Michael Brown’s May 20 WorldNetDaily column is a condensed version of a lecture he first gave in 2007 (and is repeating in a new book) listing what he claimed “What the Church Can Learn from the Gay and Lesbian Community.” Tolerance is not one of those eight lessons — Brown still hates the very existence of LGBT people, after all — but organization and promotion is, and despite his hate, he does understand that such an approach could work with others. His first point is that “Change did not come about merely by going to gay meetings but rather by being gay 24/7,” as if gay people could turn on and off their sexual orientation. Another tip was “Remember to focus on the children!”:
This is almost a mantra in gay activist circles: The children are being hurt. Consider how this affects the children. Always talk about the children!
Need I say more to followers of Jesus today? Either we speak up for the children and make their solid upbringing and education a priority or someone else will. Are we going to sit idly by and let our kids become victims?
Brown thinks children are “victims” if they aren’t taught by his fellow right-wing Christians to hate LGBT people. His final point was “Unity is essential!”:
Although in some ways, the “homosexual community” is as diverse as the “heterosexual community,” in other ways there is remarkable unity, solidarity, and the ability to mobilize for action in the gay community.
Yet the church is often famous for its disunity and splits. Could it be that we are fighting for our own little kingdoms while gays and lesbians are fighting for a common cause, in their minds, simply the right to exist as human beings? The New Testament clearly calls us to unity! Jesus taught it, prayed for it, and died for it, and the other New Testament authors echo this call. Without unity, we are doomed to fail.
It has been said that “Jesus transforms people and people transform society,” and the bottom line is this: Either we will transform our society or our society will transform us. Which will it be?
I asked this question in 2007. I’m asking it again today.
But Brown and his fellow right-wing Christians oppose the right of LGBT people to exist as human beings, which makes it a rather hateful thing to build a unity campaign around. While that’s entirely possible, it taints the entire concept, and invoking Jesus as a excuse to hate others — an ideology based on hating others for who they are is not a transforming idea — has never gone well for long.