For the Bible Tells Me So is a documentary that explores the way people in the Christian church, more specifically literalists or fundamentalists have treated people who identify of liking the same gender who strive in the church. Most of these literalists will use their religious book, the Bible, to wrong those that are following the ways of homosexuality by taking it quite literally. Through this, it shows how religious groups play a role on many families who have a daughter or a son who identify themselves as homosexual. Through this analysis using the symbolic interactionist perspective, it is evident that religion is causing the people who identify as homosexual to see themselves in a different light. The sociological symbolic interactionist perspective is a major microsociological perspective stressing the importance of messages from others and society, how people understand and interpret these messages, and how this process affects people’s behaviors (Farley and Flota 2012). Through this perspective, it is evident that people who identify themselves as homosexual often receive positive or negative messages from their families, especially parents. Most of their parents come from a very religious background or play an important role in the church and community. The people or children who are homosexual often look at their self image differently because of the messages they receive not only from their families, the Bible, but also from the people who hold picket signs showing hatred towards homosexual. The Church holds different values, also known as personal preferences, likes and dislikes, or judgements about what is good and desirable or bad and undesirable (Farley and Flota 2012), they often gain values from their religio... ... middle of paper ... ...erally, and remember where the text came from and what the culture was like in its day and age. The young woman who committed suicide, had a poor self image, also known as the totality of the type of person that once perceives oneself to be (Farley and Flota 2012). Her self image was considerably low due to the fact that she was having suicidal thoughts. She most likely perceived herself as someone who was not accepted for who she truly was, especially by her mother. The lack of support that she received by being homosexual, probably gave her the message that who she was as a person was unacceptable. She fell towards suicidal thoughts and ultimately took her life away which is something seen often in media whether it is because the person feels as they are unaccepted by people who are close to them or because of the hatred and bullying they receive from others.
“For the Bible Tells Me So,” is a documentary about religion and homosexuality. Primarily, the film depicts the struggles of several individuals as they realize they are gay, and how this affects their relationship with faith and family. The film illustrates how devastating the suffering some gays face and the struggles some Christian families encounter when a family member is gay. It is heartbreaking to watch moments of hate-mongering and discrimination against homosexuals, especially when done by family members or in the name of one’s religion.
Homosexuality has existed since the beginning of recorded human history and yet, attitudes towards gay and lesbian individuals vary extensively. Some societies tolerate them; others openly welcome and encourage them; and most blatantly condemn them (Bates, 46). Throughout our country’s history, homosexuals have been misunderstood and discriminated against, leading many to acquire an irrational fear of gays and lesbians. Known as homophobia, this fear has prompted heterosexual individuals with a feeling a superiority and authority when using the word “homosexual” interchangeably with the words pervert, faggot, sodomite, and so on. Homophobes typically perceive homosexuality as a threat to society. Nonetheless, the Gay Rights Movement has achieved impressive progress since 1973 when the American Psychological Association (APA) eradi...
The essay by Peter J. Gomes, entitled �Homophobic? Read Your Bible,� can be analyzed in many ways. The essay discusses the issue of homosexuality as it relates to religion. The Baptist minister provides an unexpected approach to the subject. Mr. Gomes�s thesis statement in this essay is, �The army of the discontented, eager for clear villains and simple solutions and ready for a crusade in which political self-interest and social anxiety can be cloaked in morality, has found hatred of homosexuality to be the last respectable prejudice of the century� (�Homophobic� 414). This essay uses effective evidence to prove the thesis statement while also doing a good job of refuting opposing views.
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.
Homophobia does not allow homosexuals to use public and private places as heterosexuals use to socialize and have fun . The homosexual community suffer from some of the following descrimination like are showing affection in public or dance in a lounge, bar or night club, or even be in a restaurant; attend church, or be considered for family, work or political activities. Finally, homosexuals as human being they are inevitably discriminated in places such as work, family and educational environments. Society is responsible for creating a number of negative prejudices and stereotypes toward homosexual orientation; making homosexuals feel insecure about themselves in areas such as intellectual and emotional level. The rejection among homosexual relations is caused due to the need to procreation feel these people to satisfy their desires to perform as father or man role model. The fear felt by homosexuals that are not being accepted by the family, forces them to repress their feelings and sexual desires. The acceptance and respect of a parent for their kid being homosexual is vital, so the children can develop without no fears or
One of the many issues that homophobic people have against homosexuals is that being brought up in an “untraditional” home is not good for the children. There have...
