Into the Light: Coming Out

I would like to discuss coming out as a homosexual and tearing down other facades. From reading the title of this post you may be thinking that I am coming out as a homosexual. If you are, do not let go of those thoughts just yet. If you did not think this, consider it. I am not a homosexual, however, but keep those initial reactions or thoughts in mind. What did you think? How did you feel?

Once you answered these questions, now move on and discern what may be irking you in your own soul. Is there something in your soul that is dark and covered up from the rest of the world, even your closest friends and family? I wish to address those deep dark spots of our souls. I want to bring to light what may be ailing us in hopes to renew our lives. I will discuss what I feel our society should embrace, and how we can aid in this endeavor on a local level.

One of the biggest social issues today is the issue of homosexuality. There is no doubt that elections are filled with discussions on laws regarding homosexuality, the veil has been removed, and society is now addressing the issue of homosexuality in the open. This is certainly good. To bring something out of darkness you must bring it into the light. More secrecy and darkness does not bring light to anything. Satan certainly knows this. Satan can operate most effectively in darkness, and this is precisely where our most sensitive parts of ourselves often reside.

After the fall of Rome and the rise of Christian Europe, homosexuality and other sexual openness was covered. Ancient Rome and Greece made the 1960's sexual revolution look like amateur hour. Sexuality was a great part of these two societies, and so much so that St. Paul would often address sins of the flesh in his Epistles. In fact, for anyone that is struggling with sins of the flesh, I highly recommend diving into the Epistles. Great strength can be found in the words of the great Apostle, and I have benefited from them so much so, that that is one of the main reasons I made him my Patron on Holy Saturday 2013.

Bottom line up front (or in the middle I guess), is that we need to carefully uncover the veil Christians often place on sexuality (homosexuality in particular here). As a Catholic, I think we can absolutely share a beautiful message regarding homosexuality. Over the past several years there has been an on going "it gets better" campaign. I think Catholics can certainly be added to this message with its own beautiful teachings. If you are a person with homosexual tendencies, I urge you to come out. Sounds easy enough, but I am aware that it definitely is not. While it should be easier, it must also be said that coming out should be calculated amidst a world of confusion regarding the issue.

The first step is to run to Christ. Christ should be the center of our lives, and thus we should bring everything to him. This should not only include all of our joys, but also our darkest deepest parts of our sinfulness. If we continue to bury troubling thoughts or feelings, we will only hurt ourselves more in the long run. Bringing the darkest of sin into the light of Christ is the first step in sending Satan back to the drawing board (it is naive at best to think Satan will run from us forever; he is foolish and determined). Running to Christ has several steps in itself, but they are available to us. Being Christocentric is absolutely vital.

In running to Christ it is very beneficial to run to the Sacraments Christ gives to us through his Church. Reconciliation (Confession) and the Eucharist are the two Sacraments that will feed you Spiritually as you grow in Christocentrism. I must make absolutely clear that the Church does not hate the homosexual. Anyone who acts out in hate against a homosexual child of God is acting out of their own sinfulness, and not in accordance with Church teaching. This is a good time to introduce Church teaching on the matter. It is important to know that the Church does not teach that homosexuality is grounds for being hated or ridiculed.

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church (source: www.vatican.va):
Chastity and homosexuality
2357 Homosexuality refers to relations between men or between women who experience an exclusive or predominant sexual attraction toward persons of the same sex. It has taken a great variety of forms through the centuries and in different cultures. Its psychological genesis remains largely unexplained. Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity,141 tradition has always declared that "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered."142 They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.
2358 The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.
2359 Homosexual persons are called to chastity. By the virtues of self-mastery that teach them inner freedom, at times by the support of disinterested friendship, by prayer and sacramental grace, they can and should gradually and resolutely approach Christian perfection.
Foot notes:
141 Cf. Gen 19:1-29; Rom 1:24-27; 1 Cor 6:10; 1 Tim 1:10.
142 CDF, Persona humana 8.

To sum up 2357; homosexuality exists and always has, not everything is known about homosexuality, and Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition hold that homosexual actions are sinful. Paragraph 2358 is the most overlooked piece of Church teaching regarding homosexuality. It states, "They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition." Homosexuals are called to be active members of the Body of Christ. They should not be cast out like lepers used to be. They are called to share in the beauty of the Gospel. What a beautiful message!

Paragraph 2359 is arguably the largest point of contention between the mainstream homosexual community and the Church. This is the second step; pursuing chastity. This may be the most difficult step, because it requires more action from us versus receiving grace from God through the Sacraments. Chastity is holy and beautiful. Our society seems to teach us that sex is the ultimate fulfillment of ourselves. It makes perfect sense that the world can only offer satisfaction of the flesh, because that's all that it truly possesses. The world cannot possess the spiritual, because the spiritual comes from God not the world.

The Church has responded to the need of supporting homosexuals and their call to chastity. Apostolates such as Courage (for the homosexual person) and EnCourage (for families and friends of homosexuals) exist, bloggers are beginning to voice their journeys, and of course the Sacraments offer assistance in this endeavor as well. I must stress that the Church loves everyone. Simply because some teachings don't mesh with popular culture, doesn't mean the Church hates people. This argument is used to belittle the beauty that is the Bride of Christ. The resources I mentioned are below. Credo Domine.

Resources:
1. Catechism of the Catholic Church
2. Courage
3. EnCourage
4. LifeTeen
5. Steve Gershom
6. US Conference of Catholic Bishops

The Coca Cola Hoopla: America die Schoene

During the Superbowl Coca Cola, arguably the soft drink giant of the world, presented a commercial that contained a multi-lingual version "America the Beautiful". Almost immediately, people took to social media to cry foul. I must admit one second into the commercial I said, "What?", but once more languages were presented, I smiled. This was a beautiful one minute display of America. Before I go on, I must say that at the end of the day this was still an advertisement for Coca Cola, and its message is very clear.

"America was founded by the British, and they speak English!" some cry out. I am quick to respond, but the Brits weren't the only ones there. The French were involved, as well as the Spanish. America was founded by multiple cultures, with the British culture being the dominant one. We must also not forget the numerous Native American cultures that were here long before the Pilgrims. Following the colonial times, more cultures were introduced into the American picture. Irish and German immigrants came. Asians came to America during the Gold Rush and building of the Intercontinental Railroad. Eastern Europeans followed, and America quickly became the melting pot we know today. I like to think we are more like a robust stew rather than simply a melting pot.

We are the most diverse country on earth. A great example of this is our Olympic team. European teams are beginning to look like ours, but our Olympic team is still the greatest mix of ethnic backgrounds. The Chinese team looks... Chinese. The Scandinavian teams look... Scandinavian. The Italian team looks... Italian. The American team looks... Diverse. You cannot present a picture of a person and say they are American, based on just their physical features. We can identify an Italian, or a Korean, or a person of Middle Eastern descent, but we cannot identify an American the same way. This puts America at a huge advantage! We have people from all over the world. Different cultures make up the United States of America, and it indeed is beautiful.

Knowing that America is a robust stew, we must now accept that this stew does not only speak English. Our official documents may be in English, because most Americans speak this language, but our official language does not exist. The United States does not have an official language by law, but merely by default. This does not mean we must throw out other languages! "America the Beautiful" was written in English, sure, but even Church hymns were written in other languages. The Bible was mainly written in Hebrew and Greek; Aramaic was a popular language in Jesus' day. Does that mean it is time to learn Hebrew and Greek and only speak in these languages when speaking theologically? Certainly not! God did not change everyone's language to Aramaic or Hebrew at the Pentecost, no, He enable the disciples to speak other languages! 

We are America die Schoene (beautiful in German). We are a beautiful collection of cultures, from sea to shining see. We should be celebrating this! Soldiers died for this! I'm not even going to begin ranting about how grieved I am when I hear, "Soldiers did not die for a multi-lingual America". Yes, I saw a Facebook post that pretty much said that. All things said, at the end of the day this Coca Cola ad was just that, an ad. Its message is clear;  America is for all people, and Coca Cola is too so drink it. The fact that I am ranting about it, and people are up in arms about it, shows that this was indeed a genius advertisement. What's the genius? We are thinking, arguing, and talking about Coca Cola. Cheers.