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How religion intersects with sexual orientation
Gender homosexuality and religion
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In Daniel Karslake’s documentary, For the Bible Tells Me So, he examines the intersection between Christianity and homosexuality. Karslake uses parallelism, appeal to emotion, and appeal to logic to highlight how the religious right has used its interpretation of the bible to stigmatize the gay community. With the use of these rhetorical devices, he is able to auspiciously convey his argument that there can be a healthy relationship amongst the opposing side of this belief. He attempts to enlighten the viewer with the thought that Christianity's homophobia represents a misreading of scripture, a denial of science, and an embrace of fake psychology. The families call for love. Throughout the film, the documentarian utilizes parallelism to frame the five storylines of the contradistinctive families. He introduces five Christian families, each with a gay or lesbian child. As the parents speak about their marriages and their involvement in the church, the audience received a glimpse into their children’s childhood and their reveal of their orientation, their reactions, and the vicissitudes the parents must face over time. Karslake uses this parallelism as a way of categorizing the five different families, the Reitans, the Gephardts, the Robinsons, the Poteats, and the Wallners, into most accepting to least accepting of their homosexual children, while at the same time, see a general view of how each area responds to the belief of homosexuality due to each family’s location. The Reitans, a family in Minnesota who became lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender activists and founded the Soulforce Equality Ride, where not accepting of their homosexual son when they first found out, but they soon accepted him, as well as they did not wan... ... middle of paper ... ...l end up being gay if their twin is gay as well. The facts presented are very helpful to the film’s overall intent. “For The Bible Tells Me So,” documented by Daniel Karslake, is a journey through the belief of homosexuality and its perceived conflict with Christianity, as well as various interpretations of what the Bible says about same-sex sexuality. Through the use of parallelism, pathos, and logos, the documentarian is able to communicate his creed that homosexuality and Christianity, with a lot of effort, can have a vigorous relationship. Whether or not your personal religious and political stances on homosexuality are influenced by Karslake’s film, the audience is moved by its portraits of unbreakable family love. The documentary skillfully dives beneath the constraints of its title theme to find deeper treasures that family values are still alive and well.
In said section, Gomes analyzes the Bible verses that Christians believe to have homosexual implications. Eventually, Gomes uses his personal interpretation of what the verses could mean along with historical context, to explain that the Church should not harbor any hatred or negative opinions to those practicing homosexuality. The other sections of, “The Use and Abuse of the Bible”, give In, “True and Living Word”, Gomes introduces the readers to a variety of topics and attempts to explain how the Bible relates to them. These topics are: The Bible and... The Good Life, Suffering, Joy, Evil, Temptation, Wealth, Science, and Mystery.
“For The Bible Tells Me So” by Daniel Karslake is a documentary style film that focuses on issues about sexuality. The film focuses on the conflict between homosexuality and Christianity and the analysis of several Bible verses about homosexuality. The film attempts to alter the minds of homophobes by using facts, science and several interviews with Christians who also have gay children. The interviews are done with five American, very Christian families and “how they handle the realization of having a gay child” (Karslake, 2007.) The film looks at both the understanding of the church, that is portrayed within the film, and the suggestion that there can only be one sexuality, heterosexuality, and that all others are sins in the eye of God.
“Run for your heterosexual lives!” Homosexuality, a topic that gains misperception, and alienates people in a world of easily made stereotypes. In the TED talk entitled “The Myth of The Gay Agenda” presented by LZ Granderson. , the speaker’s presentation is mostly expressed most successfully with pathos while also using ethos and logos concerning the topic of proving to dispel the myth that there is a gay agenda. The title alone “The Myth of the Gay Agenda” invites the audience to think, to feel, to question; quite possibly some may even take a position before the lecture begins. Some may even argue that the driving force in this lecture are the points made through logos, however, even though these points carry much weight, it is the the pathos that grabs the listener and then keeps them engaged throughout the talk, that wins over the audience. Logos would most certainly fall on deaf ears if not for the
For the Bible Tells Me So is a documentary that was made in 2007 by Daniel Karslake. The Film takes a look at the implications and results of raising children in a conservative religious context, and what happens when they are gay, and what the bible actually says about being gay, and how it is being misinterpreted to suit anti-gay rhetoric.
