From a recent Meet the Press involving an interview with David Gregory and Ken Buck (R-CO) candidate for United States Senate.
GREGORY: Do you believe that being gay is a choice?
BUCK: I do.
GREGORY: Based on what?
BUCK: Based on what? I guess you can choose who your partner is.
GREGORY: You don’t think it’s something that’s determined at birth?
BUCK: I think that birth has an influence over it, like alcoholism and some other things, but I think that basically, you have a choice.
Recently, Ken Buck compared homosexuality to alcoholism, as if both things are diseases. I oppose his reasoning. And today I write as a minister. I write as a citizen. I write as a straight middle aged white man.
As a minister I affirm a few things. I affirm the inherent worth and dignity of every person. I believe that everyone walks around with a spark of the divine within them. I believe that all are created in the image of God. I believe that there are some who are born gay, and some who are born straight, and some who are born lesbian and some who are born transgendered. All are equal in God’s sight. Second, I affirm that science leads us to new understandings and new discoveries about the human person. Recognizing that science has a word to say about human sexuality, Presbyterians, Episopalians, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, the United Church of Christ, Reform and Conservative Jews, Quakers, Unitarian Universalists have all blessed same sex marriage. To one degree or another, these denominations recognize gays and lesbians in the clergy. Science and religion need not compete in these matters. They can instead complement one another. I go to National Geographic and the National Academy of Sciences and other places to learn about the origins of the universe; I do not go to Genesis. I go to the sciences to learn about new discoveries in human sexuality, not the four or five verses (always taken out of context) from the Hebrew/Christian scriptures. The Bible is of many minds on sexuality, on the nature of family, on the nature of money and so on. I do not rely solely on scripture to build my understanding of the world. I go to science, reason, scripture, and my conscience. The test for any idea, religious or otherwise, is this: does it increase my compassion and love? Does it serve to increase my sense of the brotherhood and sisterhood of all creation? Does it increase justice and equality and fairness for every person?
As far as I can tell, the only people who liken homosexuality to alcoholism are religious conservatives. I am saddened by Ken Buck’s statement, especially in light of the recent spate of suicides by young, bullied gay teens in this country. All over, certain politicians, clergy, musicians, and celebrities are appealing to the very best in humanity by sharing “It Gets Better” messages to bullied gay teens. But here in Colorado, Ken Buck and the moral guardians of the law at Focus on the Family add fuel to the fire by likening homosexuality to a terribly debilitating addictive disease.
Look, I have some gay and lesbian and transgendered clergy colleagues who are emotionally mature and spiritually deep. I have a few heterosexual clergy colleagues who are absolute messes when it comes to sexuality, attempting to fill emotional holes in their own spirit with sexual exploits involving members of the opposite sex. I have had addicted congregants, who struggle with their addictions. Sometimes those individuals overcome their struggles with the help of medications and therapy and small groups. Sometimes those individuals get trapped in the abyss. I am proud to say that I have had gay, lesbians, bisexual, and transgendered members of churches I’ve served. The two--addicts and gay/lesbian/bisexual and transgendered individuals are NOTHING alike. Gay people are not like alcoholics. Gay people are a diverse lot. Some are nice. Some are shy. Some are happy. Some are angry. They are just like everyone else. And being gay is more than just how they have sex! As a person of faith, I affirm and promote healthy relationships for all--straight, asexual, bisexual, gay, lesbian, transgendered, queer, male and female. All are equal in God’s sight. All are deserving of respect.
I write as a citizen. The inherent worth and dignity of each person--the respect that each deserves--is not just for me a faith claim. Although I do count that idea as an important part of my faith. It is more than that. It is also a fundamental right of every person in a pluralistic society. I want my US Senator to uphold the universal declaration of human rights, given to each and every person, based on their personhood--not any condition that might be a part of their birth--sexual orientation, skin color, nationality, religion, gender, etc. As a citizen of a pluralistic society, I want my gay brothers and my lesbian sisters to be afforded the same right as I want my straight mother and my elderly grandmother and the celibate monk to enjoy. These rights are given unconditionally and without reservation. In my neighborhood in Colorado Springs, there is a Muslim, a Sikh, straight couples, divorced women, gay men, churched people, unchurched people, folks who are struggling economically, folks who are comfortable. All of these need to be represented by the next U. S. Senator. We are in a time of deep, paralyzing polarities. We are in desperate need of someone to unify us, give us a common vision, give us a sense of what America can be. That person, it is clear, is not Ken Buck, and those who use wedge issues to divide us, one against another. That person is not Ken Buck, who would create a society of us (the normal ones) versus them (the abnormal ones, the sick ones, the ones outside what is acceptable). As a citizen, I want my U. S. Senator to appeal to that which is best in me. I do not want one of my leaders to appeal to my base instincts, my worst fears. (I can do that plenty well on my own!).
I write as a middle aged, straight white male. I try to think about the relatively privileged place that gives me in this society. I also reflect on the changing nature of American society--the religious pluralism, the ethnic diversity, the greater acceptance for gays and lesbians to come out and be who they are and love what they love--and I think of all of that as a gift. I think of that as an opportunity to strengthen the great American project.
Ken Buck says in response to Mr. Gregory’s question: Do you think homosexuality is a choice? Buck: Yes. Gregory: What do you mean by that? Buck: Well, I guess you are free to pick your partner. What? Does he really think single people go around saying: Today I think I will choose a partner who is male. Tomorrow female. I didn’t make a choice to be straight, anymore than a made a choice to be male. And if Ken Buck were honest with himself, he’d say the same. I am not just a middle-aged, straight white male. I am the father of 2 girls (8 and 3) and a boy (6). I do not want them to grow up in a society where political and religious leaders intimate that it is ok to bully a gay teen or a lesbian girl. If they turn out to be lesbian or gay, I do not want them bullied. I want them to grow up in a society that says everyone--regardless--is worthy of respect. That everyone should be treated as an equal. This idea that some are acceptable and some are diseased, it just doesn’t seem right to me. We can do better. I will not support Ken Buck or others who think like him. I wish more for America and its great experiment.
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