From the heavens,
and the heights above,
all the angels
show your love.
The sun and moon,
and the shining stars,
deepest waters,
skies so far...
We can love forever,
never pass away.
All the lightning,
clouds and wind,
moving mountains,
and trees that bend,
the wild creatures
and the mighty birds
show your love
all across the Earth...
We can love forever,
never pass away.
We can love forever,
through the night and the day.
We can love forever,
and never pass,
never pass away.
And an authentic NIV translation for you too :-)
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Sunday, April 03, 2005
Celibacy and Homosexuality
Being a Catholic Christian, I believe that marriage is only valid between a man and a woman, and that only married couples should have sex.
Having said that, I don't think that having the homosexual tendency in your thoughts and feelings is any worse than heterosexual thoughts and feelings. Indeed, having lustful thoughts toward anyone who is not your spouse is sinful.
There is no discriminatory standard against homosexuality in the Church, or there shouldn't be. We are all human, and we all have lustful feelings towards both sexes at one time or another. There is the same standard for all humans.
I consider homosexuals having sex outside of marriage the same as heterosexuals having sex outside of marriage. I am tolerant and loving toward people who do it, although I don't personally think it's the best thing.
Homosexuals have to face something very difficult, as we all do in our own way. We all have our own issues that make it hard to be human. Homosexuality is just another part of being human, and it's clear that it occurs naturally. As long as it's not acted on, I don't see this particular tendency as being bad.
Some people are not called to marry, and Paul even discourages people from getting married(if it can be avoided) quite emphatically, as in 1 Corinthians 7. So it is quite an expectable(although difficult for most) thing according to Paul for people to just go through life celibate.
The problem comes in where everyone wants to have sex, no matter what orientation. And so people act to get what they want without doing it properly(i.e. without marriage). It's the same problem with everyone.
A close analogy is if a friend wants something in your house that belongs to your parents, but you don't feel like waiting to ask your parents, so you decide to give it and hope everything works out ok.
I believe God owns our bodies, and we should get permission from Him through marriage in the appropriate way before we can give our bodies to someone else. All this, of course, precludes some belief in traditional Christianity.
Having said that, I don't think that having the homosexual tendency in your thoughts and feelings is any worse than heterosexual thoughts and feelings. Indeed, having lustful thoughts toward anyone who is not your spouse is sinful.
There is no discriminatory standard against homosexuality in the Church, or there shouldn't be. We are all human, and we all have lustful feelings towards both sexes at one time or another. There is the same standard for all humans.
I consider homosexuals having sex outside of marriage the same as heterosexuals having sex outside of marriage. I am tolerant and loving toward people who do it, although I don't personally think it's the best thing.
Homosexuals have to face something very difficult, as we all do in our own way. We all have our own issues that make it hard to be human. Homosexuality is just another part of being human, and it's clear that it occurs naturally. As long as it's not acted on, I don't see this particular tendency as being bad.
Some people are not called to marry, and Paul even discourages people from getting married(if it can be avoided) quite emphatically, as in 1 Corinthians 7. So it is quite an expectable(although difficult for most) thing according to Paul for people to just go through life celibate.
The problem comes in where everyone wants to have sex, no matter what orientation. And so people act to get what they want without doing it properly(i.e. without marriage). It's the same problem with everyone.
A close analogy is if a friend wants something in your house that belongs to your parents, but you don't feel like waiting to ask your parents, so you decide to give it and hope everything works out ok.
I believe God owns our bodies, and we should get permission from Him through marriage in the appropriate way before we can give our bodies to someone else. All this, of course, precludes some belief in traditional Christianity.
Power and Corruption
Everyone likes having power(aka getting what we want when we want it), and we all also like it if there is an easy way to get what we want, and this includes power.
Women in society see that men(almost half the population) have a strong weakness for lustful thoughts and actions.
Men in society see that they are stronger than more than half the population (i.e. women).
These are possible routes of least resistance to gaining power; a third is being just slimy, which can apply to either gender, and will usually be accompanied with sex & violence.
However, we know that the more power you have, the more you tend to be corrupted. Consider the example in the Hitchhiker series, where the ruler of the universe was made to not know he was the ruler, so he could be totally pure in his decisions.
In the same way, I would say the only way to gain power without corrupting yourself is to gain power without trying to gain power, and not trying to keep it once you know you have it. In other words, don't pursue actions with intent to increase or maintain your power.
When you do, you end up corrupted(letting yourself be treated as a sex object, or being a violent person, or being a compulsive liar or cheat).
Women in society see that men(almost half the population) have a strong weakness for lustful thoughts and actions.
Men in society see that they are stronger than more than half the population (i.e. women).
These are possible routes of least resistance to gaining power; a third is being just slimy, which can apply to either gender, and will usually be accompanied with sex & violence.
However, we know that the more power you have, the more you tend to be corrupted. Consider the example in the Hitchhiker series, where the ruler of the universe was made to not know he was the ruler, so he could be totally pure in his decisions.
In the same way, I would say the only way to gain power without corrupting yourself is to gain power without trying to gain power, and not trying to keep it once you know you have it. In other words, don't pursue actions with intent to increase or maintain your power.
When you do, you end up corrupted(letting yourself be treated as a sex object, or being a violent person, or being a compulsive liar or cheat).
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