If you didn't catch "The Trials of Ted Haggard" last night on HBO, try to see it at a later date.
Let me state that I wouldn't buy the snake oil that Reverend Haggard appears to be selling, but what I saw in this Alexandra Pelosi documentary gave me pause.
Not once in the entire program did Ted claim to now be 'completely heterosexual." Those words were actually spoken by another preacher about him.
What I find ironic is that Ted Haggard has been exiled by the church he founded in Colorado Springs. It's not clear to me why he was shown the door by the New Life Church. Was it because he lied, got caught, or (and I'm thinking this is it) is gay?
Ted appears to be not very good at anything except preaching, and even that's doubtful at this juncture. In these economically troubled times the film shows Haggard as not just unemployed but unemployable. His college degree is in "English Bible." What the hell is that?
What must happen is that Ted Haggard and all other homosexuals stop thinking of their sexual preference as a sin and accept it for what it is. Just as we can't change our eye color (except through colored contact lenses) we can't change our sexual preference. It's not right or wrong; it just is.
When I see thousands of 'evangelicals' cramming a 'mega-church' I have to admit to feeling physically ill. So much bigotry, so little understanding, so little Christianity.
2 comments:
Tolerance doesn't seem to be a "virtue" in some of these mega churches - because it's all about finding people just like you. I feel sorry for poeple who've grown up in a rigid homophobic religious atmostphere who then find their true sexual nature. Where do they go for acceptance? For unconditional love? Certainly not to their church.
Unfortunately, Ellie, I think a lot of people find their unity in excluding others. Also, so many prefer to see the world in absolutes, and we all know so much of what happens falls into the grey area.
Post a Comment