A Gay Christian Country Singer Speaks Out

[Nick the Pilot]

Chely Wright: Confessions of a Gay Christian Country Singer

...Religion has been used to malign and condemn people like me for generations, we all know that. There is a rumor floating around out there about LGBT people and it's not good. A lot of folks think that we're Godless and that we're "this way" because some of us don't flock to houses of worship with the urgency and frequency that would satisfy those who judge us so harshly...

(cont.)

 

[Amergin]

Chely Wright: Confessions of a Gay Christian Country Singer

...Religion has been used to malign and condemn people like me for generations, we all know that. There is a rumor floating around out there about LGBT people and it's not good. A lot of folks think that we're Godless and that we're "this way" because some of us don't flock to houses of worship with the urgency and frequency that would satisfy those who judge us so harshly...

(cont.)

I certainly sympathise with Gay people facing the hatred, bigotry, and ignorance of Traditional and Bible thumper Christians. Those so-called Christians oppose nearly everything that the Gospel Jesus taught.

One thing perturbed me somewhat. The comment was that "folks think we're Godless." That means that they hate those of us who are free of religious faith and god belief.

I am straight and married to one woman for 43 years. As a teenager I harboured some anti-gay ideas but personally never insulted a gay person. Yet I am a person in the most hated group (to Americans), those who do not believe in gods. Therefore, gay people can find solace in the fact that they may be hated but we atheists are hated more.

As a neuroscientist and practicing Neurologist, I know that homosexuality is not a choice. It is based on a variant set of brain circuits. It is not morally right or wrong. That same thing applies to atheists and devout religious believers. We all are what we believe based on how our brain is structured not our personal choice. Most here would not understand the scientific findings that offer strong evidence that the brain determines one's sexual identification and sexual orientation.

Those who "choose" to be heterosexual but have homosexual brain circuits are what we call homophobes. They marry and even have children but all of the time they are suppressing their true homosexual orientation. Those people claim that gay marriage threatens their own marriages. True heterosexuals have nothing to fear from two other blokes tying the knot. We have no reason to fear gays getting married. Homophobes are emotionally threatened by even knowing that gay people marry.

Luckily, I do not live in America but in a tolerant nation. Those in the USA must hide their absence of God belief or risk being fired for some other trivial excuse. Doctors, storeowners, dentists, Boy Scout leaders, and all politicians risk total professional boycott if they are outed as "Heathens, Atheists, Infidels, or God haters."

Gay people still face some anti-gay social aggression by fanatical Christians. It could be worse only if one were a Gay Atheist Obese African-American,

Amergin

 

[NiceCupOfTea]

the stance of Christian Fundametalism is hate the sin but love the sinner I think.

but imo if you want to be gay or thats just how u are then thats fine.

 

[Amergin]

the stance of Christian Fundametalism is hate the sin but love the sinner I think..

I know they make that claim. But in my experience during my year in America (about 30 years ago) fundamentalists made up the vast majority of US haters, bigots, magical thinkers, and demonising of dissenters.

It is the fact that despite the kind and wise words of Jesus in the Gospels, Evangelicals or Fundamentalists really worship the Old Testament God of fear, vengeance, cruelty, and founder of Hell. They focus on Gays because of OT verses the condemn homosexuality in men. They focus on verses commanding Jews to kill witches. I think (not sure) that some verse condemns those who do not believe or believe incorrectly. Fundamentalists avoid Jesus when it comes to his views about the poor, the sick, sharing wealth, sharing food; plus Jesus' not mentioning homosexuality or incorrect belief.

This view is the reason why I think Christianity is unrelated to Jesus of Nazareth other than stealing his first name to invent an Indo-European God with a new name. Unfortunately the Fundamentalists consider the Christ God equivalent to Yahweh, the commander of a horde of killer angels in the Apocalypse. Your only salvation is not your moral behaviour but strict allegiance to the Terror God.

Amergin

 

[wil]

Hate the sin love the sinner is a game.

It means if you give up your heathen ways we'll talk.

It is saying you are abhorent and your sexual proclities mean you will spend eternity in hell, but ....

Plenty of LGBT Jews and Christians today....we gotta just get over it. G!d don't make no mistakes...including them.

