| alphabassettgrrl |
09-23-2005 11:55 AM |
I think I love you, Prudence! Thanks for the history lesson. :)
'Goon, I think many people *do* equate homosexuality with pedophilia.
GC, I agree that among the most violent gay-haters are the closeted gay folks... so in that respect maybe keeping gay men away from the priesthood might be good. Then again, that just promotes denial. You can't lie because that's a sin, but to deny it... that's not a sin. It's a flaw, but not a sin so much. It's not something commonly thought of as a choice.
I actually think that a lot of self-hating gay men and perverts of all stripes go for religious orders. Not to equate them, except that both are strong, unacceptable urges. What better than to serve god? God will either cure you or take it on himself or solve your problem somehow. It doesn't seem to be as operative for women. Thus, we get these high level preachers, who devote themselves with all their hearts to god, and in the middle of the night have a secret. We get money scandals, sex scandals, their personal worlds collapsing when the secret demands to see the light of day. Jung called it the Shadow, and the more you repress it the more it demands. Preachers seem to be trying to lock it in a box in their heads and it doesn't work. You'd think we would have figured this out by now, but it doesn't seem we have.
As far as the celibacy thing goes, I agree that abstaining from sex is a good way to focus your energy on god. I disagree that it should be a permanent condition. Does work out well that celibate priests don't have children to ask about inheritance from the church... Ok, now I'm being cynical.
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