Love. That is the Greatest Commandment.

According to the priests and scholars with whom I’ve chatted about this topic, being gay is not a sin. But marriage is between a man and a woman, and since gay couples can’t marry, they should not be having sex, because sex is for marriage. If you read closely, before they can be blessed, these couples must “be conformed to God’s will.”

To me, this is the meat of it. Loving someone else is not a sin, regardless of their gender. As is typical of Christians, sex is the problem. The implication appears to be that faithful Christians would abstain.

It’s more mental gymnastics, and I’m well aware of that. I also think that this Pope is a clever man. All along, his mission has been to welcome all. To me, this is the equivalent of desegregation. Many will balk. There will be anger and harassment. But eventually it will become the norm, and maybe someday we’ll get another Pope who cares more about Jesus’ teachings than all the stupid rules that most people ignore unless it suits them.

My self-righteous uncle decided to chime in on the conversation.  He and I have had years of silence between us because he is one of those hostile Christians who acts as if it’s his job to sniff out other people’s business and correct their behavior.

My uncle’s brand of Christianity is precisely what drove me away from it.  It just so happens that the kind of anxiety that kind of Christianity gave me is oppressing one of my nieces who is no relation to this particular uncle.
She’s 14 years old, and out of nowhere, she’s having panic attacks that she’s not a good Christian.  I sent my sister an email about what I experienced as a teen and when she got back to me she told me that my sweet niece is using the same language.
The weird part, is that they don’t go to church.  She is mostly home schooled, so we don’t know where she’s getting this.
Aside from the fact that she’s having these panic attacks, the thing that really sucks is that she and I have been so excited about the premier of Percy Jackson on Disney+.  Now, because that brand of Christianity believes that if it’s not for us, it’s against us.  Christian vs. Secular.  If you could hear my eyes rolling, right now, it would be deafening.I will never pretend to have read the Bible cover to cover.  The only part of the Bible that really has value to me, are the words attributed to Jesus.  Jesus does not condemn sinners.  He welcomes them to his table and shows them hospitality.
While I’m not fond of this anaology because it implies that gay people are “ill,” when Jesus is asked why he hangs around with tax collectors and sinners, Jesus replies, “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”
To be clear, I do not believe that anything about being gay is a sin.  I reference this scripture to show that for someone who tells me I can’t pick and choose which scripture I want to believe, he’s ignoring scripture that proves that Pope Frances is doing Jesus’ will.

I’ve said this before, but I’ll say it again.  I don’t believe that Jesus was Divine.  I believe he was a man who had a vision for which He was willing to die.
I don’t think this changes the value of Jesus’ teachings.  If anything, I think it makes them more powerful.
Is it really a “sacrifice” if you know that when you die, God will be there to soothe your wounds?

The Bible says “For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believeth in Him, shall not perish, but have ever lasting life.”

Let’s analyze this.  A sacrifice means giving up something of value.  If I let my sister borrow my car for a few days,  I haven’t sacrificed anything.  I don’t mean to be irreverent, because I do consider myself a Christian, but if God is all knowing and has existed for eternity, loaning us Jesus for somewhere between 33 and 38 years, that’s not a sacrifice.  That’s like, “hey, can I borrow your pen for a second?”

If, however, we believe that Jesus was just a regular man, his works and death are far more powerful.  He continued to speak against the hypocrisy in the temple, knowing that he was jeopardizing his own safety.  He had no more idea of what the afterlife might be than you or I do, but he was relentless until it cost him his life.
Even after being tortured and finally hung on that cross, Jesus cried out, “Forgive them.”
Having been hurt by people in my life, I know how hard it is to release that anger and find forgiveness in my heart.  To me, that is Jesus’ great sacrifice.  He practiced what he preached.
Just love them.  If God wants to judge them, leave it to God.

I  have finally been able to admit to myself that I don’t believe that God is a sentient entity.  I believe that God is Love.  Nothing I have ever experienced in a church has given me the joy that just loving generously has given.
I recently came across this saying:

“SI VIS AMARI AMA:  If you wish to be loved, love.”

Lucius Annaeus Seneca the Elder, c. 54 BC – c. AD 39

I knew this, but didn’t have a way to articulate it.  Now that I do, it has become clear to me that this is the meaning of life.  There are so many people out there who just want to be loved.  I used to be one of them, but now I realize how loved I truly am.
Part of that is a group of young people for whom I have been a mentor in one form or another.  I consider them such a blessing, and they seem absolutely gobsmacked that I actually love having them around me.
Some of these are young women who have shared secrets with me that I believe they wouldn’t share with many other people.  I know that it’s the fact that I just keep loving them without judging them that leads them to appreciate my attention.
Whatever one believes God to be, I cannot believe that doing anything but loving these people is required to keep me out of hell (which I do not believe in, anyway).