 

[Amergin]

Hate the sin love the sinner is a game.

It means if you give up your heathen ways we'll talk.

It is saying you are abhorent and your sexual proclities mean you will spend eternity in hell, but ....

Plenty of LGBT Jews and Christians today....we gotta just get over it. G!d don't make no mistakes...including them.

God does not make mistakes. He is a mental concept invented by humans. He is the alter-ego of the savage tribal war lord. And in many religions the god or gods represent the bigotry, ignorance, and superstition of the ancient war lord or chief.

We need to stop blaming God for disasters and stop thanking him for unexpected survivors. God ain't real. He is a figment of the imagination in a late Neolithic or early Bronze Age tribal chief. God only survives in human minds who have been indoctrinate to believe in him. Eventually all gods die off when the last old people who believed in them died off. The rubbish heap of used gods contains perhaps a thousand or more long forgotten sky, water, fire, and earth monsters.

Amergin

 

[NiceCupOfTea]

God does not make mistakes. He is a mental concept invented by humans. He is the alter-ego of the savage tribal war lord. And in many religions the god or gods represent the bigotry, ignorance, and superstition of the ancient war lord or chief.

We need to stop blaming God for disasters and stop thanking him for unexpected survivors. God ain't real. He is a figment of the imagination in a late Neolithic or early Bronze Age tribal chief. God only survives in human minds who have been indoctrinate to believe in him. Eventually all gods die off when the last old people who believed in them died off. The rubbish heap of used gods contains perhaps a thousand or more long forgotten sky, water, fire, and earth monsters.

Amergin

amergin, plenty of people disagree with u and their opinions are just as valid as yours.

in terms of common decency and respect u would do well to keep such comments outside of the Christian section of the forum ?

 

[Saltmeister]

in terms of common decency and respect u would do well to keep such comments outside of the Christian section of the forum ?

Amergin is just a human being. The Christianity forum is not going to disappear regardless of how much Amergin criticises Christianity. The important thing is that you and I are still here. As long as we are alive. Amergin can say whatever he likes. Amergin does what Amergin does best and if it doesn't kill us, he can go on saying what he does. The temple, church (or whatever) isn't going to fall apart just because of the words of one man.

Survival is the most important thing. I think we'll live. Trust me on this one. You and I can live to the age of 85, 95, 105 (whatever) and the dogs can keep barking.

It's a test of patience.

Remember the story of Shimei insulting King David?

 

[NiceCupOfTea]

Amergin is just a human being. The Christianity forum is not going to disappear regardless of how much Amergin criticises Christianity. The important thing is that you and I are still here. As long as we are alive. Amergin can say whatever he likes. Amergin does what Amergin does best and if it doesn't kill us, he can go on saying what he does. The temple, church (or whatever) isn't going to fall apart just because of the words of one man.

Survival is the most important thing. I think we'll live. Trust me on this one. You and I can live to the age of 85, 95, 105 (whatever) and the dogs can keep barking.

It's a test of patience.

Remember the story of Shimei insulting King David?

no worries, i was only joking anyway.

 

[Amergin]

no worries, i was only joking anyway.

I think a discussion form on any subject should welcome critics. If a belief system or claim of knowledge is afraid of rhetorical challenges, it means that it contains serious self doubt.

If Christians are confident in their beliefs, they should welcome challenges and offer counter-points. If they have suppressed doubts but fear losing the comfort of group faith, then they should not come to a discussion form but seek a Christian Fellowship Forum that does not admit non-Christians or critics.

There are about 2 billion Christians in the world and 2 billion Muslims.while about 3 billion others do not believe in the gods of either largest religions. In perspective Christians are about one third or less of the world population. Non-Christians are the majority. That does not make them right or wrong. It means that opinions differ because no belief is so obvious as to be adopted by all of humanity.

Atheists and Agnostics are only 14% of the world's population. I consider myself a Non-Theistic Atheist. I simply do not believe that gods exist but I do not claim certainty or deny the existence of gods. If I have any belief it is not theological but purely materialistic evidence or mathematics based science. I willingly address those Christians who question the validity of scientific findings or mathematics.

In discussing the history of religions, sometimes I find it dreadfully violent and cruel. I see no harm in referring to history recorded by Christians and Muslims.

