Elton John says that if he had it his way, organized religion would be banned. He thinks they promote hatred against gays. Sir John states that religion "turns people into really hateful lemmings."
These are strong words. I’ve always enjoyed Elton John’s music, and I was saddened by his attitude.
I can’t speak for all religions, but I know that many of them don’t think the gay lifestyle is morally acceptable. That is completely different from promoting hatred towards gays. Though you will find homophobic individuals within any religion, it doesn’t mean that the religion promotes it.
As much as I dislike what Sir John said, it should give members of organized religion something to think about.
Elton John may be wrong about what churches promote, but he is right about some individuals within a church. Some Christians and members of other organized religions can be pretty self-righteous and can come across as though they are full of hate.
I’m proud to say that I’m a Christian, but I have been attacked by Christians of other denominations. When struggling with chronic illness, I’ve been told that I pray wrong, or I don’t have enough faith. Some Christians think that they need to “save” me because they believe that the teachings of my church are wrong.
Then again, it’s not only Christians who can act this way. My daughter has had people say some pretty nasty things to her by atheists. It seems that if she states any kind of opinion in agreement with her Church, they stop listening and start yelling.
Christians should be better than this. Jesus accepted everybody. You can think somebody is sinning and still love the sinner. Remember that you’re a sinner, too.
Sir John, I disagree with you completely. You need to separate the members of a church from what the church actually teaches and promotes. Organized religion has done an awful lot of good in the world. Just because they don’t condone the gay lifestyle doesn’t mean they should be banned. If somebody espouses hate while claiming to be “religious”, that doesn’t mean the church teaches hate.
If a number of musicians preached hatred, you wouldn’t want to ban music.
To members of organized religion, keep in mind that Elton John speaks for many. It’s not just hatred of the gay lifestyle that is a problem, it’s the superiority and self-righteousness of some that harms us all.
You might not like with Sir John says, but maybe it’s time to learn from him.
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3 comments:
I totally agree with you. Hate the sin, love the sinner. This self-righteous stuff has to go. Thanks for stopping by my blog. I like your insights on yours...I'll be back for visit.
Hello 'Proud." I also followed your link back to your blog after you left a comment on mine (how did you find it btw?). I can appreciate your post on another one of the musicians I grew up listening to and had some of the same reactions to the article you refer to. It occurred to me that everyone is prejudiced to some degree or another (some more than others of course), even if by 'prejudiced' all you mean is pre-conceived opinions about a group, religion, race, culture, political affiliation or whatever. These prejudices will manifest in all sorts of ways from the alcohol-induced rantings of one star or the heckling induced rants of another. The thing that I find annoying is when a member of one group that experiences prejudice, like Mr. Dwight, thinks that gives them the right to be prejudiced against another group. I experienced some of the most horrific prejudice invoked violence when I worked in the South-Central Los Angeles area by blacks against Asians that lived in the same neighborhoods. It just astounded me at the time that one group that has been so vocal about the prejudice against them for so long could be so openly, vocally and violently prejudiced against another race.
Interesting post. I think its very sad, elton john promoting his agenda. Doesn't the Word of God say that for a male to lie with another male is an abomination? Strong language. Was God homophobic? And am I, as a bible believing christian and catholic, if I believe what is written? And how does Sir Elton John reconcile his lifestyle, with what his creator says about it (whether he believes in Him or not). Kate
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