Religion and Homosexuality in the United States Essay

I. IntroductionReligion-led virtuous crusades ar non novelties in American history. The abolitionist nominal head, for instance, originated from ghostlike teachings just approximately exemption and equality among all merciful beings. early on education reforms and laws barring commercial handicraft on Sundays also had alike foundations (Walzer 4). In the early 20th century, the temperance movement agitated for a prohibition on sales of alcohol due to ghostlike beliefs rough the evils of liquor. In the 1960s, b leave out churches and unearthly leaders took the lead in the dispute for equality for African-Americans (Walzer 5).Since the late 1960s, however, orthodox Christian denomi lands have increasingly become the phonate of religion-based moral fervor in the linked States. The 1973 Supreme hail decision in Roe v. Wade, which ratifiedized abortion, is publicly acknowledged as the root cause of this phenomenon. Many skilful hand Christian systems held the afo rementi nonp beild ruling trusty for the prevalence of premarital internality, easier access to descent control, de barbarousized abortion, quirkiness and no-fault divorce laws. They believed that for a lumbering and healthy partnership to take place, these fond evils essential be stopped (Walzer 5).fundamentalist Christians considered intrepidness to be the most unplayful among the above-menti one and only(a)d kind evils. This is because the sexual penchant and bearing of homophile(prenominal)s (clash) with the moral and religious teachings of the playscript (Walzer 5). Simply put, transvestics atomic number 18 immoral for the power that their gender and lifestyle deviates from the Judeo-Christian commandment of sexual relations as a centre of procreation. They must therefore be denied any venues in which they could spread their im holiness, such(prenominal)(prenominal) as unfearing civilian rights (Walzer 5). The date mingled with faith and homophileit y in the US eventually divided Christians amidst those who regarded homosexuality as a morality issue and those who viewed homosexuality as a social howeverice issue that twain(prenominal) society and nonionized religion must address instead of ignore (Dawkins 290).This inquiry paper entrust utilize the loss theoretical frameworks of dialectical and historical materialism. dialectic materialism is based on the tilt that history is defined by an eonian struggle amidst different social classes. Historical materialism, meanwhile, asserts that the present state of a given society can be explained and understood by try outing its past tense (Boobbyer 142). These theoretical frameworks ar applied to the interrogation paper through the study of the histories of amusing civil rights and church-state relations in the US.To record the thesis, the researcher volition conduct a critical analysis of current political science statistics or research data that are related to the t opic. Qualitative descriptions of relevant establishment policies or research data will in any case be carried out.II. selective information and Data AnalysisConservative Christian denominations much attack homosexuality by archetype the public about the increasing subdue of homosexuals in the US. As they are operational on the premise that homosexuals are immoral, these religious groups would therefore lay claim that the rise in homosexuality would translate to an add in social evils such as human immunodeficiency virus/ assist and pedophilia. They would further drive this stage home to audiences by bombarding them with related statistics from redoubtable sources. In the end, bigotry and homophobia are strengthened among the addressees.Recent statistics do show an increase in homosexuality in the US from previous decades. The 1994 National Health and fond Life Survey (NHSLS) showed that an estimated 4.3 gazillion Americans (2.8 million men and 1.5 million women) identi fied themselves as homosexual or bisexual (Sprigg 78). In addition, about 1.4 million Americans (0.9% of men and 0.4% of women) were only when engaged in same-sex relationships since age 18 (Sprigg 78). By 2000, according to the Washington, D.C.-based gay rights organization Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the gay and lesbian population in the US reached about 10,456,405. Data from the 2000 US Census, meanwhile, revealed that the number of same-sex couples in the country rose to 601,209 from 145,130 in 1990 (Burda 1). and the aforementioned figures are misleading. The institutions that produced these statistics do non have a clear idea of what constitutes homosexuality, bisexuality and same-sex relationships. Numerous studies on human sexual port have turn up that it is possible for human beings of the same sex to engage in sexual activities careless(predicate) of sexual orientation. The term homoerotic sort refers to same-sex sexual behavior that is performed for cases that do non include homosexuality. Possible motivations for homoerotic behavior are identity crisis, exploration, same-sex bonding, glorification of maleness or femaleness and lack of opposite-sex furnishs (Turner 158).mistaking homoerotic behavior for homosexuality is dangerous, as doing so has detrimental effects to both homosexuals and society in general. Positive qualities that could prepare out of same-sex bonding, like caring, intimacy and nurturance, are suppressed and undervalued because such traits are associated with homosexuality (Abramson and Pinkerton 239). Further more, negative gender stereotypes are reinforced. maleness is linked with emotional detachment and seeming(prenominal) forms of socialization such as drinking, take and gambling. Femininity, on the other hand, is connected to submissiveness and lack of initiative.Experts have long debunked the connection between homosexuality, human immunodeficiency virus/AIDS and pedophilia. It is true that human immunodeficie ncy virus/AIDS was initially called the gay pubic louse because majority of its first victims were homosexual men. scarcely this does not mean that HIV/AIDS is a disease that is restricted to homosexuals or that homosexuals alone are responsible for its spread. HIV/AIDS is spread by behavior and not by sexual orientation. A heterosexual who practices unsafe sex is just as prone to the disease as a homosexual who has a similar lifestyle.It is also not true that homosexuals are more prone