name of my God and with the face of my religion (Christianity). As if He ever gave us license to judge and persecute...
Now armed with our two premises, and our definitions of nature and morality, let us take a look at the gay rights movement.
To me, it is just like any other movement: a natural reaction by a group of people, to decades of hate crimes and unjust treatment. Except that this movement, also has a bone to pick with religions. Because many religions (like Christianity) form the foundation of the morals that have been themselves abused and used in the persecution of gay people.
So it is, that the issue of gay marriage persists. Because, as alluded to before, it transcends the issue of "rights" and "fair treatment", and lands squarely in the realm of moral correctness. Such that anyone who does not condone homosexuality, is not likely to condone gay marriage.
This is why I continue to wonder at the arguments I keep hearing for gay rights:
- Being gay is natural. (So what?)
- Why should it concern you if two "other" people want to be gay and get married? (Um, I think it's wrong?)
- Homosexuality isn't contagious. (I knew that already, thanks)
And so it's been, with discussions going nowhere. Why? Because while gay people can argue:
- that being attracted to same-sex partners is not their fault.
- that it's nobody else's business, and
- that it won't affect you and I...
While they can argue all that, and while it may even all be true...
Nobody can argue, that it is morally correct. Period.
Disclaimer
Now, a little disclaimer for any gay person who may read this article someday. First of all, I want to apologise on behalf of Christians everywhere, for the decades of injustice you have suffered at our hands. It very well may not be your fault that you are gay, and even if it was, that would not justify the horrors you have been put through by those claiming to be Christian, and acting anything but.
I do believe you deserve equal treatment, and I do respect that you have made a choice to live a lifestyle that I do not agree with. But as long as I do not agree with it, I cannot consent to gay marriage. It only makes sense that seeing as I don't approve of homosexuality at all, I would not approve of a lifetime of it (...til death do you part). In my eyes, homosexuality is a sexual deviancy akin to pedophilia - and should be treated and recognised as such.
That said, this does not make me homophobic. I do not hate or fear gay people. I simply think that you have your sins and temptations to struggle with, just as I have mine. My only prayer is that you recognise it for the sin that it is, instead of just accepting it as "natural."