Misplaced Pride

By presidential proclamations, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) Pride Month is celebrated each year in the month of June to honor the 1969 Stonewall Inn Uprising in Manhattan. Homosexuality and crossdressing were illegal many places in the country. While it was not unusual for the police to raid gay bars, there were accusations of brutality at Stonewall which led to a six day riot. The Stonewall Uprising was a tipping point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States (Source: Library of Congress).

What began as a struggle for civil rights has morphed into a militant crusade. Strategic efforts have been launched to move LGBTQ issues and behavior from being rejected by the public to being accepted as normal and good. Culturally, we are most familiar with this movement through its promotion in social media, television, and cinema. However, we now see the movement making major inroads politically – from the push for gay marriage to that of transgender issues.

The attempt to mainstream LGBTQ issues and behavior has led to an effective propaganda campaign. Activists lobbied successfully to have homosexuality and gender identity disorder, removed from the American Psychiatric Association’s diagnostic manual of mental disorders. Early on in the movement, the term homosexual was considered to be pejorative, so they opted to describe themselves as gay using slogans like, “It’s Good to be Gay!” It stuck. Later in the movement, Gay Pride was used to mitigate the shame felt by those who believed their feelings and behavior were not normal. They were urged to be proud of who they were.

This leads us back to Pride Month, a celebration not only designed to instill pride in one’s LGBTQ identity, but also enjoin those who are not a part of this movement to join them in this celebration. It is working. Banners in downtown Boise declare that “we” are “together” with them. Social media is filled with affirmations and expressions of solidarity. Various companies, manufacturers, retailers, breweries, etc. are commemorating this month in various ways. Much of this is mere “virtue signaling,” but it contributes toward greater, widespread acceptance. There is a real battle for the minds of our youth and the LGBTQ activists are winning.

I will be addressing some of this in my lesson Sunday; however, the message will not be a political call to action, but a biblical one. I will be approaching this solely from a biblical, Kingdom of God perspective. Since we are inundated with this propaganda and since our young people are so vulnerable, we need a word from the Lord.

I will be presenting a worldview that encompasses God’s plan for his people from Genesis to Revelation. This will not just be a lesson of the so called “clobber texts,” but a systematic study on God’s design for humanity. As a result of this study, I hope you will conclude with me that pride in these LGBTQ issues is sadly misplaced.

Blessings, Joey