The two families were just some of those that really cared although all had different stand points and views they stuck to their beliefs and ended with more love for each other in the end than they ever started with. In the white family there was the conservative ex-marine father who loved his children dearly but wanted them to be well behaved and often was hard on them. The mother was more liberal housewife who stood up for her and her children’s opinions to her husband. The oldest son Brian was a football star in high school and later goes on to join the marines and fight in Vietnam. The middle child Michael was very liberal active anti war student who marched with the blacks in the Birmingham. The youngest Katie was a young 16 year old who loved to party and have a good time. The black family was a family of good hearts and lots of hope.
All sins are forgivable and we are all sinners, but sin has to be recognized for what it is if divine mercy is to be had. So much of the talk about homosexuality is an understandable human effort to change the subject. Any reference to the wrongness of homosexuality is likely to invite the charge of homophobia, turning the accusation on the supposed accuser. But of course the moral law is not the property of anyone, and invoking it need not be an accusation. The problem is not how others react to homosexuality but the plight of the homosexual. And reaching out to the homosexual in his plight is the subject of this paper.
By Alex Sanchez, “The God Box” tackles the issue of Christianity and homosexuality. The story is told through Paul/Pedro, a devoted high school senior who has dated his best friend Angie since middle school, and they're good together. They like singing in their church choir, and go to Bible club together. But enter Manuel, a charismatic and openly gay transfer student with a charming dose of humor. As they became friends, Manuel challenged traditional Christian beliefs and Paul’s views about himself by presenting a new but warmer perspective. A take that makes Paul struggle to suppress his “not so Christian” feelings, and begins to question his own sexuality: “How could I choose between my sexuality and my spirituality, two of the most important parts that made me whole?” (Sanchez 64).
Joe and Harper present a moral dilemma that offers perhaps previously unexplored moral terrain to a predominantly heterosexual audience. When Joe comes out to Harper after years of marriage, Harper’s reactions vary, ranging from “I want this to stop, to go back,” to converse begging, “I want to get away from here. Far away. Right now,” and also an expression of indignance and betrayal over the fact that “[he was] going to save [her], but the whole time [he was] spinning a lie,” spurring the questions: should Joe have told Harper the truth and does the truth necessarily dissolve their marriage (2.9.65-66;73;77-78). But no clear answer exists to either question, an ambiguity made visible through Harper’s diverging emotions that imply Harper wants both the truth and ignorance and wants both an ending to the relationship and a lack of change. The dilemma created by Joe’s homosexuality cannot be answered by conventional morality, debasing the existing moral framework as inadequate, and implicitly, as our current methods of understanding the world default, we move towards a recognition that more complex people and experiences exist than we may have
Walsh’s intent of this article was to respond to a message he received and to show his view on controversy situated in today’s society. His use of pathos and logos is strong in this article. With biblical references and examples using those references, Matt gets a good grasp of ethos as well. A lot of the pathos Walsh uses comes from questions like “Do you want to leave your earthly pleasures behind, cut off whatever parts of your life are causing you to sin (Matthew 5:30), and die with Christ?” (Walsh). The logos comes from the extensive use of facts that he obtains from his ethos. For example, he states, “A sin is still a sin, and He instructs us to ‘go and sin no more’ (John 8:11)” when arguing that homosexuality may be considered a lifestyle in today’s standards, but not in the eyes of the Lord, and for one to come unto Him, one must drastically alter his or her way of life (Walsh). Walsh likes to use words such as ‘struggle’, ‘begging’, ‘pleading’, ‘hungers’, and other thought promoting adjectives to give his article the depth it needs to really hit the feelings of the reader. This pathos is strong as he places everyone in the same boat using the words ‘we’ and ‘you’ in such an extensive manner as he goes on to say that we, as individuals, have to fix our mistakes to become like Him in all that we do. The use of these words makes the reader ask themselves questions like “Am I good enough?” and “Where am I going in life?” Not only does Walsh use biblical references, but also quotes Chesterton and C.S. Lewis to establish that many authors out there have written against such a sinful lifestyle saying “… if we accept Heaven, we shall not be able to retain even the smallest and most intimate souvenirs of Hell” (Lewis, “The Great
In the play “True West” by Sam Shepard, there are two main characters Austin and Lee that are so different and similar due to their family culture of dysfunction. A dysfunctional family is one in which that shows conflict, hostile environments, inappropriate behaviors to not only upon them, but to those around them. In most dysfunctional families you will find children that have been neglected or abused by parents, to which most of these children tend to think that these such behaviors are normal. Shepard shows this relationship of dysfunction of a family between two brothers that shows one brother who thinks he has escaped the dysfunction, and one that has carried out the dysfunctional family culture.
