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New Gay Pride Parade
by Donna Wasson Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Chicago is very concerned about the annual gay parade but not for the reason you would think. One would reasonably surmise that the church was taking a stand against homosexuality, as it should. However, the church's concern is that the parade, which starts at 10 a.m. on the last Sunday in June, will force it to cancel morning mass because the New Pride Parade route will now pass directly in front of the church. You read that correctly. One of the oldest Roman Catholic churches in Chicago is only concerned about the traffic jam and not the flagrant display of sin. Oh my, we can't mention the 'S' word. It might offend someone! Before you get your shorts in a bunch, allow me to explain that I am not a homophobe. I am not frightened of homosexuals in the least. Nor do I hate them. Nor do I wish them ill. On the contrary, I deeply desire to warn them of the consequences of their lifestyle choices because I do NOT wish them ill. Yes folks, get your Bibles out because that is where I'm going. The Bible and Ten Commandments have always been the standard by which most societies measure their moral code. It's an ancient book, written over a span of approximately 1600 years with 40 different authors with a wide range of ages and from all walks of life. There are hundreds of controversial subjects covered yet the authors wrote with agreement and harmony, whether they were writing in a dungeon, temple, on a hillside, on an island, during war or peacetime. Contrary to the most critical investigations of secular society, it has been proven the Bible has changed very little from the original manuscripts. NO other book in history has as many copies of the ancient manuscripts as the Bible. Whether you like it or not, it IS reliable. The Bible states four different times that God does not change. He is eternally the same, yesterday, today and forever. Therefore, His opinions don't change and it is quite clear that homosexuality and lesbianism are an 'abomination' to a Holy God. What does abomination mean? It means to detest or abhor. God is disgusted by homosexuality because it is a perversion of the way He created and intended mankind to function. Many claim that they were born homosexual; therefore God made them that way. I say to them, so was I. I was also born a murderer, liar, thief, adulterer, coveter, hater of my parents, and one who considers some things and people more important than God. We were all born with the propensity to sin in all sorts of egregious ways. BUT that does not mean we have no choice but to give in to the sinful impulses that tempt us. So what, you were born with an interest in the same sex? What if you were born with a sexual interest in small children or animals? Would God have made you that way too? Wouldn't those appetites also deviate from the normal male/female coupling? Again, I do not hate homosexuals. Actually, I don't hate anyone. I hate homosexuality and the black, satanic religion of Islam but if I saw a gay or Muslim injured in a car wreck, I would immediately stop to offer any nursing assistance I could. I wouldn't even think twice, so keep your unjust, incorrect, Christophobic accusations of me to yourself. Openly gay comedienne, Margaret Cho, wrote an article featured on AOL, called, We Deserve Rights. We Deserve Life. In it she spoke passionately about growing up in San Francisco in the 1970's and seeing the influx of gay men move into the area, celebrating the freedom to be and act as gay as they wished with few repercussions, and how they were happy and 'living' for the first time. Then she described the unforeseen plague of AIDS that hit in the 1980's and the heartbreak and devastation of seeing many friends become desperately sick and die of the disease. She states that the result of the AIDS epidemic motivated her to join the fight, organize, raise money, band together with others in the GLBT community to become a political force, demanding their 'rights' and to realize and finally attain equality. Before I continue, you can also stuff the, "She thinks AIDS was a punishment from God on gays," barb. In all honesty, I don't know whether it was or not. Because hetero's and even children acquire AIDS, it seems to be an equal opportunity scourge. But I digress. I must ask the gay community this question: what 'rights' and what 'equality' are you referring to? You are afforded the identical rights as a citizen of the USA that I enjoy. If you will be honest with yourself, what you really want are special rights and equality based on your behavior. You demand the right to marry. You demand the right to adopt children. You demand the right to make financial and medical decisions for your partner the way a married man and woman do. From the beginning of time when God joined Adam and Eve as 'one flesh', the definition of marriage has always been the civil and spiritual union of one man and one woman. They were expected to establish a home and conceive and rear the next generation so mankind's existence on this planet could continue in a healthy, orderly manner. ANY sociologist or psychiatrist who holds any integrity in regard to their professional standards will testify that the mental, physical, emotional, educational and spiritual growth of children are best provided by the traditional family model of one Father and one Mother. Unfortunately, because of the vile, selfish, sinful nature of mankind, children have, over the centuries, suffered the consequential misery of broken homes, step families, single parenthood resulting in lower socioeconomic, educational and cultural opportunities. Some of these situations lead their caretakers into drug and alcohol abuse, crime, prison sentences and the kids are usually shuffled within the foster care system or from family member to family member who really do not want the burden of raising someone else's child. The bottom layer of the consequence sewer very often exposes the innocent to physical, mental, emotional and sexual abuse. Is this right? Absolutely not! Should the guilty be held responsible? You'd better believe it! But are the ills of society reason enough to further complicate their lives by exposing helpless children to adoption by gay couples and growing up in circumstances which defy nature itself? How do the kids explain to their peers that they have two mommies or two