This I Believe: Gay Forever, Hell For Never | NPR Illois

Contents:

• 'IF I GROW UP TO BE GAY, WILL I GO TO HELL?'
• ‘DON’T E BACK, THEY’LL KILL YOU FOR BEG GAY’
• BEG GAY DON’T MEAN YOU’LL END UP HELL, AT LEAST ACRDG TO CATHOLICISM.FLORENCE MCDERMOTT·FOLLOW3 M READ·AUG 10, 2020--LISTENSHAREYOU’VE HEARD BEFORE: BEG GAY MEANS YOU GO TO HELL. ETERNAL DAMNATN. ALL THAT JUICY STUFF. BUT IS THAT REALLY THE SE?TO REALLY BREAK DOWN THIS QUTN WE NEED TO LOOK AT WHAT CATHOLICS NSIR “DAMNABLE SS” OR, AS THEY’RE REFERRED TO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, ‘MORTAL SS’.THE SS ARE SAID TO SEVER YOUR NNECTN WH GOD UNLS YOU REPENT FOR YOUR SS. EXAMPL OF THE CLU MURR, RAPE, THEFT, ETC ETC. THERE ARE 3 FG FACTORS TO WHAT MAK A S A MORTAL ONE.THE SUBJECT MATTER MT BE ‘GRAVE’, I’LL TOUCH MORE ON THIS A BIT MT BE MTED KNOWG THAT ’S A S AND HOW BAD OF A S IS.IT MT BE MTED WH LIBERATE AND PLETE NSENT.THE ARE FED THE CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH (CCC) , SENTIALLY A DOCTRE MANUAL TO CATHOLICISM WRTEN BY POPE JOHN II. AND WHILE POPE JOHN II WAS AGAST HOMOSEXUALY, THE TEACHGS ARE THERE AND STILL TGHT TODAY AND N BE HELD UP TE FOR ANY SEXUAL ORIENTATN. HE GO ON TO DISCS WHAT MAK A MATTER GRAVE, AND THOUGH THERE’S NO ABSOLUTELY CLEAR FN, A C FN WOULD BE ‘S FED BY THE 10 MANDMENTS’. FOR FURTHER READG ON THE, SEE PART 3, SECTN 1, CHAPTER 1, ARTICLE 8.4 OF THE CCC.ON THE FLIP SI OF THIS, WE SEE VENIAL SS, WHICH ARE SEEN AS “LSER” AND DON’T SEND YOU TO HELL OR MAKE YOU LOSE YOUR NNECTN, RATHER THE ARE UNRSTOOD TO BE ABLE TO LEAD YOU TO M MORTAL SS, AN EXAMPLE OF WHICH WOULD BE SWEARG.FURTHER TO THE CCC, WE SEE THAT SAT JOHN DISCS HOW WHEN NSIRG RPONSIBILY OF SS THE EY OF GOD, ‘ONE MT TAKE TO ACUNT THE AFFECTIVE IMMATURY, FORCE OF ACQUIRED HAB, NDNS OF ANXIETY OR OTHER PSYCHOLOGIL OR SOCIAL FACTORS THAT LSEN, IF NOT EVEN RCE TO A MIMUM, MORAL CULPABILY.’THIS VERSE IS TERTG, AND HAS AN IMPACT ON HOW ONE LOOKS AT THE WILL AND TENT OF SO LLED ‘SEXUAL SS’. PASSNS AND THE STATE OF MD N GREATLY DIMISH, IF NOT ABSOLVE THE AFOREMENTNED SNER OF CULPABILY, LEAVG THE S AS NOT MORTAL, BUT A VENIAL S OF GRAVE MATTER.IF THEY ACCEPT THE LORD AND HAVE GOODWILL, WHO AM I TO JUDGE THEM? THEY SHOULDN’T BE MARGALIZED. THE TENNCY IS NOT THE PROBLEM... THEY’RE OUR BROTHERS.—POPE FRANCIS, 2013ARMED WH THIS KNOWLEDGE, WE N BEG TO DISCS HOMOSEXUALY. GENERAL BELIEFS, SUPPORTED BY SCIENCE OR NOT, HELD BY THOLICS ABOUT HOMOSEXUALY TEND TO FALL TO 3 TEGORI:IT’S A MENTAL DISORRIT’S SOMETHG YOU’RE BORN WHIT’S SOMETHG YOU VELOPSCIENCE OBVLY SUPPORTS THE LATTER, HOWEVER THIS ISN’T OM THE EY OF SCIENCE THIS IS THE EY OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.THOUGH THE ALL APPEAR DIFFERENT, THE NTEXT OF SNG, THEY N ALL BE EXPLAED THE SAME WAY WH A KEY, DISTCT FACT.HOMOSEXUALY IS NOT A CHOICE.
• THIS I BELIEVE: GAY FOREVER, HELL FOR NEVER
• “GOD MA ME GAY FOR A REASON”: YOUNG MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN’S RILIENCY ROLVG INTERNALIZED HOMOPHOBIA OM RELIG SOURC
• GAY PEOPLE ARE GOG TO HELL, SAYS EXPERT WNS IN MICHIGAN GAY MARRIAGE TRIAL
• DO GAY PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN?

