The Roots of Homophobia
Since the beginning of organized religion, the vast majority of our society has been raised to believe marriage equals children. Marriage must solely be between those of the opposite sex, and therefore homosexuality is wrong. Since the day I recognized the hardship and discrimination that gays and lesbians are put through on a regular basis, I asked myself: where have these warped views come from?
Was it because families needed extra hands for work around the house? Did the church encourage a fear of homosexuality to increase the birth rate and thus their congregations? Was it a too literal interpretation of the Bible teaching “no man shall lay with another man, nor shall a woman lay with another woman”? Or is it the ignorance and fright of the thought that we are afraid of the unknown? We are afraid of what has thought to be deemed a sin by God. And despite the numerous, and obviously contradictory, Bible verses demonstrating that He does not discriminate, “Peter said: “I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, “ (Acts 10:34) and “there is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female; all are one in Christ.” (Galatians 3:28), homophobics have missed the part in the verse “Love thy neighbour as thyself” (Matthew 5:43) where it didn’t specify gender.
I am not necessarily arguing against religious teachings themselves, though I do feel Christianity has been the main factor breeding this hateful discrimination. Religion has offered people hope and spirituality, given them someone to worship and a place to worship in, and allowed those with similar beliefs to gather like a family - I am by no means dictating that all religion and religious people are horrible.
However, we must recognize the impact beliefs have had on popularizing the idea of hating homosexuals.
Having said that, it raises one question: where does it say in the Bible that anyone, rich or poor, male or female, gay or straight, has the right to dictate how others live their lives? Nowhere. In fact, it clearly states the exact opposite: “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3, I of The Ten Commandments.) This includes making yourself God’s messenger, and taking it upon yourself to reinforce God’s supposed teachings, that mainly seem quite jaded and inconsistent.
These beliefs on homosexuality came from somewhere deeper than religion. They came from the people (for example, Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini) afraid of those who were different; those who challenged norms and defied what the majority valued. Perhaps somewhere along the line these same people, afraid of what they refused to understand, found they were losing ways to rein force what they thought was right. And perhaps the only other way to back up these odious beliefs was to use the Bible, vulnerable and open for exploitation.
Why has it become acceptable for people to discriminate, harass, and torment simply when they do not understand? And why has “love” become a scale on which we place people according to appearance, race, and sexual orientation?
It’s our role, as human beings, to help make our planet a better place for all to live in. Perhaps we need to start worrying more about the important issues in life, those threatening our very existence, like solving the war in Iraq and ridding the world of poverty, than who people decide to marry or what sexual orientation they decide to explore. Times have changed, values have changed, and people have changed. It’s time to put childish games to rest and accept this.
In the words of Barney the Dinosaur, “Everyone is special. Everyone in his or her own way.” Let’s go back to that.