Amergin

 

[A Cup Of Tea]

Amergin, hi.
I was wondering if you could elaborate on the concept of Non-Theistic Atheism, I didn't understand how you simply do not believe but are not certain. I could probably google the concept but I would prefer to hear your definition that is most true for you, so feel free to state your very own personal opinion.

I was also curios, since I'm asking questions, if materialistic or science basted evidence is very important to you? Do you have trouble understanding that a person just felt their faith in their heart, without evidence or even despite contradictory evidence.

 

[Nick the Pilot]

"I simply do not believe that gods exist but I do not claim certainty or deny the existence of gods."

--> That's called being an agnostic.

 

[Vajradhara]

just an fyi.... by definition one cannot be a leader of Boy Scouts, nor even participate with them, if one is not a Christian. it is part of the their code of conduct and they are pretty upfront about it.

it does mean, of course, that my son cannot join them unless we lie which, whilst i have no particular issue in doing so to facilitate my son's joining, i cannot see any benefit in starting down a road where my son deems it's acceptable to have to hide his religious views nor any other aspect of his being.

i, already, do enough of that for everyone in my family. i would, to the best of my ability, wish to spare my child from such deplorable behavior.

metta,

~v

 

[Amergin]

Amergin, hi.
I was wondering if you could elaborate on the concept of Non-Theistic Atheism, I didn't understand how you simply do not believe but are not certain. I could probably google the concept but I would prefer to hear your definition that is most true for you, so feel free to state your very own personal opinion.

I was also curios, since I'm asking questions, if materialistic or science basted evidence is very important to you? Do you have trouble understanding that a person just felt their faith in their heart, without evidence or even despite contradictory evidence.

I am an Atheist in the true literal sense of the word. It means not having belief in gods. It does not claim that gods do not exist. Americans are largely ignorant of the true meaning.

Agnostic means having no evidence with which to claim the existence or non-existence of gods. Americans incorrectly think Agnostic means undecided. That is wrong. It means that one cannot deny with certainty the existence of God, of Blue Water Spiders on the Moon Europa, or Ice Zebras on Neptune. There simply is no evidence of any of them, thus we have no compelling reason to believe that they are real.

Non-Theistic Agnostic best describes me. I lack a belief in God because there is no evidence to support a god hypothesis.

Amergin

 

[A Cup Of Tea]

Non-Theistic Agnostic best describes me. I lack a belief in God because there is no evidence to support a god hypothesis.

Just for super clearification. You do mean Non-Theistic Atheis?

 

[Amergin]

Just for super clearification. You do mean Non-Theistic Atheis?

Actually Non-Theist is the same as Atheist. The Greek prefix A- means without or Non- and both Non-theist and Atheist both mean not having a belief in gods.

Again, Atheism in the Greek context means "without belief."

Use of Atheism to identify those who deny the possibility of some kind of ill defined god is WRONG."

Those who deny the remote possibility of the existence of god(s) should be
Negatiovitadeism

I think that is a good way to define those Atheists who are hostile to Theism. In the same sense Fundamentalist could be applied to those who are hostile to all forms of theism that is not their own.

We have long drifted from the literal meaning of Atheism. It literally means in Greek, A-without, Theism-belief in gods. It literally means lacking a belief in gods not necessarily denying the existence of gods.

Negatiovitadeism or Negatiovitadeist is my own invention from Latin. It means Negatio (denial), Vita (existence), Deus (God), and ism (belief system.) So what some call a strong Atheist who denies existence of god is not a true Atheist. A true Atheist only ADMITS to lacking a belief.

A Negatiovitadeist claims that God does not exist.

An Atheist only admits to a lack of Belief in gods.

An Anti-Theist would be a Non-Theist who has hatred of Theists of any kind.

An Agnostic only admits to having no opinion on the existence of God due to total lack of evidence. (I think I really fit there but that also means I lack a belief and am also an Atheist.)

A Theist is one who believes in any one or more gods.

A Theist who opposes Atheists would be an Anti-Atheist or A-Atheist. That would produce a paradox. It would mean lack of belief in the lack of belief in gods.

President George H. W. Bush in 1988 said that Atheists should not be considered patriots or even citizens.

Amergin