Comments on: World's David Barton Coverage: What Will Evangelicals Do?

By: Gregory J. Rosmaita

Gregory J. Rosmaita — Wed, 30 May 2018 20:13:25 +0000

@tom – ANY sexual relation with a minor is an abuse of power, clear and simple… any claim that homosexuality is related to child molestation or abuse of minors of either sex is a well-debunked fallacy… that you would excuse actions based on “gradations” of age is inexcusable and abhorrent by any standard, and i am basing my revulsion not on any religious or philosophic grounds, but on purely humanistic grounds… 15 to 17 year-olds are not “jailbait” — they are minors, and the technical distinction between “pedophillia” and “pederasty” means nothing to the victim of abuse/rape… if you can mitigate abuse because a child is 9 or 13 or 17 you are not only delusional, you have no moral compass of any kind whatsoever, and have definitively disqualified yourself from ever being taken seriously on any subject whatsoever…
PS: i’m not surprised you should cite scalia in a subsequent post — his contempt for the law and his willingness to make law from the bench based not on judicial precedent, but rather on rank prejudice, is fed by an ignorance equal to yours, as evinced by such “enlightened” statements delivered from the bench of the supreme court as:
Romer v. Evans, 1996: “But I had thought that one could consider certain conduct reprehensible—murder, for example, or polygamy, or cruelty to animals—and could exhibit even ‘animus’ toward such conduct. Surely that is the only sort of ‘animus’ at issue here: moral disapproval of homosexual conduct….”
Lawrence v. Texas, 2003: “The Texas statute undeniably seeks to further the belief of its citizens that certain forms of sexual behavior are “immoral and unacceptable,” Bowers, supra, at 196—the same interest furthered by criminal laws against fornication, bigamy, adultery, adult incest, bestiality, and obscenity…. Even if the Texas law does deny equal protection to “homosexuals as a class,” that denial still does not need to be justified by anything more than a rational basis, which our cases show is satisfied by the enforcement of traditional notions of sexual morality.”
and THAT is the man who is constantly upheld by the right as the intellectual guiding light of conservative jurisprudence, constitutional and judicial “restraint”, and the model of a public servant whose work is “informed” by his “deep religious convictions”… barton may be the symptom — scalia is the disease…

By: Tom Van Dyke

Tom Van Dyke — Wed, 30 May 2018 20:11:31 +0000

Despite the social sciences’ claim to have the psycho-sexual matrix puzzled out, we don’t. What I can say is that there was indeed a “lavender mafia*” among the Catholic clergy that kept each other’s secrets. The true story of the cycle of abuse and cover-up is not yet known–or understood by the Church itself, really.
As for African culture’s own taboos against homosexual conduct meeting Catholicism’s**, I can only note that religious tolerance and multi-culturalism hit the skids damn quick when the wrong ox is gored.
________
*http://www.newoxfordreview.org/dossier.jsp?did=dossier-lavender-mafia
**The more urbane Church of England’s, in conflict.
http://global.christianpost.com/news/african-anglicans-say-gay-bishops-affirmation-shatters-hopes-of-reconciliation-88038/

By: Richard Willmer

Richard Willmer — Wed, 30 May 2018 20:11:30 +0000

The idea that unjustly discriminatory penal laws against gays is ‘necessary for a society’s survival’ is a pretty tenuous one. In the Siwa Oasis (in Africa), there has been gay marriage (which the British – God bless their little jack boots – tried unsuccessfully to stop) for centuries, and it would appear that the Siwans have done ‘very nicely thank you’ for as long as anyone can remember. (I’ve been there, by the way – do go … it’s a magical place, and even the straights are nice!!! Little joke! 🙂 )
You may well be correct about the ‘blurring of distinctions’ when it comes to the age of victims of non-consensual (in the legal sense) sex. However, as someone who has a professional ‘duty of care’ for young people aged 16 to 18, I am very mindful of the (entirely correct, in my view) idea that ‘lop-sided’ relationships between a young person and an ‘authority figure’ can be very damaging to the young person involved.
Do not make the mistake of suggesting some kind of a ‘blanket characterization’ of those who believe in a ‘fair deal’ for gay people as ‘out-an-out libertarians’. This is not the reality.
I agree that it is possible that Turkson may not be entirely clear in his own mind when it comes to what he is saying. Well now, that just makes his outburst all the less appropriate.
I am not proposing a clear ‘explanatory thesis’ for what went on regarding these abuse cases; I am simply opposing Turkson’s all-too-obvious ‘subtext’. It represents IMO a dangerous diversion from the real issues.
On ‘Africa’: is the apparent recent upsurge in homophobia bringing joy and prosperity to (straight) Africans?

By: Richard Willmer

Richard Willmer — Wed, 30 May 2018 20:11:29 +0000

Zoe also mentions the Catholic Church, and we should not be unaware of the problems there, which were so clearly shown by Turkson’s anti-gay outburst last week: http://newsone.com/2241429/peter-turkson-catholic-pope/
Thankfully it seems that at least the English and Welsh bishops aren’t buying Turkson’s ‘thesis’. I suspect (and hope) that many other bishops will also know better than to confuse ‘sexuality’ with the ‘power issues’ that fuel the sexual abuse of children.

By: Tom Van Dyke

Tom Van Dyke — Wed, 30 May 2018 20:10:34 +0000

Not one word about the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. Fascinating, Captain.