Is the homosexual my neighbour?

[Guest SinfulCreation]

With all these current things going on, what do you think?

[hierochloe]

Yes. But as far as I know, my neighboors are not homosexual.

[Winchester]

Being a priest is not a right; it's a privilege. The sacrament of te priesthood is entirely in the Church's hands, and it is ultimately her responsibility who becomes a priest. Those who only study the Church in light of controversies are oversimplifying the reasons behind recent decisions, laying the blame solely on the pedophilia issue.

[thessalonian]

All men are your neighbors. All men must be loved. However we must have a correct understanding of what love is. I think Ezekiel spoke it best.

Ez 3
18. "When I say to the wicked, `You will surely die,' and you do not warn him or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way that he may live, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.
19. "Yet if you have warned the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered yourself.

[zabbazooey]

Love the homosexual, not their homosexual acts.

[Guest SinfulCreation]

The homosexual loves little boys, am i required to love him in return? He loves to destroy the church, do i love him in return?

[ofpheritup]

[quote name='SinfulCreation' date='Oct 1 2005, 04:01 PM']The homosexual loves little boys, am i required to love him in return? He loves to destroy the church, do i love him in return?
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Do you "love" him in return? Yes. You do not love his sin.

I am a sinner. Jesus loves me, he died for me. He asks me for the sake of the love He has for me to step away from my sin.

He offers the same to homosexuals and any one else out of His Father's will.

[White Knight]

Homosexuals are people too and we sould love the sinner and hate the sin.

[avemaria40]

i agree with that, two of my guy friends are gay, but i still love them, i don't agree with their actions though. And, not every homosexual is a pedophile, in fact, they both stand agaisnt pedophilia, child prostitution, and other things. And they love children, but not in a sick way.

[Winchester]

Let's not confuse homosexuality with pedophilia, sinfulcreation. Let's also not lump people with the drive for certain sins into a category of enemies of the Church.

[crusader1234]

Homosexuality and pedophilia are not the same thing, as others have pointed out. And as others have also pointed out, every sinner is our neighbor. It is our job, as their neighbor, to show sinners two main things: charity and truth.

[dspen2005]

i see that people have at this point answered yes... yet there is one person who answered "no" -- hmmm, i think that individual ought to enlighten us

[Sinner]

Homosexuality and pedophilia are definitely not the same. Homosexuality is not a sin, but acting on it is. Just the same....... I do not want my priest to be homosexual, pedophilic, addict, alcoholic or any other serious disorder.

[curtins]

Love thy neighbor pray for those who persecute you

[son_of_angels]

It is difficult to say "love the sinner, but hate the sin" with regards to sexual issues. After all, people derive a great deal of who they are from their sexual appetites, which is more tied to memory than even eating. Many young men wake up every morning and commit every sort of sexual, but it would be difficult to say that you hate what they are doing as it will simply lead them to hating themselves. This is not a guide or a road out of sexual deviancy.

Instead if, indeed, we "hate the sin" we must hate it, not in reference to itself, but in reference to the person it afflicts. Yes, the temptation to sin is an affliction, one which we may never desire, "lead us not into temptation." We must hate the sin not because we find it disgusting or distasteful, but because we hate what the sin does to those who find themselves struggling daily with it.

Yet the struggle, the suffering which one may experience from this temptation, although undesirable and unlovely, nonetheless it unites those who suffer it with the sufferings of Christ on the cross, who cried "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" To desire the forsaken wail of our Lord would indeed be a fallacy, but it is nonetheless a feeling which even our God felt. The cartharsis of it is one of utter despair, but the effect may be a true union with the crucified heart of God. I think especially of the verses of The Dark Night of the Soul, "O night that guided me." Yet he cries later, in an almost homoerotic cry from man to the Man, Christ, "The breeze blew from the turret As I parted his locks;
With his gentle hand he wounded my neck And caused all my senses to be suspended."

[Winchester]

Love is not like or affection, or emotion. Love in the sense of love thy neighbor is the desire for that person to attain salvation. One acts in a loving way by prayerfully doing whatever will forward that person's salvation.

[Guest SinfulCreation]

If homosexuality and pedophilia why is the catholic church banning all homosexuality in the priesthood in retaliation to the pedophile scare in the US of A

[corban711]

[quote name='SinfulCreation' date='Oct 2 2005, 02:45 AM']If homosexuality and pedophilia why is the catholic church banning all homosexuality in the priesthood in retaliation to the pedophile scare in the US of A
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the banning of men due to homosexuality actually doesn't necessarily have to do with the pedophile scare...homosexual men were not allowed to be ordained before this scare came along. although, i would agree that the pedophile scare is a good reason to seriously enforce it.

is the homosexual your neighbor? absolutely. i heard a story once of Mother Teresa being interviewed by the media (the person i heard it from is a very reliable source...so i take it on faith that it happened) and they were trying to catch her much like the pharisees trying to "catch" Jesus by saying the wrong thing. they were asking her questions repeatedly about gay people. "what do you think about gay people?" "the Church says such and such about gay people" etc. and she kindly told them that from then on, they could refer to them as friends of Jesus or she wouldn't answer their questions. so when the question comes...what do you think about friends of Jesus? hehe... you can safely answer that you will love them.

whether they suffer a disorder or not, whether they fall into repeated mortal sin or not...each person deserves to be loved. their dignity is so great, and they are created good, in the image of God. loving them properly is what they need and what their dignity demands. they need to be loved.

[Jaime]

[quote name='son_of_angels' date='Oct 1 2005, 10:31 PM']It is difficult to say "love the sinner, but hate the sin" with regards to sexual issues.  After all, people derive a great deal of who they are from their sexual appetites, which is more tied to memory than even eating.  Many young men wake up every morning and commit every sort of sexual, but it would be difficult to say that you hate what they are doing as it will simply lead them to hating themselves.  This is not a guide or a road out of sexual deviancy.

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Why is it difficult? How are sexual issues that different from other issues? Why is it simpler to love the sinner if the sinner is an alcoholic?

[Socrates]

[quote name='SinfulCreation' date='Oct 2 2005, 02:45 AM']If homosexuality and pedophilia why is the catholic church banning all homosexuality in the priesthood in retaliation to the pedophile scare in the US of A
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Most of the so-called "pedophilia" scandals did not involve true pedophilia (sex with prepubescent children, usually girls), but involved homosexual activity with adolescent males. This is a form of homosexuality. Let's not mince words here. There is a clear connection. Many seminaries condoned homosexuality, and we are reaping the fruits of this.

And even without the abuse scandals, homosexuality in the priesthood is disgraceful, even if it is between "consenting adults."
The priesthood is a holy calling and should not be a refuge for perverts of any kind.
It's sad that this letter is even necessary, but this policy is good and just.

Edited October 2, 2005 by Socrates