Is being homophobic a disease?

[ladiesbballcoach]

As a proud liberal and Christian, I find that statement flat out wrong. It is a well worn and false indictment of liberals. The fact is that there are religious liberals and religious conservatives. There are also liberals that attack religion as well as conservatives that attack religion. It is not politically correct to tell Christians they are wrong. There is, however, a strong element in our society that believes it is wrong for any religion to attempt to impose its beliefs on the rest of society. As an example, my religion teaches that it is wrong to miss attendance at mass on Sunday. I do not favor a law to make attendance at mass a legal requirement. My religion teaches that it is a sin to eat meat on Fridays during lent. I don't favor a law to prevent serving meat on Fridays.

If a representative of the gay lobbying organizations come out and blasts this guy, there would not be a negative backlash against them.

 

If a representative of a Christian organization comes out and blasts someone that has spoken against them, they will be labeled as intolerant.

 

At the same time, I know that this is the way it will be as Jesus himself told his disciples that the world will come to HATE them and his disciples because of Him.

[iPapi]

LBBC or Frances or anyone who wants to comment...

 

Would you say feeling "uncomfortable" around gays makes you homophobic?

 

I say no, but what would you say is "politically correct"?

[ladiesbballcoach]

LBBC or Frances or anyone who wants to comment...

 

Would you say feeling "uncomfortable" around gays makes you homophobic?

 

I say no, but what would you say is "politically correct"?

Honestly, I think there are two different feelings. Being around a member of your own gender that is homosexual can illicit "uncomfortable" feelings. While being around a member of the opposite gender that is homosexual, does not.

 

But also, for me as a married person, being around a member of the opposite sex that is very flirtatious makes me feel "uncomfortable."

[02Ram54]

I agree 100% with that and I did not mean to imply that Mr. Washington was representing Christians. If I did, I was mistaken.

 

On the "what" question, Christians are not allowed to be who they are in public. We are told over and over and over to keep our witnessing and our worship in our churches and our houses. So the comment that liberals feel that people should be able to do whatever they wish is inaccurate in that liberals do not generally feel that Christians should be able to do what they wish.

Oh, the persecution.

 

I'm sorry, LBBC. I like you. But I just get SO TIRED of this.

 

I am a Christian. I sing in the choir. I'm not 'every sunday' but I'm trying real, real hard.

 

I say that because I want to be clear that I'm one of those liberal Christians that some people would like to pretend don't exist. I go to a church full of them in a diocese full of them.

 

I have never seen some liberal sneak up behind a man praying on a park bench, call their friends over, and bust out picket signs. I've never seen it. I have seen, however, 'Christians' persecute a gay man and his partner for being open in the street.

 

As a liberal, let me tell you what I generally wish. That other Christians would stop telling myself and everyone else to get over their desire to have authority led prayer in school, to post the 10 Commandments in the courts, and to spend public money on soup kitchens that will only let you in out of the cold if you'll listen to Scripture.

 

Do I have a problem with authority led prayer? How can I, I'm an Episcopalian! Do I have a problem with the 10 commandments? How can I, I went to France to study them in a monostary! Do I have a problem with Scripture? How can I, I have three Bibles (student, reference and personal) and I read all of them!

 

What I do have a problem with is what I see as spiritual bullying. In all three of those cases, that's just how I see it. If we as Christians can't be secure enough in our faith that we can't go without forcing it on others, I don't see it being worth much at all.

[02Ram54]

And, yes, there's still room to evangelize and witness without forcing it on others. I do my paltry best, and the Lord knows I don't shy away from where the sinners are when I go out on Saturday night.

[ladiesbballcoach]

Oh, the persecution.

 

I'm sorry, LBBC. I like you. But I just get SO TIRED of this.

 

I am a Christian. I sing in the choir. I'm not 'every sunday' but I'm trying real, real hard.

 

I say that because I want to be clear that I'm one of those liberal Christians that some people would like to pretend don't exist. I go to a church full of them in a diocese full of them.

 

I have never seen some liberal sneak up behind a man praying on a park bench, call their friends over, and bust out picket signs. I've never seen it. I have seen, however, 'Christians' persecute a gay man and his partner for being open in the street.

 

As a liberal, let me tell you what I generally wish. That other Christians would stop telling myself and everyone else to get over their desire to have authority led prayer in school, to post the 10 Commandments in the courts, and to spend public money on soup kitchens that will only let you in out of the cold if you'll listen to Scripture.

