why does a loud majority of the glbt community feel the need to attack religion?

Question

I am gay and a Roman Catholic, I see that the glbt community wants and expects acceptance by everyone, but many dont accept that people have beliefs and that those beliefs should be respected especially if we want respect too.
Its sad that the community that i can most closely relate too, tends to be the community that feels that showing hatred is what will get us our rightful place in humanity. I dont get that? fyi been out since 21 and out for 19 years.

Answer 1

I so agree with you...but everyone that is persecuted wants to find someone to "blame" it on. And you have to admit, many "churches" have been very hate-filled when discussing anything about gays.

On the other hand, I've known many spiritual and/or religious gay people, and even a few Catholic priests. Go ahead, Darlin', and believe what you want and worship where you want. Many "out" people do. It's just that the ugly and loud always get heard and seen first in this country.

Answer 2

Is it the majority? Is it possible they're just loud enought to seem like they're the majority?

I recall a statistic that over 60% of the LGBTQ community participates in religious practices of Christian types -- I don't recall the source, but there was a strong percentage of Jews and Buddhists and Pagans, as well. Personally, I have nothing against people's chosen (or inherited) religious views or spirituality, but there is so much ignorance and bigotry thrown about in the name of religion that I have grown both weary and wary of it.

I personally find it difficult to respect the beliefs of the many religious leaders who proclaim that:
-- homosexuals deserve to die http://www.catholic.com/library/Homosexuality.asp
-- that the way to eliminate pedophilia is by excluding homosexuals from the seminary (when the two are unrelated)
-- that 9/11 and Hurrican Katrina are somehow caused, at least in part, because of homosexual people
"I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People for the American Way—all of them who have tried to secularize America—I point the finger in their face and say "you helped this happen." --Jerry Falwell, followed by Pat Robertson saying "I totally concur"
-- God Hates F*gs: a sign consistently waved by members of the Westboro Baptist Church whil protesting at funerals of gay people Ihave known, at plays with gay subjects I've attended, and at funerals of US military personnel because America tolerates homosexuals. It's also the address of the church's website.

Even with all that, I can still laugh off or disregard many of these beliefs -- even if I can't respect them.

Christian versions of the Bible have been translated to read as being anti-homoexual, when the Hebrew and Greek texts do no such thing... but the translations have become accepted and those who believe they know what the texts say will not brook a look at the truth.

Religions, and particularly fundamentalist ones, have been expressing hatred and disrespect against us for thousands of years. We have been actively fighting for rights for about a hundred years. It's a growing pain, I'm sure, particualrly in the face of the renewed trend of fundamentalism.

Personally, I experienced attacks by religious leaders and my own parents on religious grounds for being gay. It makes me less inclined to do anything more than tolerate people who spew venom on either side, really. But I can understand the gay side more.

Answer 3

Some of it may be caused by something someone prejudiced said or did to them, so they lump all religion in that group. I am a straight christian, but I sympathize with glbt communities. In my opinion, I have no room to judge them on how they live their life, so why fight over it?

On the other side, many religious people call names and spout bullcrap because they are scared of differences. Or feel threatened that many glbt people are secure in themselves and their beliefs, when they themselves just believe what they do because that's what they were taught. Not because they truly believe it.

I have many friends in that lifestyle, and I wish I could be half as brave as they are all the time in just being true to their heart every day.

Answer 4

The LOUD minority is always going to be listened to. As the old saying goes, the squeaky wheel gets the oil. As for attacking the religious community, Christianity in particular, is because of that little thing in the Bilbe, which I believe is called a Commandment telling us NOT to bear false witness against our neighbors. Too many aspects of the Christian Church (Catholic, Protestant, and otherwise) have borne false witness against gays and lesbians, biseuxals and trandgendered people...as well as straight women, vegetarians, non-Christians, and at one time in history, left handed people. Unfortunately, Christianity IS responsible for quite a lot of that; and it WAS Christians who had a habit of setting people on fire in village squares. That's a whole lot of people-bashing that went around, and I think that if ANYBODY is looking to actually FIX the situation (especially between religion and LGBT people) then we're gonna have to do two things. Firstly look at the LGBT people who DO follow Christianity or any other religion and contribute to those faiths; they need to be recognized, and heck, reward 'em too! But we also need look at the loonie bats like Fred Phelps who protest at funerals, or people calling themselves Republicans AND concerned Christians actually fighting for Constitutional ammendments to forever ban a group of people from achieving EQUAL rights in this country. (Isn't it ironic that a Republican president ended slavery and another Republican president wants to initiate an pogrom that forever states that if it ain't man + woman it's probably only three fifths human and thus not elligible for full human rights?)

