Where is The Mercy?

I had lunch with a friend of mine who’s a pastor and he shared with me a story about a young African-American boy, only 13-years-old who tried to kill himself recently. He’s effeminate and most likely gay; he gets teased and bullied a lot at school. His mother called him a faggot one day and that must have pushed him over the edge and he attempted to hang himself to death. By the grace of God he was unsuccessful this time, but who’s to say he won’t try again. And why shouldn’t he? When the church sends out the message that you are better off dead than gay why shouldn’t he try again? Why live? For what reason? To be rejected by the black church and the black community at large? When your own mother cannot show you any mercy and taunts you in the same manner with the same words you get taunted with at school why go on? So now the mother is planning to take him to a pastor for “counseling”. In the church “counseling” so often involves being threatened with an eternity in hell unless you straighten up.

If that little boy tries to kill himself again and succeeds his blood is on the hands of the church, his blood and the blood of every single other young gay man and woman who believed that they were better off being dead than gay because that was the message the church communicated to them in one form or another. May God have mercy on the church! Sometimes I find myself in church asking myself why am I here? What does this have to do with my relationship with God? When so many Christians do not resemble Christ in any way shape or form why am I wasting my time coming here?

I’m so tired of the judgment, the self-righteousness. The church is so quick to condemn everyone else, but themselves. How convenient! If indeed God is disgusted by the lifestyle of homosexuals than God must also be equally disgusted by the lifestyle of most Christians. If homosexuality is a sin than the way the church treats gay people is equally as sinful. The church with all of the many, many sins it has committed in the name of Christ is in no position to condemn any human being. God and God alone will judge the living and the dead. What is needed now is mercy. Jesus never uttered a word about homosexuality but he did say for us to love everyone even our enemies. Why don’t we stop occupying ourselves condemning others and actually do what Jesus told us to do: love God and love your neighbor as you love yourself. Do unto others as you would have them do to you.

Following the Way,
Kevin