to pedophilia than heterosexuals. As a matter of fact, about 90% of sexual abuse on youngsterren was move by heterosexual men. A 1994 study that was published in the journal pediatrics revealed that out of 296 cases of child sexual abuse, there were only two in which the perpetrator was a homosexual. Moreover, a heterosexual partner of a close relative of the child was the alleged offender in about 82% of the said cases (Moe 70).Apart from raging and damaging myths, another assault that Christi an fundamentalists carry out on homosexuality is the elimination of gay civil rights. mesmerism 8, passed in atomic number 20s general elections on November 4, 2008, was a constitutional amendment that forbidden same-sex unification in the state. Catholic and Mormon organizations overwhelmingly supported the proposition, arguing that same-sex nuptials threatened the sanctity of marriage and the family. These groups were likewise concerned that allowing same-sex marriage to remain sanctioned in California would deprive children of the right to have a normal family one that was composed of a father and a mother (Kuruvila n. pag.).The enactment of Proposition 8 is ironic, considering that one of the largest and most active homosexual communities is based in San Francisco. There were already about 18,000 same-sex couples who got married in California just four months prior to the handing over of Proposition 8 (Garrison, DiMassa and Paddock n. pag.). The proposition would thence force the states homosexual couples to get married in one of the five remaining US states where same-sex marriage is juristic Maine, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts and Vermont (Montanaro n. pag.). Although Proposition 8 won 52% of votes (The Huffington Post n. pag.), or so of Californias leaders are questioning its legality. The Democrat-controlled state Legislature, for instance, argued that the Constitution cannot be revised by a guiltless majority vote it would strip the minority group of their constitutionally protected right. At present, Californias Supreme Court is dealing with a series of lawsuits that fill the contention of Proposition 8 (Ewers n. pag.).III. Findings regular if the US Constitution clearly declare that there is an decreed separation between church and state, American society trunk to be a deeply religious polity (Walzer 5). Simply put, American society is a democracy that continues to be firmly based on religious doctrine. This phenomenon is a l egacy of the countrys colonial past the first whites that came to the US were members of spiritual communities fleeing religious persecution in England. Consequently, the design Fathers declared that the US would not have an official state religion. All citizens were allowed to worship as they pleased and to openly propagate their faiths (Walzer 5). yet this did not mean that the debate about the role of religion in American life has ended. The leaders of the US in its formative years were overwhelmingly of Christian faith. Thus, it became inevitable that the legislative and judicial philosophies of American society were founded on Christian principles. The Founding Fathers, for instance, believed that despite the absence of an official religion, the US should be a Christian nation whose morality should be reflective of Christian values (Walzer 4).It is true that many Christian denominations were responsible for instigating much-needed social changes in mixed parts of American hi story. But as American society became increasingly pluralistic in the succeeding centuries, the need for more secularism in its major institutions emerged. This dilemma resulted in a conflict between conservative Christian denominations and a Christian lower classes that was slowly becoming tolerant of behaviors that were utilise to be considered as deviant, such as homosexuality. In the process, certain aspects of the societal and legal discussions of gay civil rights were negatively affected (Walzer 6).Although judges are supposed to be neutral interpreters of the law, personal experiences (including religious education and beliefs) still shape their perspectives both consciously and unconsciously (Walzer 6). Indeed, Christian fundamentalist groups are notorious for their attempts to hinder the passage of or weaken laws that promote homosexual rights (Walzer 7). In the name of religion, conservative Christian organizations will not think twice about harassing homosexuals and g ay rights associations, as well as interfere with the creation and enactment of gay civil rights laws. It is no longer surprising, therefore, if legal rights for homosexuals such as same-sex marriage, protection from body of work discrimination and adoption by gay parents were attained only in the late decades.Pastor Fred Phelps of the Westboro Baptist Church is an example of how farthermost fundamentalist Christians could go just to erect their homophobic stance. He once organized a picket at the funeral of homosexual rights activist Coretta Scott King, proclaiming that her soul would be penalise in hell due to her advocacy. Since 1991, Phelps has reportedly organized 22,000 anti-homosexual demonstrations in the US, Canada, Jordan and Iraq. These protest march of his often displayed homophobic slogans such as THANK GOD FOR AIDS (Dawkins 291).IV. certaintyConservative Christian denominations in the US were unprepared for the increasingly liberal automatic teller of American society. They therefore harshly criticized everything that was associated with it, particularly homosexuality. For Christian fundamentalists, homosexuals were immoral because they do not comply with the Judeo-Christian principle of sexual relations as a means of procreation. Such a way of cerebration eventually spawned all forms of harassment against homosexuals, such as damaging and baseless myths, unreal statistics and laws that hinder the enactment of gay civil rights.It would be impossible for the US to claim that it is a Christianity-based democracy when homophobia is rampant in its turf. Homophobia can be eliminated from the country by educating people regarding the myths and the facts surrounding homosexuality. Stiffer penalties for and stricter implementation of laws against loathe crimes would also help. As long as people are discriminated upon for any reason other than involvement in criminal activity, there can be no such thing as a free or just society.