RUESDAY, JUNE 13, 2023 - PRIDE MONTH DAY 2

 TUESDAY, JUNE 13, 2023 - PRIDE MONTH DAY 2

“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so” Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act II scene 2

The real culprit in life is our brain.  We can think.  If I look at politics - it is our thinking - liberal or conservative as thoughts in our brains.  And, I extract that to LGBTQ people as well.

I grew up in a conservative home.  I adopted my parent’s belief system (and it has been my core throughout life).  Along the way I bought into a religious pamphlet that described why some groups were good and other groups were bad - and I used those concepts to judge people around me.  (Even to the point where I could tell you if a person was going to heaven or hell).

I’m not sure when I might have been exposed to men who loved other men, or women who loved other women.  (That is, Gay or Lesbian people).  I do remember (ugh) that I KNEW they were wrong.  

And why I couldn’t be overt in my actions, I remember singing with a fantastic colleague “Don we now our gay apparel” (from the song Deck the Halls), and we were making fun of gay people.  I remember thinking I was funny when saying something in a class about a female volleyball player in the locker room - implying that she liked to look at other women.  I remember “old” humor where it was alright to demean other people and to stereotype people (like Irish are drunkards).  

*****

BUT THINGS CAN CHANGE (AND DID)

I know I rely on scripture a lot (hopefully not too much).  In Acts 10, Peter was praying on a rooftop. “He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners.  It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, reptiles, and birds. Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.”

“Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”

The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”

This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.

***

Peter had been stuck in his traditional Jewish ways in terms of dieting, but as a follower of Jesus, he had seen the Resurrection, Ascension, and Pentecost.  Here he is confronted with a whole new thing - God has thrown out the old Jewish dietary laws.  God says “Hey Peter, you can eat pork (and bacon), you can get other things that you previously thought were bad” 

Peter learned the “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so” lesson that day.  I remember the day when God smacked me with a two-by-four board (only figuratively).  

It took a while for Peter to adapt and Paul, (the other principal apostle in the New Testament) calls him out in the book of Ephesians for returning to his old dietary habits when other Jews were around.  

*****

It has taken me a while to adjust to gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgenders, and others that might be labeled as queer are okay.  

But, ALL people are okay.  My friends who don’t accept me are still okay.  There is nothing good or bad but thinking makes it so.

So men loving men?  That’s okay.  Women loving women?  That’s okay.  Somebody with gender dysphoria believing they are a woman stuck in a man’s body?  That’s okay.

If underneath whatever relationship is agape love - a God-based love - my thinking makes it okay.  

I know more lesbians and count them as dear friends.  I’m so happy for JP and BT who have a great relationship.  It is less and less about being sexually involved and more and more about a deeper relationship.  

I know of too many toxic male/female relationships - where some even lead to abuse and physical harm..  I’ve heard close friends talk of their toxic husbands..  Generally, it is the male partner that abused the female partner.  “Husbands love your wives” (Ephesians 5:29).  

So, in this Pride Month, I recognize that various relationships can and do exist and can flourish.  And I am learning to love everybody and not to put labels on people, not to judge people (only God can judge). Our politics have not caught up to LOVE WINS.  I’ve mentioned that the ACLU reports there were 491 pieces of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation being floated around the United States. “Not in my neighborhood” seems to be the plan.

Sometimes what we don’t understand is easier to hate.  Do you hate Muslim people because of the hatred of a few terrorists?  I’ve had some very good Muslim students who just want a good life for themselves and their families. Walk a mile in their shoes - make a valid attempt to understand.  Get out of our comfort zones.    

Hitler stirred hatred for Jews into the holocaust. Are we able to love those that are different than us?

Let love win - in whatever form it exists.  But, let it be real love.  

“Most of all, let love guide your life: Colossians 3:14.

LOVE WINS

LOVE TRANSFORMS

I CAN ONLY LOVE GOD AS MUCH AS THE PERSON I LOVE THE LEAST

Happy Pride Month - Happy Love Everybody every day of the year!!

Karen Anne White, June 13, 2023