daddies? Contrary to the fondest dreams of the gay community, this type of 'family' will never be considered normal. How can the child develop reasonable standards of what is healthy in terms of romantic relationships? How will they escape feeling the pressure of choosing the lifestyle their 'parents' chose? How can we expect impressionable children not to grow up with completely skewed paradigms of the world and the relationships between the sexes and people in general? If they don't understand, what traditionally in the course of human civilization has been considered normal behavior, where will this lead mankind? What will become of society 100 years from now? What about 200 years from now? What is to prevent us from sliding a little further down the slippery slope of deviance to making marriage between adults and children, even very young children, acceptable? What about marriage between humans and animals? There are already groups of people who aim to push those agendas to be normalized in our society. No kidding! What is the difference between those behaviors and homosexuality? Well, those are perverted, you say? Oh really? Says who? Exactly where are we going as a civilization morally? Although I accept what the Bible says and view the homosexual lifestyle as sinful, I have to also accept it has been jammed down our collective throats and is not going to go away. It hasn't in thousands of years but now, we are expected by the politically correct to embrace homosexuality as completely normal. I can understand why gay couples want to be able to exercise civil responsibilities for their partners. Actually, I agree there should be laws passed to that effect. Partners should be able to make medical, property and legal decisions with and for each other if one is unable to decide for themselves. As far as I am concerned, those of you who wish to join together, knock yourselves out in lavish commitment ceremonies. But leave the legal term and traditions of marriage alone. You don't need to upend society to push your agenda. I would imagine most people, even most Christians, would agree with me on this. The moral climate of America is sliding straight into hell itself. Before long, the moral relativists will destroy any notion of what is right or wrong. This is to be expected according to the Bible but it is still sad to witness. 2 Timothy 3:1-5 states, "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection--(homosexuals), trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. Anyone over about 30 years of age can testify that the world in general has sharply declined in normalcy and function in their lifetime. In Matthew 24, the disciples of Jesus asked Him, "What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" vs. 7-8, Jesus answered them, "For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows." Anyone with an ounce of sense knows crime is increasing in rate and cruelty and people in general are getting more and more selfish. We all see on the news every night some new war or huge protest breaking out all over the world. Record storms, tornados, floods and droughts have killed thousands. We've watched on TV as tsunamis wipe out major cities, tossing cars and huge boats around like toys. Diseases once thought eradicated are coming back in new, virulent forms. Antibiotics are becoming less effective on even basic infections. More people are starving to death because of weather or political complications than ever before. And everyone can say with certainty earthquakes are increasing in number and severity. I am not some unwashed freak in ratty clothes, standing on the street corner holding up a sign that says, "Repent! The end is near!!" I am a down to earth, intelligent, kindhearted woman who is a sinner saved by the grace of Christ. I was born with a heart as black and deceitful and violent as anyone who ever lived. There is nothing, and I do mean nothing, in me that is good apart from the Holy Spirit who lives in my heart. It is only because of God's relentless mercy and the blood sacrifice His son, Jesus Christ, made on that cross over 2000 years ago that covers my sins, that enables me to stand clean, righteous and acceptable in the sight of an Almighty Holy God. I did not make the rules of this universe and I certainly don't understand or necessarily agree with the way God runs it. I highly doubt that bothers Him. The Bible says that His thoughts are higher than my thoughts and His ways are higher than my ways so I suppose when I become intelligent enough to design, engineer and construct my own universe, maybe I'll run it differently. In the meantime, I trust in His wisdom, goodness and justice. Bottom line, folks: the Bible is true. Life as we have always known it is spiraling to a close. If you're honest with yourself, you know in your gut 'something' big is going to happen, and soon. Even all of nature is groaning for God to liberate it from the original curse, and He most certainly will. There are not many paths to God. That is a lie. Jesus emphatically stated, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me." Period. Are you ready for what is coming? If you died this very day and stood before a Holy God, would He find you innocent or guilty of breaking even one of the Ten Commandments? Will you lie to yourself with the 'ol, 'I'm a good person' routine and expect that to be enough? Because it won't be. We are ALL born sinners. We have ALL gone our own way. And even though the penalty for sin is death, God did not want us to die. He loved us (YOU) so much that He sent His beloved Son, Jesus to die in our place so we would be able to live in pure joy in heaven with Him forever. He paid the penalty for you. A commuted sentence. It's a free gift and yours for the asking. Accept the best deal you'll ever find! Invite Jesus into your heart to forgive you of your sins and He'll give you a new understanding of His word as well as new desires to know and serve Him. Tell Him you believe He died and rose again so you could have new life. Then find a good, Bible believing church and start going and growing. You will never regret your decision. The alternative.well, let's just say you won't like it! Believe me when I tell you that you don't have much longer to decide. Donna Wasson is all of the following: Married. Mom. Hospice RN. Avid reader. Animal lover. Needing to spread the Gospel while there is still time. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |