[CS-FSLUG] To God be the Glory (re: Do Ex-Gays Exist?)

[Aaron Lehmann]

On Thu, May 12, 2005 at 05:53:34PM +0100, 'Mash wrote:
> >Word to that, I think.  Are you saying that it would be alright for a
> >person to be homosexual if he were "born gay"?  Or not?  I'm not sure of
> >the thrust of this paragraph.
> 
> What I am saying is that I believe in the genetics of homosexuality
> in till proven otherwise, and that being so called "born gay" is not a sin,
> but concerning Gods word the act of homosexual intercourse or similar 
> sexual acts are. I know it sounds contradictory to say that but, 
> genetically you may be born with the attraction to the same sex.
> You are one gender physically by maybe not 100% that gender hormonally, 
> chromosomally etc.
> 
> This is where I get stuck between whether being gay is a sin or not.
> If it is a genetic trait you have been given then by merely "being" you cannot
> be sinning. If the act of homosexuality is a sin, then by "being" 
> is not so much a sin but that of living in constant temptation. 
> This is a hard one, as I could not imagine having to fight my own physical 
> predisposition because it is a sin before God to give into it. 

Well, people are born with a predisposition toward alcoholism, etc.
They still have to deal with it.  It's not fair, but it is life.

> We have very little knowledge about homosexuality that I know of, 
> and I think that is because of the social implications that research could 
> create. I believe in the word of God concerning the act of homosexuality, 
> and that it is fornication and not Godly. But I refuse to judge someone because
> of their "homosexuality." 
> 
> BUT?
> 
> Is being gay attributed to the act of homosexuality or the 
> inward desire for homosexual activity?

I don't believe the Bible speaks about the subject of being gay, but
about homosexual acts.  Possibly I'm wrong.

> 
> That is the question isn't it... 
> 
> Is by being homosexual because of your genetic make up and having the
> disposition towards the same sex, which gives you homosexual mental
> desire, make you a sinner?
> 
> If the act of homosexuality is a sin, then is not entertaining those 
> acts in your mind a sin too?

I ccasionally see a pretty girl.  I can, in those situations, entertain
lewd thoughts about her, which is sinful, or I can give god praise for
making this woman attractive.

> 
> Do you then have to fight the mind, fight the body because it is not 
> a reflection of the soul. You are not your flesh, and your flesh has
> sinned against God in contruction within the womb.
> By "being" you will have to fight your flesh each day of your 
> life because of "genetic sin"

Aren't genetics changeable?  Don't particular lifestyles change one's
DNA?  I ask this question because I know that there are people far more
learned about biology and biochemistry on the list than I.

> 
> Maybe that is then the answer then, "genetic sin." 
> 
> We already know we are born into sin, is this not then a 
> dramatic physical manifestation of that very truth ? 

There's another word for this "genetic sin" you speak of.  It is
"curse."

Aaron Lehmann