Religious life has spawned times of war and times of peace and it has been responsible for changes in the human condition and even the course of human history. Professed beliefs are passed down by religious traditions, ideally speaking, these beliefs have consequences effecting social behavior. This analysis is particularly evident when examining the critiques of some Chris-tian [traditionalist] interpretations that take exception to gay culture. The underlined message to these persons arguments seem to be that condemning homosexuality in society is not about deny-ing ones rightful place in the world, but rather about steering people away from the nature of sin that is associated with undercurrents of its practice. The logic behind such a message is that all human beings are natural sinners however, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transsexual (LGBT) community just happens to be engaged in a more critical form of that sin through the activities surrounding their homosexual life-style. This understanding is, to Christian traditionalists, the Word of God and being such, they consider it to be a moral law. Adhering to this rule of under-standing often allows its believers a certain elitist justification that they consider to be beyond reproach. There are a few problems with many of the claims that support what these proponents of interpreted religious scripture and doctrine hold as sacred. The purpose of this paper means to challenge the social behavior and rhetoric stemming from Christian conservatives aimed at homo-sexuality, as well as, to exam the current state of affairs existing in gay culture as it pertains to religion, society, and the argu...
The acceptance of “abnormal” sexualities has been a prolonged, controversial battle. The segregation is excruciating and the prejudice remarks are so spiteful that some people never truly recover. Homosexuals have been left suffering for ages. Life, for most homosexuals during the first half of the twentieth century, was mostly one of hiding: having to constantly hide their true feelings and tastes. Instead of restaurants and movies, they had to sit quiet in the dark and meet each other in concealed places such as bars. Homosexuals were those with “mental and psychic abnormalities” and were the victim of medical prejudice, police harassment, and church condemnation (Jagose 24). The minuscule mention or assumption of one’s homosexuality could easily lead to the loss of family, livelihood, and sometimes even their lives. It was only after the Stonewall riots and the organization of gay/lesbian groups that times for homosexuals started to look brighter.
Homosexuality is a sensitive topic and often avoided in conversation. For centuries the human race has oppressed and persecuted others strictly because they are gay, lesbian, bisexual etc. Although disturbing to most of us, these actions still occur in our society today, as many believe that homosexuality is abnormal and disgraceful. One supporter of this belief is Michael Levin, who strongly believes that homosexuality is highly abnormal and thus, undesirable. Although his beliefs and theories supporting this claim are subjective, there is evidence that can support his stance on this topic; we will analyze this claim in further detail and how it relates to his other views mentioned in this essay.
We have all at some point or another heard someone say that God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve. This saying is an excellent example of how a large number of Christian fundamentalist feel about the homosexual community. Studies have shown that there are more Christian homophobes than there is homophobia in any other group or religion in the United States (Wolff, J. R., Himes, H. L., Kwon, E., & Bollinger, R. A., 2012). Homophobia is the irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals. In Christianity, homophobia represents misunderstanding and fear of the unknown.
Queer theology provides ways of approaching biblical perspectives with new insight. Scripture has historically been used as a means to oppress queer expressions of love. This tradition is now challenged by recognition of different cultural contexts. Further, specific readings that have been used to oppress: notably the Sodom and Gomorrah story; now seen in association with hospitality as opposed to