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Very interesting: I am doing a long drive later today (DC to GA). That’s one of the many podcasts I have for the trip. I listened to the whole thing. He concludes that homosexuality is biological, and isn’t likely to change either. The end was very interesting — some very intelligent BYU students ask him some hard questions like how he handles holding such an opinion when it seems contrary to other statements people believe that homosexuality is something people choose. His response:
“Being odd is a burden” is quotable.
Also, they ask a lot of questions that he had to answer carefully, such as — how can we help people see through all the misinformation sold through Deseret book that homosexuality is the result of sexual child abuse etcetera…. his answer was — find out what the truth really is through study, and then bring it up in Elder’s Quorum if someone starts sharing false information.
Overall an interesting, academic/biological look at the origins of homosexuality.
Thanks for those comments Silent struggle….I appreciate that and find it interesting. It is my understanding he has a gay son and supports some pro-gay groups. This may be the motivation for his study, but as a researcher it is important to stick to facts. As far as the church goes, even if it is biological, it should not be acted upon. SilentDawning wrote:Also, they ask a lot of questions that he had to answer carefully, such as — how can we help people see through all the misinformation sold through Deseret book that homosexuality is the result of sexual child abuse etcetera…. his answer was — find out what the truth really is through study
I admit, this is a topic I may be somewhat ignorant on, and need to study more. I have 7 personal acquaintances who are gay. Of them, I know for a fact that 5 of them were sexually abused when they were young. (as for the other two, I have never asked, so I don’t know that they weren’t) To me… it certainly does seem like a strong link. Something about harming a small child in such a way when their brains are still developing could possible change who they are. Which to me should call for extreme compassion. I can think of nothing worse than not protecting a child when they are young, and then rejecting them for who they become. (Please no angry responses… I don’t want to offend and I admit I am basing my opinion off of what I know of my small circle of gay friends) I do not reject the argument that one can be born gay, I do believe it is true in many cases, but I just need to educate myself more. I plan to listen to the podcast.
Quote:I have 7 personal acquaintances who are gay. Of them, I know for a fact that 5 of them were sexually abused when they were young. (as for the other two, I have never asked, so I don’t know that they weren’t.)
I think we all rely on anecdotal information like what you’ve shared here. However, I think you have to look at large numbers of situations to get a representative sample. It may be you just have a chance, high occurance of sexual abuse in your particular sets of friends.
On another note, there were several times in the podcast when the professor got quiet and silent — the fact that he has a gay son helps me understand why. He was probably fighting back mixed emotions when he reached his conclusions about whether people choose homosexuality or whether it chooses people. If my son was gay, then I’d feel a mixture of relief and also relief that its genetic and not a result of personal choice, or my own doing. While at same time, feeling sad that there is nothing that could be done to alter the tendencies to ease suffering as a gay member of the Church.
Fwiw, lots of the research I’ve seen draws an important distinction between what can be said about gay men and lesbian women with regard to sexual orientation. Maybe I’ll summarize the main points sometime, but conclusions about the biological origins of homosexuality for men as opposed to women can be fascinating. Also, any discussion of this particular issue simply must distinguish between orientation and activity to be valid. That is horribly misunderstood by many.
Finally, I appreciate voices like his.
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