Homosexuality And Religious Identity

Over the past 150 years, there have been many groups who have sought the North American dream of "liberty and justice for all." Examples are:

Intersectionality is a relevant theory for some gay, lesbian or bisexual individuals. Intersectionality studies "the relationships among multiple dimensions and modalities of social relationships and subject formations" (McCall, 2005). The theory argues, pursues and considers how gender, race, sexual orientation and other categories of identity interact on many and often concurring levels of social relationships, therefore allowing discrimination and social inequity. Intersectionality explains how the notion of social injustice, such as racism, sexism, homophobia, and belief-based bigotry such as religion are not independent of one another; instead, they are interconnected, and thereby reflect “intersectionality” in regards to social

Religion and acceptance have a large impact on people in the LGBTQ communities. All anyone has ever wanted was to be accepted for who they are by their friends and family. When this doesn’t happen it can cause stress and thoughts of suicide. If the stress of not being accepted continues there is a possibility that there may be a loss not only with their LGBTQ identity but their spiritual identity as well. Loss of Religious or Spiritual Identities Amoung [sic] the LGBT Population by Andrew William Wood and Abigail Holland Conley ;and The Role of Religion and Stress in Sexual Identity and Mental Health Amoung [sic] Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youth by Mathew L. J. Page, Kristin M. Lindahl, and Neena M. Malik are two articles out of the many that

According to statistics from Pew Research, 78.4% of U.S. adults consider themselves Christian. When the study was conducted in 2007, only .7% identified themselves as Buddhist, .4% identified as Hindu, and less than .3% identified with other world religions, including Daoism (Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, 2007). The American Religious Identity Survey (ARIS) provides more information about those who identified with other religions. According to this study, .9% of adults in the U.S. identified as belonging to any Eastern Religion and .5% of that .9% considered themselves Buddhist. Comparing the results of this newest survey to those of the first ARIS survey, conducted in 1990, shows that the percentage of adults in the U.S. who

In the beginning of every story the hero must accept or deny their call to adventure and for the LGBT youth this dilemma comes between accepting their sexuality or choosing a life of secret suffering which they will not be able to act out on their passions and desires compared contrasted between heterosexual people who don't have a problem accepting their call. According to the William Institute at the University of California Los Angeles, about 3.5% of adults in the united states are either gay, bisexual, or lesbian which is a very small percentage of the population which is predominantly heterosexual. Growing up and living in a world that is geared towards heterosexual relationships can be hard for any LGBT person who is trying to even understand their sexuality and where their place is in society, especially when it is deeply rooted in Judeo-Christianity that traditionally has held very strict rules concerning homosexuality and sex in general.

Although during the early modern period the term “homosexuality” may not have existed, the persecution of homosexuals was a vicious practice which was sweeping across society in Early Modern Europe. Without a name, homosexuality and homosexual identities were heavily diluted down to simple definitions which would set the standard for how homosexual identities developed and how homosexual individuals were treated for many years to come. This essay will discuss the criminalization of sodomy and the demonization of homosexual individuals in Early Modern European society. It will also argue that these brutal practices and

The predominant idea about humanity is that it evolves over the due course of time. What was a taboo in the past may not be a taboo anymore as time runs; it may even gradually change into an accepted norm. The way society perceives ideas, norms, behaviours and social relationships will also change over the course of time. For instance, homosexuality was accepted as a part of social life in the early Greek City States like Salamis and Sparta. However, over the period of time under the influence of the Judeo-Christian traditions, homosexuality became a taboo. This notion remained till the late 20th century and even today, the acceptance of the so called ‘deviants’ is a matter of social debate; people treat them with social stigma and often isolates

It continues to amaze me that even in the 21st century the church continues to be major focus in the discrimination homophobia. The church seems not to learn from our history. During the years and post years of the slavery of African Americans, the mistreatment, abuse and murder of black people was supported by the Bible and even condoned as acceptable behaviors. But as we now know, that neither God nor the Bible supports hatred or mistreatment of another human being as we are all children of Christ and we are to love one another and treat each other as we ourselves want to be treated.