 

Do I have a problem with authority led prayer? How can I, I'm an Episcopalian! Do I have a problem with the 10 commandments? How can I, I went to France to study them in a monostary! Do I have a problem with Scripture? How can I, I have three Bibles (student, reference and personal) and I read all of them!

 

What I do have a problem with is what I see as spiritual bullying. In all three of those cases, that's just how I see it. If we as Christians can't be secure enough in our faith that we can't go without forcing it on others, I don't see it being worth much at all.

 

As a Christian and based on the posts I have consistently made, I don't think you will find me supporting any of these 3 issues.

 

But when I as a Christian are told that I cannot talk to someone about Jesus Christ because I might offend someone, it offends me.

 

Remember I am a public school teacher that cannot mention Christ in my classroom unless a student would ask me about it. I prayed before my lunch the other day and a student asked me and I responded on why I did it. It is probably more effective that way than me teaching about it.

 

But for someone to say that our society is a say what you want and do what you want society is inaccurate.

 

 

Let me also add that in no way do I think Christians in this country face persecution like in other parts of this planet or like races have in this country alone. For the most part, Christians have it pretty good in this country with our ability to worship freely in most cases.

[Ram]

If a representative of the gay lobbying organizations come out and blasts this guy, there would not be a negative backlash against them.

 

If a representative of a Christian organization comes out and blasts someone that has spoken against them, they will be labeled as intolerant.

 

At the same time, I know that this is the way it will be as Jesus himself told his disciples that the world will come to HATE them and his disciples because of Him.

 

I agree with your observation.

 

I am not sure what happened here. But I am a conservative Christian, and I am not saying that a person should hate a person because they are homosexual. I know several homosexual people, I do not hate them, I treat them just like I treat everyone else. With this being said, I do not agree with the life style. I do not tell them they are going to hell, I do not ridicule them. I simply disagree with there homosexual lifestyle. (hate the sin, not the sinner)

 

I believe homophobia is a junk term, that people have began using to mean what ever they want it to mean, therefor I don't give it much weight. I have stated my stance, above, about homosexuality. I have been called homophobic. I do not believe, by what people on the thread have defined homophobia as, that I am homophobic.

[Ram]

First off, a phobia (any phobia) is defined as an irrational fear of an object or class of objects.

 

The statement that it is a term coined by liberals is so far wrong it isn't even funny.

 

Homophobia, by definition is an irrational fear of homosexuals. In my opinion, it is not a disease, but a condition that reveals a persons frame of mind.

 

In the case of many people that are homophobic, their irrrational fear manifests itself by an extreme need to persecute people that are homosexuals (usually in an attempt to prove to themselves that they are "better" than the homosexuals). The best example of this would be Fred Phelps and his followers.

 

To your questions, iPapi -

Neither not accepting the homosexual lifestyle, or speaking out about your unacceptance of homosexuality would, in itself, make you homophobic.

On the other hand, if you feel the need to shout it from the rooftops, or have a yearning desire to hate people simply because they are homosexuals without first knowing them personally, then those are pretty good signs that you may well be homophobic. If you feel that the only way to deal with a homosexual is to beat the tar out of him/her, then you are definitely a homophobe.

 

There is no reason to feel guilty simply because you disagree with that lifestyle (whether you base those feelings on your belief system or something else). Of course, if you participate in the persecution of people, then your conscience would probably tell you that what you are doing is not the correct thing to do.

 

The use of the term "disease" in this instance stems from the psychologists that classify all phobias and manias as a disease of the mind. A mania is the opposite of a phobia (it is the irrational excitement caused by an object or class of objects).

 

If you dissaprove of (or reject) the homosexual lifestyle, I wouldn't worry about it. On the other hand, if you smile inside when you read the stories of people being dragged to death behind a truck because they were homosexuals, or people that pick homosexuals out of a crowd just to beat them, then you might consider yourself to be a candidate for some type of counseling.

 

 

Frances

 

To begin with, the criminal actions you speak of are just that crime. These people who assault homosexuals, kill homosexuals, and torture homosexuals should be put in prison. That being said, I do not believe these people have a made up disease called homophobia, I believe these people are just criminals.

 

As for Fred Phelps, I do not think he has "homophobia", I think he is a cult leader who is cruel and should be exposed for what he is.

