the real story about where gay people come from ...

As folk discuss the issue, here are a few reactions from a gay Christian (me) that I hope you will keep in mind:

Whether it is toward a theological argument, or merely a cultural judgment, I hope you remember that we are in the room and that you are talking about our lives and our faith as much as your own. We are not mushrooms grown up magically in the middle of the night. We've been a part of the church for some time and will continue to be a part of it.

All the gay people that I know (and I've met a few) were born and raised by heterosexual parents. I am sure that is not true across the board for all gay people, but it is true of my own experience and those I have known or met. If we did a poll, I think the percentage would be quite high on this fact. I don't think such a distinction is necessary but straight people are often talking about the dangers of children being raised by gay people, so the orientation of parents must be important to them. This is where we come from -- straight parents.

Most of the gay Christians I know were raised within the church. For me, it was within Southern Baptist churches (revivals, bus ministries, Sunday School, Training Union, Vacation Bible School, Royal Ambassadors, pack the pew night, "every head bowed and every eye closed while the choir hums Just as I am). I don't mock that experience, it's just a quick way to say that during the 1960s I wasn't dropping acid nor following the teachings of Bishop Pike. I was too young to do either, but I was very good at Bible sword drill. And the Bible is something that has been a major part of my life and thinking since that time.

When I was a child my mother used to quote Proverbs 22:6 -- Bring up a child
in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. Every time I hear an argument against gay marriage or gay participation in the church, I think of that scripture.

Many of us seek companionship, commitment, and integrity in our relationships because it is how we were raised. This is the model that we know. There is some irony in the attacks on these relationships. Most gay people I know sense that irony and find ourselves cutting off the people who make those attacks. Maybe it's the old casting your pearls before the swine. But it is hard to take people who say we are the most promiscuous group of people on the planet and in the same breath say that all of our efforts at love and faithfulness are wrong and blame our commitment relationships for making it harder for straight people to stay in relationships. (Yes, I am still sore about the Defense of Marriage Act, how it was named, not to mention the current push to make this a constitutional amendment).

Many of us worship God, express our faith in Jesus Christ, show up in parishes all over because we were raised and baptized in the Church, and either never left it or heeding the call of the gospel, return to it. (as opposed to a bunch of gay people sitting around on a Saturday night discussing the gay agenda, deciding that some of us should show up at church on Sunday to make things difficult for theologians and church leaders).