'IF I GROW UP TO BE GAY, WILL I GO TO HELL?'

Children hear about Israel Fol's homophobic ments, and they have Pl HeyHer qutn is doubly shockg given she has two gay uncl, we speak openly about homosexualy our fay, and her father and I uld not re ls about the genr of the people she choos to love. Growg up I was obliv to the impact that our homophobic muny, Brisbane the ‘80s and early ‘90s, had on my iend’s self homophobic jok, the “fag” pranks such as boys verg school books wh the word “fag”, and, y, people thory clarg that hell awas him, have all ntributed to McCulloch feelg ashamed, unacceptable and unlovable for his entire life. They experience poorer mental health out than their peers as a direct rult of the stigma, prejudice, discrimatn and abe they experience jt for beg, who last week lnched a crowdfundg mpaign aimg to raise $3 ln to ver his legal bills his appeal agast his ntract termatn by Rugby Atralia (which was shut down on Monday morng), fend his homophobic post as “an act of love and passn” have no ia of the effect that the msag have on the people they are I thk of how my iend has suffered om homophobia his whole life, and all the boys and girls, past and prent, who will be eply wound and trmatised by Fol’s words, is unfathomable how anyone uld ever jtify them as lovg or ’s not unmon to e ancient texts to provi jtifitn for hatred, but if Fol wants to play the bible rd, let’s talk about what else he uld do wh $3 ln stead of fendg his right to tell already vulnerable and margalised people that hell awas them.

‘DON’T E BACK, THEY’LL KILL YOU FOR BEG GAY’

I uldn't stop lookg out the wdow, " he statn was Malaysia, bee tourist visas are ee on life as a Somali asylum seeker Malaysia is tough - and there too homosexualy is most asylum seekers live limbo for years before beg regnised as a refugee, Mohamed's se was fast-tracked and he has been accepted for rettlement.