So the bottom line is, quite simply, The LGBT community is not hellbent on destroying or dennegrating religion, we just want "religious" people (the loud and obnoxious and rather psychotic ones) to stop imposing thier psychosis on everyone else while at the same time saying that it's God's will.

And for the record, I absolutely agree with you that our community shouldn't stoop to the level of those who persecute us, but from my own life I can also see that I'm sick and tired of having to tend to my wounds whenever a Christian has his or her say, ON TELEVISION, RADIO, The Newspaper, the Internet, and even some city street corners, while gays, lesbians and bisexuals are just expected to be quiet and transexuals aren't even acknowledged as real.

Answer 5

You are right, however some religious people don't think the same way (i.e. everyone is entitled to their beliefs) - they project them. This can be an uneccessary source of stress, confusion and anxiety for LGBT people who are in the early stages of coming out. You only have to read the postings in a Christian ex-gay forum to see the pain someone experiences when they succomb to the far right and try denying their feelings in the "name of a higher power".

In the UK, new Christians have the opportunity of taking the "Alpha Course" - a 10 week introduction to the Christian faith. One of the course books discusses homosexual activity as a "sin" and encourages followers to speak out against it (without being judgemental).

Whilst there are different types (and tolerances) in terms of religion, it is no wonder why LGBT people may feel uneasy around religion.

Answer 6

I don't think the glbt community attack the religion but merely try to defend the attacks or condemnations from the religion authority. I mean if some people condemn you for who you are or your beliefs, it's a common sense you will defend yourself especially when it comes to universal issues that affect people worldwide. If people belittle you with hatred, would you respect them, of coz not.

Answer 7

I am a Christian bisexual and I am offended when someone attacks a religious nut by attacking or belittling religion. All this does is bolster the nuts argument that we are Godless heathens and need to be saved.
It is much better to take their argument and show them the bible doesn't really say what they are trying to say. If they give you a piece of scripture if you go to the bible and read both before that verse they are quoting and or after it you can see that it is out of context and by supplying the rest of the quote you make them look stupid at best and hatefully deceptive at worst.

Also it helps if you have a yongs litteral translation or a strongs concordance study bible with greek and hebrew translations, that will supply you with several translations of the same verse.

Answer 8

Why do we feel the need to attack? Because they attack us first! And then, we most of us try and be diplomatic about it, try and reason to keep the arguing to a minimum, they drop bombs on us. Why is it so hard for them to accept that everyone believes in different things? Everybody can't be the same, so why condemn those who differ from you?
It seems you have it backwards here.

Answer 9

the international is slowly changing for the extra helpful, quite. that's purely puzzling to be certain, and it is going way too slow. I easily have a lot of gay acquaintances (i like going to gay bars, by way of fact that's the only place the place I, as a hetero guy, could have a typical talk with a woman, without her questioning that I wanna get into her pants, lol), and that i've got seen all those gay acquaintances conflict with this. and that i hate it. In Holland we had some Christian colleges in a city referred to as Staphorst (between the final fundie cities we've) that wished a sparkling, specific dictionary for the infants. It grew to become into purely like the conventional dictionary, yet without terrible words like condom, prostitution, gonnorhea, drugs and homosexuality. of course chuffed words like genocide, conflict, racism and homicide have been nonetheless allowed. All i might desire to be certain grew to become into that thirteen 3 hundred and sixty 5 days previous boy, sitting in his room, battling his gay thoughts. He does no longer actually have a place interior the dictionary anymore. Thank goodness the government did no longer enable this nonsense. i know, it quite is a stupid little occasion, yet discrimination is likewise interior the proper factors. It sickens me, quite. If i might desire to alter the international swifter, i might do it, quite. I desire you good luck. purely undergo in innovations that there additionally are many, many widespread human beings, who purely settle for others the way they are.

Answer 10

Honey, i think you have it backwards, because it's not that we attack it, they attack us first, so what else do we have left to do? The sad thing is, is that the people of different religions are the ones making yours or other religions look bad, by coming here and attacking us first!