Churches and homosexuality

Here on the same day, news about disparate churches and homosexuality.

#1.   Pope Francis acknowledged that there is a "gay lobby" within the Vatican.   What does that mean?   He didn't spell it out, but apparently it is a well-known secret that there are gay priests within the Vactican heirarchy.

Questions now arise:   Is this part of why the church's action initially was to protect the priests more than the victims?   Are they subject to blackmail from outsiders because of their secret?    Was Pope Benedict involved in some way, and did this contribute to his sudden retirement?

#2.  Now that the Boy Scouts of American endorses welcoming gay boys into the troops as members, though not adult leaders, some of the protestant churches that have sponsored scout troops are severing ties with BSA and the local troops.   Two big Atlanta area churches have notified their affiliated troops that they will not renew their charter.

An AJC article this morning says that these ousted troops will not lack for other religious groups coming forward with offers of sponsorship -- more than enough, it seems.

The message to take from both these news items is the same:   It is the attitude about homosexuality that is the problem, not the fact of gay identity and gay love.   The so-called gay lobby in the Vatican would be no big deal, in fact it wouldn't be a "lobby" at all if homosexuality were not condemned.

Scout troops that relax and accept all boys, with all their budding sexuality and confusion and angst, will soon find that it's no big deal.   Worried about what's going to happen in those tents after lights out?    Get over it.   Teen age boys have been fooling around with their friends for millemia;  most of them grow up to be straight.  The ones who grow up to be gay didn't get that way because of what happened on a scouting overnight.   Homophobic straights (or closeted gays who can't accept their own sexual desires) are the ones who make it a problem.

The bottom line:   In neither case is homosexuality the problem.   Gay men are not inherently predatory any more than straight men.   Nor are they any less committed to the welfare of boys placed in their trust.   Nor are they less qualified to help them develop into mature young men of good character and life skills.

Get over it.   The young people have been immersed in a non-heterosexist and non-homophobic culture.  Because they have come to know gays as friends and brothers, they don't feel threatened by their presence and have no trouble accepting them.

Ralph