BEG GAY DON’T MEAN YOU’LL END UP HELL, AT LEAST ACRDG TO CATHOLICISM.FLORENCE MCDERMOTT·FOLLOW3 M READ·AUG 10, 2020--LISTENSHAREYOU’VE HEARD BEFORE: BEG GAY MEANS YOU GO TO HELL. ETERNAL DAMNATN. ALL THAT JUICY STUFF. BUT IS THAT REALLY THE SE?TO REALLY BREAK DOWN THIS QUTN WE NEED TO LOOK AT WHAT CATHOLICS NSIR “DAMNABLE SS” OR, AS THEY’RE REFERRED TO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, ‘MORTAL SS’.THE SS ARE SAID TO SEVER YOUR NNECTN WH GOD UNLS YOU REPENT FOR YOUR SS. EXAMPL OF THE CLU MURR, RAPE, THEFT, ETC ETC. THERE ARE 3 FG FACTORS TO WHAT MAK A S A MORTAL ONE.THE SUBJECT MATTER MT BE ‘GRAVE’, I’LL TOUCH MORE ON THIS A BIT MT BE MTED KNOWG THAT ’S A S AND HOW BAD OF A S IS.IT MT BE MTED WH LIBERATE AND PLETE NSENT.THE ARE FED THE CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH (CCC) , SENTIALLY A DOCTRE MANUAL TO CATHOLICISM WRTEN BY POPE JOHN II. AND WHILE POPE JOHN II WAS AGAST HOMOSEXUALY, THE TEACHGS ARE THERE AND STILL TGHT TODAY AND N BE HELD UP TE FOR ANY SEXUAL ORIENTATN. HE GO ON TO DISCS WHAT MAK A MATTER GRAVE, AND THOUGH THERE’S NO ABSOLUTELY CLEAR FN, A C FN WOULD BE ‘S FED BY THE 10 MANDMENTS’. FOR FURTHER READG ON THE, SEE PART 3, SECTN 1, CHAPTER 1, ARTICLE 8.4 OF THE CCC.ON THE FLIP SI OF THIS, WE SEE VENIAL SS, WHICH ARE SEEN AS “LSER” AND DON’T SEND YOU TO HELL OR MAKE YOU LOSE YOUR NNECTN, RATHER THE ARE UNRSTOOD TO BE ABLE TO LEAD YOU TO M MORTAL SS, AN EXAMPLE OF WHICH WOULD BE SWEARG.FURTHER TO THE CCC, WE SEE THAT SAT JOHN DISCS HOW WHEN NSIRG RPONSIBILY OF SS THE EY OF GOD, ‘ONE MT TAKE TO ACUNT THE AFFECTIVE IMMATURY, FORCE OF ACQUIRED HAB, NDNS OF ANXIETY OR OTHER PSYCHOLOGIL OR SOCIAL FACTORS THAT LSEN, IF NOT EVEN RCE TO A MIMUM, MORAL CULPABILY.’THIS VERSE IS TERTG, AND HAS AN IMPACT ON HOW ONE LOOKS AT THE WILL AND TENT OF SO LLED ‘SEXUAL SS’. PASSNS AND THE STATE OF MD N GREATLY DIMISH, IF NOT ABSOLVE THE AFOREMENTNED SNER OF CULPABILY, LEAVG THE S AS NOT MORTAL, BUT A VENIAL S OF GRAVE MATTER.IF THEY ACCEPT THE LORD AND HAVE GOODWILL, WHO AM I TO JUDGE THEM? THEY SHOULDN’T BE MARGALIZED. THE TENNCY IS NOT THE PROBLEM... THEY’RE OUR BROTHERS.—POPE FRANCIS, 2013ARMED WH THIS KNOWLEDGE, WE N BEG TO DISCS HOMOSEXUALY. GENERAL BELIEFS, SUPPORTED BY SCIENCE OR NOT, HELD BY THOLICS ABOUT HOMOSEXUALY TEND TO FALL TO 3 TEGORI:IT’S A MENTAL DISORRIT’S SOMETHG YOU’RE BORN WHIT’S SOMETHG YOU VELOPSCIENCE OBVLY SUPPORTS THE LATTER, HOWEVER THIS ISN’T OM THE EY OF SCIENCE THIS IS THE EY OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.THOUGH THE ALL APPEAR DIFFERENT, THE NTEXT OF SNG, THEY N ALL BE EXPLAED THE SAME WAY WH A KEY, DISTCT FACT.HOMOSEXUALY IS NOT A CHOICE.

General beliefs, supported by science or not, held by tholics about homosexualy tend to fall to 3 tegori:It’s a mental disorrIt’s somethg you’re born whIt’s somethg you velopScience obvly supports the latter, however this isn’t om the ey of science this is the ey of the Catholic the all appear different, the ntext of sng, they n all be explaed the same way wh a key, distct fact. Therefore we n nclu that is nsired a passn, a s of passn if you will, which the ey of the Catholic Church, leads the sner to be lsened by the burn of their already venial while Homosexualy self is not a s, the Catholic Church is far om progrsive, but is takg steps the right directn.

Keywords: relign, spirualy, gay, young men who have sex wh men, ternalized homophobiaThere has been a growg body of rearch foced on the relatnship between religsy and adolcent health and well-beg (Nonnemaker, McNeely, & Blum, 2003; Werner & Smh, 1992).

Given the unique velopmental stage of adolcence and emergg adulthood and the fact that most religns across the globe offer teachgs that nmn or rtrict homosexual behavr, is particularly important to unrstand YMSM’s experienc and challeng as they stggle to tegrate their sexual inty wh their relig/spirual beliefs. Rearch among olr populatns of MSM and other lbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) adults dite that religsy n ntribute to inty dissonance between sexual sir and relig beliefs for sexual mory dividuals, which n be rolved by changg religns, reexamg relig texts and doctre, abandong relign, or turng to a more dividualized sense of spirualy (Leong, 2006; Schuck & Liddle, 2001; Thumms, 1991; Yip, 1997, 2005).

