some people actually do have an idea what hatred you experience?

Question

maybe not completely, but in many ways I have experienced the same hatred gays experience but I have never been gay. I grew up in East Texas, and when I was in high school I was constantly accused of being gay and I never was, I was interested in a number of women but for whatever reason they were never interested in me, and honestly I just hadn't met the right one yet, and I never dated anyone until I was 28 and I was married at 31 and widowed at 44. I have always been heterosexual in my thoughts as well. But these people constantly accused me of sucking ......., and doing all kinds of things, they ran over and tried to kill my dog, they trashed my house, they trashed my car, they had all kinds of hate related stuff against me as if I was gay and I told everyone I wasn't and they didn't believe me. It was a horrid experience. For years I didn't want to have anything to do with gay people because of what I went through,(next page- please let me finish before answering)

but I later realized it wasn't their fault and I had more compassion and understanding than a lot of other people, largely because I found that I had many similarities to many of the gay people I knew, and because I had experienced much of the same hate that they had.

Do people realize that there are people out there who are Christians who have endured this kind of thing? now keep in mind that my suffering was probably minor in comparison, but it was an absolutely horrid experience for me. I think that Christians are put all in the same camp with the people who beat you over the head with the
Bible and who show the God hates fags signs -( which he doesn't - and I'm not ok with the use of the word fag) - but because one person does something then everybody is that way - and I'm trying to say that's not always true. Most people are faily ignorant. But they are flooded with anti-gay stuff on the radio all day long who have them convinced that gay people are ruining (cont)

the country.

now my question

do you realize that there are people out there who are Christians who actually have compassion for gay people? and that not everyone is the same?

I am so sad that many of you have suffered at the hands of people who claimed to be doing things for God.

Everyone is a sinner, God hates sin, but he loves people, no one sin is worse than any other. God loves you just as much as He loves me. It's crazy what people are doing - it makes me so mad.

I'm seeking to just say I care. Maybe not the same, but in lots of ways I've been there. There were people who were physically violent with me also. But I was hoping I would have forgotten that.
All because they thought I was gay.

I still to this day don't know why they thought that.
I can't think of anything I ever did that would have caused them to think that.

YEAHthatsRIGHT - great answer - I wonder why they are cramming gay hatred down everyone's throat
I heard on Christian radio a program about the gay issue (they don't know what else to talk about besides abortion) - and they said "We hope we can convince the gays that they are wrong and we are right" - I hate this kind of attitude.

My attitude is different. I hope that I can convince gays that I love them.

Hopefully I'd like to also would like for people to see what the REAL God is like, a God who loves them.

God and Focus on the Family are two different things entirely for instance.

Answer 1

I am 100% certain that not all Christians support violence and hatred towards those whose morality doesn't line up with their own, including gay people. It is indeed sad that those Christians who do support draconian anti-gay measures do not realize the degree to which their actions create a homophobic environment in which even "gay seeming" people are penalized.

However, part of the reason that so many gay people think of all Christians as the enemy is that there is a relationship between this sort of anti-gay violence and Christianity. Both personal and instituionalized anti-gay activities justify itself by (a) pointing to Christian dogma and (b) pointing to the numbers of Christians in the country. Because Christian churches nationwide are actively opposed to "quality of life" measures for gay people (such as anti-discrimination laws and legal sanctions providing access to health care and estate planning), many gay people assume that if you call yourself a Christian and you actively involve yourself with Christian churches, you are in essence supporting and sympathizing with the enemy. While you yourself understand how they feel and sympathize with them, the larger group you are a part of actively supports measures that could cost them their jobs, homes, and even their lives.

Obviously, this is quite the dilemma for you.... I understand that there is a huge distinction between personal faith in God and your relationship to the social role of the wider church in this area. What you are doing here by trying to build bridges between gay people and Christians is admirable. I only hope that you are also doing the inverse, and trying to help Christians understand that their actions are having devastating results on many people, both gay and straight. Even if you are trying your hardest, though, as long as you identify yourself with mainstream Christianity there will always be people who assume that you are part of the system that is oppressing them. I hope that you can continue to understand their position with compassion and empathy, and hopefully in time that sort of peacemaking will bear fruit.

Answer 2

Yes, I am aware.

I am a gay christian and I grew up in a southern extremist cult

I have seen it all and know the dangers of religion and the awful hate that there is.. One time this lady who was suppose to be teaching me noticed that I played too much with the boys instead of the girls...like ya know.."normal" girls should and beat me with a wooden paddle, no joke and she did it to a lot of other kids...beating that devil out...if they didn't seem to be playing the perfect idea of a gender role..gotta lash the demons out...it was horrible I could go on but eh, I'd rather not dig that far back but I can tell you that...

I also know that there are religious people who think for themselves and are not weak minded enough to join this mob like mentality and "get the gays"

I know a lot of people who have woken up to this mind control and have left these establishments..if you want to call them that.. I like to call it hell holes...BUT anyhow, some of my good friends are now active christians but are ex-members of these hateful klans...so yes, some people do wake up and smell the bs....

its a matter of having the strength within your mind to see clearly and to break out of all the religious BS that had been crammed down your throat