I know all you parents out there know that kids are awesome.
That doesn't mean they aren't stinkers sometimes. They aren't perfect. But every once in awhile, they do something so incredible, it takes down barriers. Shatters walls. Makes people really think.
I think this boy Jacob epitomizes that concept:
If you haven't seen this story yet, Jacob (on the left) is straight; his best friend Anthony is gay. Anthony was sad because he didn't have a prom date. Jacob thought, what can I do to make my best friend happy? Well, I can ask him to prom.
So that is what he did, making this adorable sign:
Awesome.
I know that I have friends who agree with me that homosexuality is not a sin, and other friends who do think it is a sin but don't judge, and still other friends who think that it is a major sin and about to make our society collapse. I don't expect that everyone is going to agree with me, and that this story alone is going to change their minds.
But you have to admit, it is pretty awesome.
These boys didn't do this as a publicity stunt, or to rub it in others' faces that they think that being gay is okay. They were shocked that so many people saw the picture and made a big deal about it. For them, it was just about enjoying a high school tradition with their best friend.
The video below is great, because you can see how much love they have for each other (philia love, to go back to what I learned in Sunday School, the kind of love you have for your fellow man).
My favorite part is when they are talking about dancing a slow dance, and "leaving room for the Holy Spirit" between them. HILARIOUS.
But the real message, at least for me, is that this is TOTALLY normal for these kids. Being gay is just like having red hair, or being tall, or having weird-looking toes. It is how God made you. Of course you ask your best friend to prom. Of course you slow dance with him. You may think for a minute that people who don't know you are going to judge you and say mean things about you on the Internet, but you don't let that stop you from doing what feels right for you.
Because you are kind. Because your family has taught you to love unconditionally. Because he is your best friend, and it doesn't matter what other people think, as long as he is happy, and you are happy, and you've had a great time together.
There is one more link I want to share, and this is on a more serious note. There is a case in front of the Supreme Court right now that might make gay marriage legal across the country. One exchange has gotten a lot of attention. Judge Alito asked the Solicitor General about religious institutions retaining their tax-exempt status, if they did not want to admit, or provide married couple housing, or hire, homosexuals. Solicitor General Verrilli responded that he didn't know, but it certainly would be an issue. But the article itself brought up an important point for me. Here's the paragraph from the article (the emphasis is mine).
The third exchange on religious liberty came as Justice Samuel Alito asked Verrilli about the right of religious institutions to maintain tax-exempt status, citing the Supreme Court’s decision to allow the Internal Revenue Service to strip Bob Jones University because of that school’s policy against interracial dating and interracial marriage. That policy of Bob Jones University remains a moral blight to this day, even though the university has since rescinded the policy. Bob Jones University stood virtually alone in this unconscionable policy, but the Court’s decision in that lamentable case also set the stage for Justice Alito’s question — “would the same apply to a university or a college if it opposed same-sex marriage?”So here is my question... in 30 years (or maybe even 15 years), are people going to look back at Christian universities who oppose same-sex marriage and use the words "moral blight," "unconscionable" and "lamentable"?
Maybe. Maybe not. And, by the way, some legal experts say that this a lot of worry about nothing, because single-gender schools are tax-exempt (even though that could be seen as discriminatory), and, quite honestly, there is not a vast conspiracy to shove same-sex marriage down the throats of those who disagree.
The whole article is here, if you are interested. And if you search, there are many more (some articles from conservatives, others from liberals, and some that just state the facts).
However, I think this issue will be moot in the not-too-distant future, because of kids like Jacob and Anthony. Kids get it - being gay is not something you choose, but something you are.
I am already planning my next blog post, about what I believe, because I think that is important to this discussion. I am a Christian, but I believe that homosexuality is not a sin. There are a lot of people who would argue that those two beliefs cannot coincide. So let me (from a layperson's viewpoint) lay out my argument and see what you think.