THIS I BELIEVE: GAY FOREVER, HELL FOR NEVER

Mory Strs and Internalized HomophobiaInternalized homophobia, also referred to as ternalized heterosexism (Szymanski & Chung, 2003) or sexual prejudice (Herek, 2004), n be fed as directg anti-gay social attus towards the self, leadg to a valuatn of the self, ternal nflicts and poor self-regard (Meyer & Dean, 1998). Internalized homophobia has also been lked to substance abe, lower levels of self teem and eatg disorrs among both gay and lbian populatns (Cabaj, 1996; Ross & Simon Rosser, 1996; Rowen & Mallm, 2002; Williamson & Hartley, 1998).

Followg on this work, Ream (2001) found that trsic religsy was not herently a risk factor for ternalized homophobia among sexual mory youth; rather, the homophobic msag often prent relig views and livered a relig ntext tend to predict ternalized homophobia. G., relig, school) such as: avoidg church altogether, seekg an alternative church, or g “selective listeng” to avoid ternalizg homophobic msag (McDavt et al., 2009) the range of cisns and experienc that YMSM will make durg their emergg adulthood, is important to unrstand the procs and growth that young men experience while sortg out potential nflicts between relig/spirual beliefs and their sexual inty. Young men were eligible to participate the study if they were: a) 18- to 24-years old; b) self-intified as gay, bisexual, or uncerta of their sexual orientatn and/or reported havg had sex wh a man; c) self-intified as Csian, Ain Amerin, or Lato of Mexin scent; and d) a rint of Los Angel County, and they anticipated livg Los Angel for at least six men were reced at public venu (e.

Axial dg was then nducted to piece the data back together to fully scribe the procs, leadg to the stcture of this paper which scrib: 1) the homophobic msag heard relig ntexts; 2) how the msag were ternalized; 3) the effects of the msag on inty and self perceptn; and 4) the often plited strategi the young men employed to pe wh the msag and ntue their spirual, relig, and/or personal velopment. The majory of the HYM sample (81%) intified as gay, wh 12% intifyg as 1Dcriptn of the Study Sample om Wave 3 Survey (N = 483) and Qualative Study (N = 36)VariablCategoriTotal Sample n (%)Qualative Rponnts n (%)Age18 – 19 yrs88 (18)6 (17)20 – 21 yrs195 (40)18 (50)22+ yrs200 (41)12 (33)Race/ethnicyAin- Amerin115 (24)12 (33)Csian192 (40)12 (33)Mexin scent176 (36)12 (33)RinceFay237 (49)16 (44)Own place/apartment203 (42)17 (47)Wh iends/partner31 (6)1 (3)No regular place/other12 (3)2 (6)EmploymentIn school50 (10)6 (17)In school, employed149 (31)6 (17)Employed, not school235 (49)19 (53)Not employed, not school49 (10)5 (14)Edutn levelLs than high school26 (5)2 (6)High school/GED110 (23)6 (17)Votnal17 (4)- (0)Some llege284 (59)26 (72)College gree46 (10)2 (6)Sexual intyGay390 (81)28 (77)Other same-sex inty23 (5)2 (6)Bisexual57 (12)4 (11)Straight6 (1)--Don’t know/Refe7 (1)2 (6)Sexual attractnMal only339 (70)25 (69)Mal and femal131 (27)10 (28)Femal only7 (1)1 (3)Neher/don’t know6 (1)--Immigratn statBorn outsi US74 (15)7 (19)Born US407 (84)29 (81)Level of religsyNot at all relig138 (29)10 (28)Not very relig124 (26)14 (39)Somewhat relig172 (36)11 (31)Very relig43 (9)1 (3)Level of spirualyNot at all spirual37 (8)4 (11)Not very spirual60 (13)8 (22)Somewhat spirual216 (45)12 (33)Very spirual168 (35)12 (33)Table 2 prents data related to relig affiliatn and the past and prent role of relign and spirualy rponnts’ liv. 6)2 (6)Don’t know/Refed7 (1)1 (3)Changed relignY257 (53)19 (53)QualativeSourc of Msag about Homosexualy Among the qualative rponnts, all thirty-six reported beg raised a relign that uld be classified as Christian (e.

“GOD MA ME GAY FOR A REASON”: YOUNG MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN’S RILIENCY ROLVG INTERNALIZED HOMOPHOBIA OM RELIG SOURC

In the church, was not unmon for rponnts to report that sermons seemed to often return to the subject of homosexualy, makg the young men feel unfortable or fearful as Royal, an Ain Amerin rponnt who reported that both his grandmother and mother were pastors a Christian church, scrib:It’s like he [the pastor] would preach a different thg but would always go back to homosexuals and sexualy for some reason. Man whose fay nverted om Catholicism to Prottantism explaed:Yeah, I remember beg a Catholic church and not hearg anythg about homosexuals at all…It wasn’t until I got to the Prottant church that was blatantly like brimstone, hell fire…He [the pastor] would start to preach about God and blah, blah, blah.

