🚀 go-pugleaf

On Sun, 25 Mar 2001 12:34:15, "Clayton Forno" <cjfat@optusnet.com.au> 
wrote

> When surfing the web I usually like to leave the TV on in case something
> comes on that catches my attention.  This morning I found myself watching
> one of those Sunday morning religious programs that pretend to be lifestyle
> programs aimed at the teenage and young adult audiences, but under the thin
> veneer they are just Christian propaganda.  On this show a earnest young
> preacher was giving a little lecture....the subject....that Tolerance Is A
> 21st Century Sin.  He was "explaining" how all sorts of evils in the world
> are being caused by the terrible sin of being tolerant to people who do not
> fit in with the narrow definitions of what Christianity considers normal.
> Of course he did not specify who or what young Christians should not be
> tolerating, but the message was pretty clear.
> 
> Now, am I alone in being flabbergasted by how thoroughly fucked up a mind
> would have to be to, not only to consider tolerance of other people to be
> evil, but to preach this to a bunch of impressionable young people?  I can't
> begin to understand how some theist's minds work, they are so far removed
> from any realistic, modern reference.
> The irony is that I have always strived to be a good and tolerant person,
> but everyday I hear something that eats away at my tolerance for certain
> types of religious people.  I am truly beginning to hate a group of people,
> not because of who they are but because of their actions and hateful
> philosophy....and I don't like hating people.  Am I alone in having this
> internal conflict?

There was a guest column in the paper last week.  This is from
a preacher.  You may want to put your irony meters in standby.

"Sickness of the hour is 'heterophobia'"
First he tells of receiving a letter accusing him of homophobia. 
The meat of the article though is in the middle.
     "I preach that no matter what the issue, no one has the 
      right to do wrong, but everyone has the right to choose 
      between good and evil, right and wrong, righteousness and 
      sin.  Homosexuality is evil, wrong and a sin.  And as long 
      as it is a sin, I both can and must preach against it.  But
      again, as wrong as it is, it's your choice."
      
     "Most people believe homosexuals are a few misguided people 
      who believe that up is down, bad is good and right is 
      wrong.  I tend to agree."
      
Finaly, he addresses the writer of the letter he received.  Irony
meters should still be in safe mode.

     "And now, more directly to you, write of that letter.  Since
      it would be a strange occasion indeed that I would speak 
      solely on the topic of homosexuality, aside from other 
      pitiful transgressions, I find it interesting that you 
      would pick only this issue upon which to mount your revolt. 
      And then to engagein not a good-natured discussion but 
      innuendo and accusation.  That seems another ill of this 
      society: just plain defensiveness.  People are always 
      getting uptight, wanting to deal with the messenger instead 
      of the message."
      
I just OCR scanned the column, and will be putting it on my web 
page,   <http://showcase.netins.net/web/myplace/rant.html>

We return you now to your regularly sheduled rants.

That was the first time I used OCR on my scanner, I had to fix
up the output file some.

Charles R Ward