When Faith Is Called Bigotry.

When Faith Is Called Bigotry.(Heritage).By Andrew T. Walker.Pastor Louie Giglio, whose Passion Movement has raised millions of dollars toward ending sex trafficking, removed himself from offering the benediction at President Obama’s second inauguration after previous statements on biblical sexual ethics came to light.

On January 9, the liberal political blog Think Progress brought attention to a sermon from the 1990s in which Giglio talked about biblical teaching on sexual ethics, including homosexuality, that are shared by millions of other evangelical Christians.

The New York Times reported that Giglio’s removal originated with officials in the Obama Administration.

Giglio, pastor of Atlanta’s Passion City Church, is a popular speaker and author whose ministry has been dedicated to renewing Christianity among America’s youth and bringing attention to issues of social injustice. But as of this week, Giglio was labeled an “anti-gay bigot” and vilified on numerous websites, subjected to slurs for simply for holding to the tenets of his faith.

Jonathan Capehart, a columnist at The Washington Post, wrote that “it is our right not to have an unrepentant bigot be given such a high honor on Inauguration Day.”

Presidents are free to invite (or disinvite) whomever they choose to participate in inaugural festivities, but the outpouring of such invectives against Giglio echoes a troubling trend of hostility toward those who have religious objections to same-sex marriage.

As Heritage’s Tom Messner has written, “As this ideology seeps into the culture, belief in marriage as the union of husband and wife will likely come to be viewed as an unacceptable form of discrimination that should be purged from society through legal, cultural, and economic pressure.”

Theologian Albert Mohler of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary writes:

The Presidential Inaugural Committee and the White House have now declared historic, biblical Christianity to be out of bounds, casting it off the inaugural program as an embarrassment. By its newly articulated standard, any preacher who holds to the faith of the church for the last 2,000 years is persona non grata. By this standard, no Roman Catholic prelate or priest can participate in the ceremony. No Evangelical who holds to biblical orthodoxy is welcome. The vast majority of Christians around the world have been disinvited. Mormons and the rabbis of Orthodox Judaism are out. Any Muslim imam who could walk freely in Cairo would be denied a place on the inaugural program. Billy Graham, who participated in at least 10 presidential inaugurations is welcome no more. Rick Warren, who incited a similar controversy when he prayed at President Obama’s first inauguration, is way out of bounds. In the span of just four years, the rules are fully changed.

As Heritage has pointed out, the redefinition of marriage and expansive non-discrimination laws will be used to marginalize those with dissenting viewpoints. In Massachusetts, Washington, D.C., and Illinois, Catholic Charities and other religious social service agencies have been forced to shut down adoption and foster care services for refusing to place children with same-sex couples. A New Mexico photographer was punished for declining, for religious reasons, to photograph a same-sex commitment ceremony. As Illinois considers its same-sex marriage bill, supporters of traditional marriage have voiced concerns about its religious liberty implications.

As the Supreme Court considers cases involving the federal Defense of Marriage Act and Proposition 8 and states consider redefining marriage, citizens should carefully consider what it means for the future of free speech and religious liberty.

Hmmmm......And what does Islam say about Homosexuality?


The Islamic Society of North America:

Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi of the ISNA said: "Homosexuality is a moral disorder. It is a moral disease, a sin and corruption... No person is born homosexual, just like no one is born a thief, a liar or murderer. People acquire these evil habits due to a lack of proper guidance and education.""
"There are many reasons why it is forbidden in Islam. Homosexuality is dangerous for the health of the individuals and for the society. It is a main cause of one of the most harmful and fatal diseases. It is disgraceful for both men and women. It degrades a person. Islam teaches that men should be men and women should be women. Homosexuality deprives a man of his manhood and a woman of her womanhood. It is the most un-natural way of life. Homosexuality leads to the destruction of family life."
I don't know if many people know about this, but on the Internet, there are some pages about Muslims who are homosexuals. It is one issue to be Muslim and a homosexual, and another to try to justify this choice by Allah's (The Exalted) book, the Quran, and the word's of the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace). InshaAllah, in this post I will be dealing with the later issue. The first point to make clear is that as Muslims, we accept Allah (The Exalted) and His Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace) as the authority and final word on what is right and wrong. This is in important point to be grasped. Otherwise, there is little use in discussing the issue. This is exactly where the people who try to justify homosexuality, and other practices and beliefs, from the Quran go wrong. The point of this post is to make clear the position of Islam on homosexuality so that there will be no doubts about it.
Now concerning the evidence, we follow the methodology laid out by the Muslim scholars. In general, that is to see what the Quran says about an issue, then the Hadith, and then the consensus of the scholars, and the analogy can be made. The evidence concerning the unlawfulness of homosexuality is as follows:
SODOMY AND LESBIANISM
In more than one place in the Holy Koran, Allah recounts to us the story of Lot's people, and how He destroyed them for their wicked practice. There is consensus among both Muslims and the followers of all other religions that sodomy is an enormity. It is even viler and uglier than adultery.
Allah Most High says: "Do you approach the males of humanity, leaving the wives that Allah has created for you? But you are a people who transgress" Koran (26:165-66)
(1) The Prophet (saws) said: (1) "Kill the one who sodomizes and the one who lets if be done to him." (Tirmidhi, a sahih (authentic) hadith)
(2) "May Allah curse him who does that Lot's people did." (Ibn Hibban, sahih (authentic))
(3) "Lesbianism by women is adultery between them." (Tabarani, sahih)"
Taken from the Reliance of the Traveller, transltaed by Nuh Ha Mim Keller, p 664-665.
There are a lot more Hadiths on the issue, and the issue of what is to be done with one who commits sodomy or lesbianism. I will not deal with these now in this post. All I wanted to do was to show that the position of Islam on this issue is that it is an enormity (kaba'ir), and therefore, forbidden, (haram). May Allah (The Exalted) protect us.