Somebody posted a picture/story on the facebook where (allegedly) a pastor was preaching that being gay was a sin, and the congregation agreed with a chorus of "amens." Then th epastor said that you know what else is a sin? Divorce. And the same congregation got entirely quiet.
The point of the story, I suppose, was to point out that we all sin, and we shouldn't judge each other based on perceived sins.
What I don't understand is that in most cases, news of a couple divorcing is greeted with muted feelings and "ooh, that stinks for them. What about the children?" Whereas when news of someone coming out as gay is celebrated and welcomed by all the open-minded (except for people who have different views) people as great news of critical importance that must be shared and discussed and accepted and embraced.
So on one hand, there seems to be tepid agreement that divorce and homosexuality are not part of God's plan. It seems that, when pressed, people will admit that being gay probably misses God's mark. Yes, there are the arguments that Jesus never came out and said "gay is not the way," but there are other words, deeds, and actions that indicate that that lifestyle is not completely in accordance with God's law. And yes, the commandment to love one another trumps everything, but not to the point of ignoring and condoning blatant sin.
And so we return to the disappointment associated with the news of hearing that a couple divorces, contrasted with the enthusiasm of the bravery when one comes out as being gay. If both are sins, how can one be welcomed with open arms and the other be quietly accepted with a sad shaking of one's head?
We still love the divorced family, just as we love the openly gay people. At the end of the day, we here are not the final judge of any of it. We accept the divorced ones, we accept the gay ones. Oh, but we can't counsel the gay ones as we counsel those going through divorce, because the gay ones were born that way. And if you're born that way, you get special acceptance and dispensation for your sins.
Sorry to waste your time :-\
As a divorce survivor, I think it is also a time that should be celebrated. Some people suffer for years before they get divorced and finally making that decision is a wonderful thing - all thoughts of sin aside.
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