It would be hard to deny that the election brought out lots of intolerance in our country that prides itself on being the place of equal opportunity for all. However, as my second participant, Dan, explained, “I’ve seen so much hate, but I have also seen so much love”. Many citizens came out in support of LGBT rights and this proves the “fluidity and malleability of human sexuality... in U.S. culture” (Guest 223). Even ten years ago it was hard to imagine the shift in views from the ‘heterosexual norm’ to sexualty as a perosnal choice that should be equally accepted and granted. My last participant, Nate, agreed with the changing views of sexuality in the United States, but had quite different thoughts on how he personally experienced the election as a gay man.

I hurriedly scanned the pages of my book in a hopeless frenzy, trying to get lost in the story as a form of escape. The boy who announced to the class that I “sounded gay” became a vicious vulture, and I a flightless, chirpless bird. I hid in shame behind the feeble bindings of my book, avariciously hugging the covers as my only comfort.

For most of my life, I was never comfortable with who I am. Grappling with my sexuality, I was ashamed with my identity. I always felt that no matter what I did, no matter what I accomplished, I would always be a disappointment to my family and friends. There were many moments where I wished I was normal, where I did not have feelings for people of the same sex. There was always the need to hide who I am from the people I love because as I grew up, it was reinforced that being gay was unacceptable.

Opposition to gay marriage has increased since the summer and a narrow majority of Americans also oppose allowing gays and lesbians to enter legal agreements that fall short of marriage. Moreover, despite the overall rise in tolerance toward gays since the 1980s, many Americans remain highly critical of homosexuals ­ and religious belief is a major factor in these attitudes.

even though sexuality can be considered universal, the sexual behaviors affiliated with it offer different attitudes in various communities. Sexuality is aligned to sexual attraction where individuals can identify themselves with a broad range of sexuality that is bisexual, gay or being lesbian. Sexuality can change over time in a person depending on the circumstances surrounding him or her. It may be affected by the social circle and emotional imbalances that may occur in an individual. Interestingly there exists sexual inequality among many societies in the world. As observed, many societies encourage men to have multiple sex partners but forbid it in women. Moreover, pre-marital sex is promoted in men, but women are flaunted if they participate in pre-marital sex. Across the globe, Western Europe has embraced certain norms in sexuality such as homosexuality whereas African society embraces a negative attitude towards the same.

The results of this structure, consistent religious participation, routine coverage of religious writing, and frequent collaboration with religious groups can possibly boost anti-homosexual attitudes; furthermore, when religious preachers speak of the “word” of God to the masses, followers are less likely to question the “why” it is wrong to be gay, but instead follow a belief that has a negative perception on the LGBT community, for it is God’s word. Also, it leaves little room for anyone to question the validity; of the ideology that homosexuality is unconventional because the religion itself and the people participating in it consider it is true without a doubt for the reason that it is God’s word. It is somewhat similar to a black sheep stuck in the middle of a crowed white sheep horde, which must continue moving on with the group, for that is what all the other sheep’s are doing. The religious’ judgment on gay sexuality affects the people contributing to the principle, but also those of non-religious backgrounds, for there is an unintended recollection that same-sex attraction is incorrect since he/she has heard that religion has stated it is sinful. “Research on religious contexts has suggested that even people who are not personally religious may be influenced by the religious culture in which they live” (Adamczyk 340). If the religious context is more disapproving of homosexuality in a country, then anti-homosexual sentiment may be displayed and voiced through

Homosexuality is one of the most controversial topics in the world today. Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalyst had his theory on human sexuality and claims, “ all human beings were innately bisexual, and that they become heterosexual or homosexual as a result of their experiences with parents and others.” Many people view it as a natural thing, but others think it is absolutely wrong and utterly a personal choice. The Bible, other religions, and the world all have different opinions on this subject. Homosexuality is a matter with many different viewpoints.