‘But the people this untry, the gays, oh my god pecially the gays…The gays and the lbians and the atheists and the socialists, they are gog to brg this untry down and this untry was found on the grace of God’ many adolcents, about half of the YMSM this study felt they had few choic whether or not they attend relig servic growg up.

GAY PEOPLE ARE GOG TO HELL, SAYS EXPERT WNS IN MICHIGAN GAY MARRIAGE TRIAL

”Rponnts who heard repeated homophobic msag (some of the more relig young men reported gog to church four or five tim a week) scribed different procs they employed to evaluate the msag to their personal belief system. ” Rodrigo, a young man who scribed himself as “spirual”, was born to a Catholic hoehold, and after his mother nverted to a nservative Evangelil church, he scribed a lengthy ternal stggle as this newer relign tght that homosexuals had a “mon” si of them:In the Evangelil belief, ’s not that ’s [homosexualy] jt a s, ’s a mon si of you…whenever they did mentn that, they’d say ‘Ooh, this person has the mon them. Mart scribed how his brother would tell him that he was “no earthly good”, which he said “felt ugly and ma me feel ugly” and ultimately ma him leave this hoe as well:My brother knew I was gay and when I broke out of my shell, I got more volved I would want to have Bible ssns at my hoe.

And he liked the fact that I was beg more volved but ’s like he’ll sometim try to cut short…So then we had a discsn about me, about me and my sexualy and he said that I am heavenly md but no earthly good…Meang I n thk about God and pray about God and talk about God as much as I want but I am no earthly good bee I am gay…I am a sner. In the most severe s, rponnts reported beg a prsive state, ntemplatg suici, and fastg or overeatg to alleviate their feelgs of spair and the most mon exprsns of what we nsir to be ternalized homophobia were rponnts’ ntug qutng of themselv, wonrg if the fact that they were attracted to other men tomatilly meant that they would not “be saved.

”Some rponnts scribed that hearg how “wrong” beg gay was ma them start to not only qutn their “goodns” as a human beg, but also to velop what some scribed as a sense of self hatred that rulted some young men wantg to hi that part of themselv, and wh some datg women or wearg “straight” cloth as a way to flect attentn.

DO GAY PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN?

And that’s okay, bee I’m never myself anyways and I’ve always been numb a lot of several rponnts, hidg a part of their inty reprented a lie that they characterized as another burn or s addn to their s of havg homosexual feelgs. I hid the shadows…I slowly started to hate myself, hate relign and hate everybody who believed bee I was this and God ma me like some s, particularly those who were raised more nservative religns, the homophobic msag rulted feelgs of distrs, prsn and suicidaly, particularly for those who relied on the church muny for a great al of social support. Ignac scribed hidg his sexual attractn to other men om his iends and havg secret “gay dat” where afterwards he would go home and tell himself “this is wrong” and he would feel “sick si” to where he would throw up.

He fasted to “feel closer to God”, and reported g dgs and alhol to numb the pa he felt, tryg to rencile his homosexualy wh the negative msag he heard om his church:What I did was stead of fdg proper help, maybe talkg to a unselor or somethg, I got to this huge prsn and ’s ridiculo but…I would fast four or five tim a week bee I felt that I need to be closer to God. ” This perspective helped them see God as more acceptg, and to live acrdance wh an ner sense of their thentic inty:The pastor was preachg about gays and how homosexualy is a s and how guys are supposed to be wh a girl. Rponnts observed that “p dividuals” makg antigay remarks monstrated their hypocrisy, pecially when those dividuals engaged what rponnts intified as sful, dishont, or morally qutnable behavr such as adultery or, one se, throwg a “passn party” wh paid strippers.

Ivan had been told by his parents that his homosexualy was due to a lack of paternal volvement; however, he disagreed wh their view bee he relled feelg “different” at an early age:When you are younger, ’s like you know that you are different but you don’t know why you are different and when you grow up you start to realize that… I knew I was [gay]. Explorg the beliefs sometim led the young men to pick aspects om the belief system that they rporated to their part of their exploratn tryg to fd a relign or fah that would provi them wh this tranquily and acceptance, several rponnts reported havg vised or wantg to vis a “gay church.