Author: Dr. Michael A. S. Guth, Ph.D., J.D.


The AIDS crisis has brought to the fore how various religious
denominations are responding to patients with AIDS, particularly
homosexuals. On occasion, Catholic leaders have mistakenly
joined ranks with conservative Christians and evangelicals who
believe AIDS is God's punishment for some people who engaged in
sinful behavior. But such thinking should be ethically repugnant
to anyone acquainted with the words of Jesus Christ. God is not
punishing homosexuals with AIDS any more than He is punishing
smokers by inflicting them with lung cancer.

As a Roman Catholic, I feel at times that the bishops and other
hierarchy have hijacked our church and taken it in a direction
that departs from the authentic teachings of Christ. The example
of Christ differs markedly from these modern-day scribes and
pharisees. My sentiments are reflected in comments by George
Anderson in the best seller WE ARE NOT FORGOTTEN (pp.204-205):
"Parents want to know, 'After my son suffered with AIDS, is he
in Hell now because he was gay?' To me, if that came through (in
a reading for a bereaved relative), it would not be from God. If
you read the Bible carefully, it's obvious that Jesus found the
company of society's so-called outcasts preferable to the
self-righteous. It's my feeling that the 'outcasts' who are good
people are going to go to Heaven faster than the self-righteous.
We know that Jesus Christ embraced the lepers. If He were here
on earth today, does anyone truly believe He would turn away
people with AIDS? Do you think he would make a judgment on them
at all? Christ knew the so-called outcasts were also God's
children. He also knew that they would probably be more open to
His teachings and beliefs."

The notion that people have a right to judge others and condemn
them to Hell, because of their sexual orientation is such a
perversion of the New Testament as to deserve the harshest
rebuke by my church. But instead, the Roman Catholic Church
seems to give aid and comfort to conservative Protestants and
Evangelicals who look upon homosexuals with condescension, and
worse, with a desire for persecution. The Gospel of St. Matthew
could not more clear on what would be the fate of the
self-righteous persecutors of Christ's time: the scribes and
pharisees. Only a fool would believe the self-righteous
preachers of our time speak the word of the Lord.

The Catholic Church correctly rejects and condemns promiscuity
(whether heterosexual or homosexual), because it represents
licentious behavior in which the flesh is glorified over the
spirit. People who are spiritual, and thus necessarily concerned
with the spiritual well-being of others, would not engage in
promiscuous behavior. However, the Catholic Church has failed to
welcome into its fold those gay and lesbian brethren who have
adopted stable, loving relationships and only want to continue
on their journey of faith with the rest of us. Conservative
clerics like the former Cardinal John O'Connor have repeatedly
made pronouncements that the Church has no use for homosexuals,
and they were not welcome. But O'Connor on occasion displayed
narrow-minded bigotry and failed to grasp some of the most
fundamental teachings of Christ, e.g., the Beatitudes and His
inclusion into His church of society's outcasts: the prostitute,
the leper, the tax collector, etc.

Fortunately, there also exists within a church as large as the
Roman Catholic Church some examples of religious leaders who
carried out the true teaching of Christ with their actions as
well as their words. "[Saint] Mother Theresa was one of the very
first in the Catholic Church to step forward and say that people
with AIDS are Christ's children too, and that we have to take
care of them. She started one of the first AIDS hospices. She
didn't make judgments. I read a controversial comment from one
priest who has a ministry for AIDS patients. He said, 'The
Church doesn't always speak for Christ.' That's sad to hear."
(Ibid., p.205).

As a Catholic, I believe that when souls are born to eternal
life, after the body has died here on earth, these souls come to
perceive God as He truly is - total love, mercy, and compassion.
Who would not be attracted to that kind of a being? Then the
souls of homosexuals realize they have not been condemned to
Hell, and that there are no self-righteous hypocrites in Heaven
condemning them for the decisions they made on earth. I
seriously doubt any homosexual with a good heart, who was kind
and merciful here on earth, would be rejected or judged harshly
by his Heavenly Father. These souls have just as much of a
chance as anyone else to grow spiritually and to lose the
reminders (such as sexual labels) that tied them to their
earthly bodies.

In a sense, the souls of homosexuals realize they have been
duped by various churches preaching a message of guilt and
abandonment, and attempts to bully them into a way of life that
modern-day scribes and pharisees would regard as appropriate.
"That's when they realize that they are truly at peace and one
with God, because they know that God would never reject them
under any circumstance. Frankly, neither should we." (Ibid.)

Amen. It is a shame that the Catholic Church has not reached out
with an inclusive message to all people, regardless of their
sexual orientation, who possess a good heart and strive to grow
spiritually. There is some segment of the homosexual population
that was raised Catholic and that would welcome continued
participation in the church. As one Catholic to another, "Peace
be with you, and welcome along this journey of faith."

http://michaelguth.com/briefii.htm