This claim seems at times to be the ultimate trump card. A certain behavior, I might argue, is socially acceptable for this or that secular reason... but ultimately, it's a sin, which means that no secular argument applies. For example, homosexuality may be a victimless crime that indicates a natural attraction, not a perversion, but that's irrelevant since it is, as we've all been told time and time again, a SIN.
What is sin, folks? Sin, according to the Bible and according to every reputable definition I've read, is disobedience or disrespect towards God. That means that when you say something is a sin, you are claiming to know that God Himself disapproves strongly enough that it is invariably wrong. But how do you know? Have you personally spoken with God? Do you have this from his own mouth?
No, you almost certainly have it from your preacher, or your parents, or the interpretation of the Bible that you were taught. That is, you have it from other men who confidently assure you that God disapproves of the behavior in question. Not only so, but other people also have it from men of similar authority that the opposite is true (God has no problem with the behavior, or God wishes us to engage in it). A few people might claim that they have it from God's own mouth, but since there are others who claim to have condradictory information from God, it stands to reason that most such people are crazy (unless God gives contradictory information, in which case the idea that one can ever know what God approves of is fatally flawed).
So ultimately, the idea that something is sinful is a subjective judgement, based on faith in certain specific men of authority who teach that this is what God says. That is, it is a personal belief. Since you cannot prove that a thing is sinful, but only declare it on faith, your belief does not apply to anyone who does not choose to have the same faith as you do.
This being the case, I find it hard to understand what relevance "It's a SIN!" has to anyone else's behavior. That argument should not even enter into a discussion about what anyone else should or should not do, and in fact should never even be stated aloud if one is honest -- it is relevant to your own mind only and should stay there.
The statement that a certain behavior is sinful, since it is a statement based on one's own internal beliefs, is an observation that one's own conscience forbids one to engage in that behavior. To suggest that any else ought to refrain from "sinful" behavior is tantamount to saying, "My conscience pricks me when I do that, so I'm going to force EVERYONE to stop doing it!" When in fact, your conscience is an internal guide, not an objective law of nature.
So I'll ask again -- what does it matter whether homosexuality is a choice? What does it matter whether it's sinful? What does it matter whether the Bible says it's wrong? What does anything matter except the question of whether there is a clear and present secular danger from it? And if you think your personal revulsion for this behavior should be accounted for in law, why do you think so?
What is sin, folks? Sin, according to the Bible and according to every reputable definition I've read, is disobedience or disrespect towards God. That means that when you say something is a sin, you are claiming to know that God Himself disapproves strongly enough that it is invariably wrong. But how do you know? Have you personally spoken with God? Do you have this from his own mouth?
No, you almost certainly have it from your preacher, or your parents, or the interpretation of the Bible that you were taught. That is, you have it from other men who confidently assure you that God disapproves of the behavior in question. Not only so, but other people also have it from men of similar authority that the opposite is true (God has no problem with the behavior, or God wishes us to engage in it). A few people might claim that they have it from God's own mouth, but since there are others who claim to have condradictory information from God, it stands to reason that most such people are crazy (unless God gives contradictory information, in which case the idea that one can ever know what God approves of is fatally flawed).
So ultimately, the idea that something is sinful is a subjective judgement, based on faith in certain specific men of authority who teach that this is what God says. That is, it is a personal belief. Since you cannot prove that a thing is sinful, but only declare it on faith, your belief does not apply to anyone who does not choose to have the same faith as you do.
This being the case, I find it hard to understand what relevance "It's a SIN!" has to anyone else's behavior. That argument should not even enter into a discussion about what anyone else should or should not do, and in fact should never even be stated aloud if one is honest -- it is relevant to your own mind only and should stay there.
The statement that a certain behavior is sinful, since it is a statement based on one's own internal beliefs, is an observation that one's own conscience forbids one to engage in that behavior. To suggest that any else ought to refrain from "sinful" behavior is tantamount to saying, "My conscience pricks me when I do that, so I'm going to force EVERYONE to stop doing it!" When in fact, your conscience is an internal guide, not an objective law of nature.
So I'll ask again -- what does it matter whether homosexuality is a choice? What does it matter whether it's sinful? What does it matter whether the Bible says it's wrong? What does anything matter except the question of whether there is a clear and present secular danger from it? And if you think your personal revulsion for this behavior should be accounted for in law, why do you think so?
