Moving On From Overhearing Hateful Remarks from A Churchgoing Person
Early today while waiting for the ferry boat to Manhattan from Staten Island, I overheard two middle-aged looking guys talking and what they were talking about covered topics that sounded interesting to me. And so I paid attention, even if I didn't really intend to listen to people's conversation at that early time in the morning. I told myself I could use the material in my writing, and so this secret wish gets fulfilled along the way.
As far as I could be bothered to recall and could make out from the thread of their conversation, one of the guys would say "These homosexuals think they have more rights than ordinary folks like us." I noted that he was wearing the outfit of a security detail person, and was describing someone he saw doing something despicable before his eyes while doing his work close to where the guy placed himself next to a car. And that he would be calling the cops who would show up to approach the said man and deal with what he was doing in that location. And he would be switching from English to Spanish in his cute accent, which is common to most bilinguals. He apparently is sincere, scared and not familiar (or would rather not become familiar) more intimately with people from the LGBT community. His friend would just stand and looked like he was listening intently to him.
He would say "I can just imagine how our descendants would look at us if they see representatives of our kind being displayed in the Natural Museum and where they would be posed in different sexual positions in exhibitions." He lambasted gay people for their temerity to get married with each other, and would say that he abhors the very possibility that they would insist on getting themselves married in churches in due time. And that these gay people would file charges if the priests would refuse to do so. He would express his disgust on how gay people have been leading primarily immoral lives following the standards found in the Bible, which says a lot of things on people's practices that include admonitions on and punishments for actions deemed to be pagan-like (and not supposed to be practiced by the chosen people of God).
It's really disturbing. And this is making me angry and I would have wanted to go near them and say aloud my mind. But I soon realized the guys have the right to speak out their minds, just like the same rights I have to express mine. And I don't want to behave like an activist, of which I'm not (I'm leading my life the way I've chosen for myself, as the Lord leads me accordingly). I think he meant well and he's just being misinformed and has chosen to limit his world view according to how his eyes can still manage to see at this period of his life. And I personally think it's hopeless to change individuals who have been so set with their lives, they're so ready to die anytime soon everytime a mind boggling change takes place in their relatively comfortable, enclosed, exclusive worlds.
The LGBT community is made of real people, each one of whom is an individual with a different personality. The same is true with the straight community. It's really dangerous for each one of us to look at others as if they're just members of a certain community. And human sexuality and its attendant displays of behavior show up in a continuum. Believe me, at the risk of exposing unwittingly those practices I do myself, I've seen and have known people who claim to be straights and they really do strange practices as well. For example, have you seen how some members of the Mormon congregation practice the sharing of one husband for many wives? And some of them live together in the same house. Also, have you seen how straight couples who love each other would engage in sexual and fun practices with other individuals for mere pleasure-seeking purposes they commonly share and agree on?
People who are conveniently boxed in community-labels are actually individuals who have traits different from each other, and we have to always emphasize this. This will help explain so called abberations, abnormalities, deviations, and get ourselves reassured that each one of us is just as different as we are similar to each other in some areas. And I'm surprised meeting and knowing people who often are religious (I'm religious myself; I practically go to my Friday evening prayer meetings every week and would go hear the Sunday mass unless I'm doing part-time jobs. And I could pray the rosary myself) and who would unknowingly behave in a hateful manner toward others who don't fit their norms. I could only wish they would start making really good use of the minds given them by the Lord.
I wonder when is the time coming when these individuals would be confronted in their limited views at looking at individual differences by engulfind naturally occuring circumstances. I have more to say along these thoughts and will share them as soon as I get the chance again. I guess it's easier to hate others rather than love them for who they are---the last time I read my Bible, I've seen how the everliving God continues to love each one of us as unique creations of His. And there couldn't be a place for conveniently grouping individuals like they're just part of the herd meant to be tortured slowly and killed in due time. Religion becomes a crutch for others who can't think for themselves.
As the ferry came soon, I decided I'd move on from this terrible early morning vicarious experience.
As far as I could be bothered to recall and could make out from the thread of their conversation, one of the guys would say "These homosexuals think they have more rights than ordinary folks like us." I noted that he was wearing the outfit of a security detail person, and was describing someone he saw doing something despicable before his eyes while doing his work close to where the guy placed himself next to a car. And that he would be calling the cops who would show up to approach the said man and deal with what he was doing in that location. And he would be switching from English to Spanish in his cute accent, which is common to most bilinguals. He apparently is sincere, scared and not familiar (or would rather not become familiar) more intimately with people from the LGBT community. His friend would just stand and looked like he was listening intently to him.
He would say "I can just imagine how our descendants would look at us if they see representatives of our kind being displayed in the Natural Museum and where they would be posed in different sexual positions in exhibitions." He lambasted gay people for their temerity to get married with each other, and would say that he abhors the very possibility that they would insist on getting themselves married in churches in due time. And that these gay people would file charges if the priests would refuse to do so. He would express his disgust on how gay people have been leading primarily immoral lives following the standards found in the Bible, which says a lot of things on people's practices that include admonitions on and punishments for actions deemed to be pagan-like (and not supposed to be practiced by the chosen people of God).
It's really disturbing. And this is making me angry and I would have wanted to go near them and say aloud my mind. But I soon realized the guys have the right to speak out their minds, just like the same rights I have to express mine. And I don't want to behave like an activist, of which I'm not (I'm leading my life the way I've chosen for myself, as the Lord leads me accordingly). I think he meant well and he's just being misinformed and has chosen to limit his world view according to how his eyes can still manage to see at this period of his life. And I personally think it's hopeless to change individuals who have been so set with their lives, they're so ready to die anytime soon everytime a mind boggling change takes place in their relatively comfortable, enclosed, exclusive worlds.
The LGBT community is made of real people, each one of whom is an individual with a different personality. The same is true with the straight community. It's really dangerous for each one of us to look at others as if they're just members of a certain community. And human sexuality and its attendant displays of behavior show up in a continuum. Believe me, at the risk of exposing unwittingly those practices I do myself, I've seen and have known people who claim to be straights and they really do strange practices as well. For example, have you seen how some members of the Mormon congregation practice the sharing of one husband for many wives? And some of them live together in the same house. Also, have you seen how straight couples who love each other would engage in sexual and fun practices with other individuals for mere pleasure-seeking purposes they commonly share and agree on?
People who are conveniently boxed in community-labels are actually individuals who have traits different from each other, and we have to always emphasize this. This will help explain so called abberations, abnormalities, deviations, and get ourselves reassured that each one of us is just as different as we are similar to each other in some areas. And I'm surprised meeting and knowing people who often are religious (I'm religious myself; I practically go to my Friday evening prayer meetings every week and would go hear the Sunday mass unless I'm doing part-time jobs. And I could pray the rosary myself) and who would unknowingly behave in a hateful manner toward others who don't fit their norms. I could only wish they would start making really good use of the minds given them by the Lord.
I wonder when is the time coming when these individuals would be confronted in their limited views at looking at individual differences by engulfind naturally occuring circumstances. I have more to say along these thoughts and will share them as soon as I get the chance again. I guess it's easier to hate others rather than love them for who they are---the last time I read my Bible, I've seen how the everliving God continues to love each one of us as unique creations of His. And there couldn't be a place for conveniently grouping individuals like they're just part of the herd meant to be tortured slowly and killed in due time. Religion becomes a crutch for others who can't think for themselves.
As the ferry came soon, I decided I'd move on from this terrible early morning vicarious experience.
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