gerg, the gay supporter

i just signed a petition to the prime minister supporting the repeal of the infamous statute 377A. did i turn gay? whoa... of course not! in fact, sad to say, i still consider myself to be somewhat of a homophobe... i'm cautious around gays, inclined side with homophobic language, and highly uncomfortable with discussing gay sexuality (talking about lesbians is fine tho).

of course, the main issue here is:
how can i support the repeal of an anti-homosexual act law as a Catholic?

that's the point worth discussing in this post. i shall start by mentioning what i consider the proper stand a Catholic should take on the issue of homosexuality:

• identifying oneself as gay; i.e. that a male is sexually attracted to other males, is not in itself sinful - just as a sex maniac is not sinning until he acts. this does not exclude lustful thoughts, of course! thus, a gay man who lusts after a man is as sinful as a heterosexual man lusting after a woman.
  
  
• the act of anal penetration (or to use an archaic term, sodomy) is, however, condemned by the Catholic church as a "transgression of nature". God Himself is demonstrated as offended by such acts (the word 'sodomy' stems from Sodom and Gomorrah, cities said to commit such acts in mass orgies), thus it is a safe bet for Catholics to steer clear of such sex acts (even if it is heterosexual). here, i would like to compare the much more 'acceptable' act of masturbation: the two are probably equally detestable in God's eyes.
  
  
• "Love thy neighbour as thyself." (Leviticus 19:18, Matthew 5:43. 19:19. 22:39, Mark 12:31, Luke 10:27, Romans 13:9, Galatians 5:14, 1John 4:7. 11, James 2:8) is the one law which sums up one's faithfulness to God. John the Evangelist says it the best: "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." these words of God clearly tell us how we ought poise ourselves for our homosexual brethren - the same way we treat any other sinner, with love and acceptance.
  

now that the stand is clarified, the next question comes:
how does repealing 377A support that stand in any way?

here, i shall simply paste the comments i added to my petition... do read on:

I am a practicing Catholic and I continue to believe that homosexual acts are against the natural order and offends God. However, God did give us the freedom to make our own choices, whether to commit sins or not. Among the many sinful choices which the Law punishes, I would consider 377A to be excessive - the Law does not punish people who masturbate, does it?

Decriminalisation, however liberal it may seem, however it may imply homosexuality as acceptable, remains the only fair way forward, as particularly poignantly laid out in Para 5. I do not think conservatives wanting to keep an old law simply because it seems "too progressive" can be considered reasonable; neither can Catholics be considered good Catholics if they choose to support such an oppressive law as their preferred method of serving our homosexual brothers.

further to those comments, i believe that leaning on the power of a secular court to deal with homosexual acts usually only leads to either, i) over-punishment, ostracism and stigmatisation, or ii) apathy due to non-prosecution. the latter is what seems the trend today - and while it makes a mockery of the legal system, it also insulates Catholics: non-visible homosexuality = no need to care about them or talk to them. for us practicing Catholics, s377A only either torments our lost brothers, or keeps us in an impenetrable "comfort zone" of ignorance and inaction.

an additional point to note is this: our more fundamentalist Christian brothers may be far more intolerant and oppressive in their gay ministries, employing peer pressure and guilt rather than Christ's way of gentle compassion - inviting conversion as a response to love. the result is their disillusionment with the church and often outright rejection of Christ himself. if us Catholics remain entrenched in our "comfort zones", Christ's ministry suffers! (this is not meant to diss Protestant efforts to reach out to gays: at least they try.)

the way to approach gays, for us as Catholics, must be the same approach we endorse with all other sinners (genocidal murderers, incestuous paedophiles, corrupt politicians, money-worshipping idolators; your brothers and sisters): the way Christ moved the world by becoming the Lamb led to the slaughter. we must put our lives on the line to listen to our brothers and be a channel of God's grace for them instead of merely relying on punitive laws. that is why i signed the petition - as a commitment to loving my gay brothers.

i shall end off sharing this hymn - note the irony!

God Is Love
Love it was that made us and it was love that saved us.
Love was God's plan. When he made man; God's divine nature is love.
Born of God's love we must love Him, that's why He made us to love Him;
But only when we love all men can we partake of God's love.
But only when we love all men can we partake of God's love.

Love is a wonderful thing, joy in our hearts it will bring.
Where there's true love there is God and where there's God there is love.

Christ said: "Love must be the sign by which men will know you from Mine.
A new commandment I give: each other love as I did."