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“Equal rights for lesbians and gay men may be the greatest civil rights battle of the 21st century” (Avery 2007, p. 71). Homosexual couples have been fighting a losing battle for years, and their struggle has recently taken the spotlight once again as a burning topic. Over the years, many people have come to support equal love. However, many Americans still advocate the one man-one woman institution of marriage. The fight for equal rights in general has always been a complex issue. African Americans, women, and many other minorities have had to fight for the rights that they hold today. There are many factors involved in gay activism such as support, attitudes, roles, and the implications of the movement. Social psychology takes a particular interest in gay rights and these factors in particular, as it is a current, controversial topic within American society.
The often overlooked GLBT history is one which is important to be aware of when analyzing the GLBT movement of the current era. Although the very term homosexual is a relatively new one, examples throughout history give insight into the views of GLBT issues. A clear shift in tolerance can be seen in the transition from Pagan religions to Christianity in Ancient Greece and Rome. Similar shifts, both positive and negative, exist as well. Changing popular beliefs is a very slow process, although the widespread tolerance of the GLBT population today is promising but there still is much more work to be done.
Homosexual! Deviant! Abomination! Sodomite! Pervert! Vocabulary such as this is used every Sunday in churches across the United States of America. While the majority of believers within a conservative congregation might proudly shout “AMEN!” each time one of these terms is spouted off from behind the pulpit, others cringe as they sink further and further down into their seats. These believers sit quietly and pray that their discomfort isn’t noticeable to others; desperately hoping that the person behind the mask they wear remains undiscovered. For these believers the mask they wear is essential for them to remain a part of a faith community. This scenario is played out in the everyday lives of gay individuals that feel as though they are forced to choose between who they are and what they believe. While some wear a mask and deny their sexuality, others walk away from their faith completely. Each individual that attempts to reconcile their faith with their sexuality has a unique journey, but unfortunately not all have a happy ending.
The pastor Sam Allberry offers an insightful view into his experience of homosexuality as a practising Christian in his book Is God Anti-Gay? and clearly highlights how the Bible deals with the topic of same-sex attraction and sexual acts. Since Jesus’ time, homosexuality in the Church has been frowned upon as rejecting God’s will for humanity. Genesis emphasises the unity between male and female leading to procreation as God commanded humankind to “be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28). However, Allberry shows ‘that the Bible is not fixated on homosexuality… What the Bible says about homosexuality does not represent everything God wants to say to homosexual people’. In this essay I will focus on Allberry’s analysis of homosexuality in biblical
Alan Shlemon’s book, The Ambassador’s Guide to Understanding Homosexuality seeks to equip believers to defend their convictions about Biblical marriage, sexuality, and gender identity by communicating truth in a compassionate way. Shlemon realizes that truth spoken without compassion will lead to hostility while compassion spoken without truth leads to compromise. Both are essential when being applied to the LGBT issue. The Ambassador’s Guide to Understanding Homosexuality seeks to explore the issue of homosexuality from a Biblical perspective and to equip Christians to handle the issue adequately in an increasingly hostile culture.
The specific audience is anyone who has ever felt the need to judge a homosexual’s sexuality preference, specifically Christians. We see this through the verbal intention...
Looking specifically at Illinois school social workers, Krieglstein (2003) measured heterosexism in connection with previous education, religion, and positive contacts with members of the LGBT community. The ATLG scale was administered to 409 workers who held an MSW degree. The sample consisted of 84% white, 77% female, and over 65% Christian (Krieglstein, 2003). 15% of the school social workers had scores indicating nonheterosexist attitudes, while 5% showed scores that indicated heterosexist attitudes. The amount of education on sexual orientation was found to have a negative correlation with the participants scores, showing that the more education they received, the lower their level of heterosexists attitudes appeared to be. 78% of the respondents stated that they had no previous or insufficient training with LGBT clients (Krieglstein, 2003). A positive correlation was found between religiosity and heterosexism, with 65% of the participants indicating a strong adherence to the Christian faith. The findings of (Crisp, 2012; Berkman & Zinberg, 1997) were similar to the findings of Krieglstein (2003), which showed that there is a negative correlation between the participant’s negative attitudes toward LGBT individuals and the amount of education they have received on the topic.
Throughout history homosexuality has been considered vulgar, perverse and immoral. What is truly immoral is homophobia and that it still prevails today. Firstly, homophobia derived from prejudice and escalated to panic. Secondly, homophobic attitudes are endorsed and practiced by many places of worship, which are hypocritical to God’s concept of the Golden Rule. Thirdly, the severity of homophobia has reached a point of no return, where the lives of many innocent have been viciously taken away. Lastly, many individuals choose to practice homophobia, whether it is a personal choice or not. Homophobia is the result of fear, ignorance and intolerance.