 

And for homophobia being a diagnosis by psychiatrist. I work in the medical field and we make up words for people with different conditions using medical terminology. Such as: Sudo-Seizures, for people who fake having seizures to get attention (happens a lot). Now this has become a well known medical term. The same can be said for homophobia, it is a slang medical term such as sudo-seizure. People made it up, and now its a political debate.

[ladiesbballcoach]

I will admit that I have Fred Phelps phobia. An intense fear and dread of anything coming out of his mouth or any of his actions. I would counter that it is NOT irrational but logical and rational.

[02Ram54]

To begin with, the criminal actions you speak of are just that crime. These people who assault homosexuals, kill homosexuals, and torture homosexuals should be put in prison. That being said, I do not believe these people have a made up disease called homophobia, I believe these people are just criminals.

 

As for Fred Phelps, I do not think he has "homophobia", I think he is a cult leader who is cruel and should be exposed for what he is.

 

And for homophobia being a diagnosis by psychiatrist. I work in the medical field and we make up words for people with different conditions using medical terminology. Such as: Sudo-Seizures, for people who fake having seizures to get attention (happens a lot). Now this has become a well known medical term. The same can be said for homophobia, it is a slang medical term such as sudo-seizure. People made it up, and now its a political debate.

You might mean pseudo seizures.

[Frances Bavier]

... Francis, I prefer your definition but it's not ridiculous to state that the term with it's present connotation was coined by liberals.

The term was coined (apparently) by a clinical psychologist. It is a descriptive term, and the fact that he may be (probably is) on the liberal side of the aisle on political issues is immaterial. He did not coin the term because he is (probably) a liberal - he coined it because, as a clinical psychologist, he needed a phrase to describe the condition.

 

 

Frances

[Frances Bavier]

LBBC or Frances or anyone who wants to comment...

 

Would you say feeling "uncomfortable" around gays makes you homophobic?

 

I say no, but what would you say is "politically correct"?

 

As you asked the question, I would say that (in my opinion) feeling "uncomfortable" around gays would not, in and of itself, classify you as homophobic. A phobia is an IRRATIONAL fear of an object or class of objects.

 

If you chose to use your "uncomfortable" feeling to justify some type of attack on the homosexuals, then (again, in my opinion) would cross the line into homophobia.

 

The truth of the matter is that you (as we all do) already know many people that are homosexual. Unless you are from a very small family, you probably have a homosexual somewhere within your extended family. The fact that you might not know it, or might not wish to admit it does not change that.

 

I'm not much on "political correctness", but in my opinion, the least any of us owes any other human being is a basic respect, until an individual shows you that they are unworthy of that basic respect.

 

 

Frances

[Frances Bavier]

Oh, the persecution.

 

I'm sorry, LBBC. I like you. But I just get SO TIRED of this.

 

I am a Christian. I sing in the choir. I'm not 'every sunday' but I'm trying real, real hard.

 

I say that because I want to be clear that I'm one of those liberal Christians that some people would like to pretend don't exist. I go to a church full of them in a diocese full of them.

 

I have never seen some liberal sneak up behind a man praying on a park bench, call their friends over, and bust out picket signs. I've never seen it. I have seen, however, 'Christians' persecute a gay man and his partner for being open in the street.

 

As a liberal, let me tell you what I generally wish. That other Christians would stop telling myself and everyone else to get over their desire to have authority led prayer in school, to post the 10 Commandments in the courts, and to spend public money on soup kitchens that will only let you in out of the cold if you'll listen to Scripture.

 

Do I have a problem with authority led prayer? How can I, I'm an Episcopalian! Do I have a problem with the 10 commandments? How can I, I went to France to study them in a monostary! Do I have a problem with Scripture? How can I, I have three Bibles (student, reference and personal) and I read all of them!

 

What I do have a problem with is what I see as spiritual bullying. In all three of those cases, that's just how I see it. If we as Christians can't be secure enough in our faith that we can't go without forcing it on others, I don't see it being worth much at all.

 

I believe that this is one of the best posts that I have ever read on BGP. It is well thought out and extremely well written.

 

 

Frances

[Frances Bavier]

I will admit that I have Fred Phelps phobia. An intense fear and dread of anything coming out of his mouth or any of his actions. I would counter that it is NOT irrational but logical and rational.

 

LOL - a condition that many of us share.

 

 

Frances

[Ram]

You might mean pseudo seizures.

 

Spell check is not perfect. I'm sure not.:laugh: