Category: bible

bible, Homosexuality, Jesus

Mark 12:31

35__Hold_my_hand_by_becauseIRnuttyI will make this brief. I attended Catholic school for 12 years of my life. I have been taught many lessons about the holy trinity and the life of Christ. I barely remember anything being taught about hating other people based on their beliefs or actions. But, what I do remember specifically was this line: And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

So what is the big fuss over Jason Collins outing himself? Is there a need for Chris Broussard to just mention that being gay is an open rebellion to God? My personal favorite is how people are now saying that Tim Tebow was persecuted for being Christian while everyone is celebrating Jason Collins. Really? Let’s just put it out there that these are not the greatest athletes we are talking about.

First Chris Broussard is just a sorry reporter. He has every right to believe what he wants. The problem is that as a sports analyst, he needs to be objective. I would say the same thing about Charles Barkley. If you cannot be objective then it will be hard for anyone to report things straight up. Secondly, when you work for a company such as ESPN, whatever you say will be a reflection on them, period. So when he says that we live in a time of political correctness and people don’t have to say anything, then perhaps he should have not said a word.

My main point is simply this. Jesus preached to love everyone. He didn’t say love thy neighbor unless he is sleeping with another man. He wasn’t exorcising homosexuals in the streets of Jerusalem. In fact, Jesus was against the church and everything it was becoming! So I find it funny that Christians (those who follow the new testament) have to go to the old testament to pull out words like abomination when Jesus is telling the world to just love one another.

Why would he do that? So he could die for our sins. Please point out to me where in the Bible Jesus says that homosexuality is evil? 12 years of Catholic School has taught me one thing, I do not need the church to validate what I believe. But I do know that Christians of the past have used the bible to validate wars, genocide, and slavery.

So I will leave you with this:

Matthew 7:1: Do not judge, or you too will be judged.

John 8:7: And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Romans 2:1: You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

bible, death, Jesus, religion

Death & Religion

As I get older it seems that death is all around me. The other day my co-worker’s father passed. The week before that my Graduate Assistant’s grandfather passed. Then there was of course my wife’s aunt who passed in the beginning of the year. Over the 2-3 years I have known or heard of at least a dozen people who have died. This will include, my uncle, grandmother, 2 SU alums, an SU student, and my dear dog. Perhaps listing a dog may be weird to some, but when you love a pet so much then you will know it is just like losing a member of the family.It has made me think about my own mortality in ways I never thought I would.

I don’t consider myself a particular religious person. Sure, I did have 12 years of catholic school, but I just didn’t care of some of the things that are said by the Catholic Church. I will further this statement by saying that while I believe in Jesus, I not sure his teaching have been passed down correctly. Let me take a moment to explain this thought.

During the time of the Crusades, the armies of the Church would kill anyone who did not believe in the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ. When coming across different civilizations that did not even believe in Jesus they would brand those people as savage and hethonistic. Fast forward to the time of Christopher Columbus and you will witness the same thing. Those prompting the near eradication of indigenous people in North, Central, and South Americas. Take that one step further to the slave trade. Africans were converted to Christianity when they got off the boat.

Where am I going with this? The gospel has had many revisions and has thus been used to persecute the weak. Back in old times people can use a passage as just cause to burn a witch. Other passages can be used to show that people of color are savages. We all know know how the church views homosexuality. So when we look at the scriptures now, are we really getting the word of God or we getting the word of God through eyes of the dominant culture? I am not saying I have the answer to this.

How does this make me think about death? Well if you read the bible, then you know that there is a lot of death in it. I consider myself a god fearing man so to me death and judgement go hand and hand. I have often joked about how there is a suite reserved for me in hell, but do I really believe that?

Well this is what I believe for sure. Both my grandmothers are watching over me. I can write stories about how religious mi abuelita (from my mother side) was. I would have brutal nightmare as kid. Very vivid and very often about evil spirits coming to get me and bringing me to the feet of Satan. Once she died, I have not had one dream like that since. I was 12 when she died. I think that we all have a place in life and in death. I feel blessed that some how I have been able to survive my near death experiences (9/11 and my car accidents).