Is being gay a personal choice or were people born like that? This has been a very controversial question for many years. Priests are now responding in the Lincoln Journal Star Newspaper. Reverend Stephen Griffith wants the community to know his feelings about gays, responding to an old article saying “homosexuality is a sin”. Him, along with seven other local priests, agree that the gay population should not be shunned away or discriminated because of their sexuality arguing that God made them that way.
As a child I wasn’t really aware of the gay community, and was confused on why people would make that choice. As the years passed, I met many new friends, mostly straight but a few homosexuals. I came to the realization that being gay was not a choice and you are born that way. It is sad that our nation allows companies to fire a person, male or female; if they find out they are gay. Nebraska, along with thirty other states permits it. How hard would that be to lie on a day to day basis and feel undermined because of your sexual orientation? That has to really take a toll on many people. This is sad that many have to hide their true identity from the world just to hold a job or maybe keep friends.
I was born into a religious Catholic family. We went to church every Sunday and I attended a private school from the age of four to fourteen. Some priests made it seem that being gay was wrong and it was against our religious views, others had no comment. Yes, in the Bible there are some verses that reject homosexuality but does that mean everyone has to? The Bible also says slavery is part of the social system and stoning people to death is okay but we have come to the realization that the Bible is not always right. I am glad that these local priests are speaking their mind, helping people understand that every person in the community should be treated fairly and with respect. Hopefully our local readers are touched by this article and can maybe put their feet in homosexuals’ shoes one day and get a feeling on how they are treated.