Section A·Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Monday, April 23, 2001
"To me, being gay is like any other sin. It is written plain as day in the Bible that it is a sin. I have no right to say it is not so."
Michael (anonymous)
Wichita senior
"I believe that homosexual acts are a sin in the same way that premarital sex is a sin. I think biblical evidence is huge that God's plan is not seen in homosexuality. We see in Romans 1 that God said it is a degrading passion to lust after the same sex."
Mark Brown director of Campus Crusade for Christ
"God does not give a man a right to be with a man. They should be bowing the knee to the Lord God and should feel pretty wretched about themselves."
Seth Toebbent member of University Christian Fellowship
"Due to the stigma against my homosexuality in the family and the extended family, I could not accept that I was gay. Therefore, I tried really hard to be straight. I had several girlfriends and two fiancees. The whole time I tried to be straight because there was that ingrained thought that,'You're gay and you're going to hell.' I didn't want to go to hell."
Stan Handshy
Erie junior
Gays look for niches in
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the church and decided to quit
"Two weeks ended my effort to convert or denounce my gayness," he said. "I was gay and came to accept it."
'Healing' homosexuality
Although fundamentalist churches believe that homosexuals can be healed with conversion therapy, the American Psychological Association opposes such conversion tactics.
"The APA states that it is not something that can be changed through therapy treatment," said John Wade, a psychologist at Watkins Memorial Health Center. "What that state is that the claims of conversion therapy are poorly documented. There is not much research that it is successful."
However, Paul Gray, pastor at Heartland Community Church, 619 Vermont St., said homosexuality was something that could be changed, and he encouraged people to seek the Lord's help in correcting their sin.
"God wants us to change and become more like him. Somebody can be homosexual and accept Christ, but if they continue to practice homosexuality, it is going to affect their relationship with God on earth," he said.
Michael, Wichita senior, prays everyday that God will forgive him for being gay.
"To me, being gay is like any other sin," he said. "It is written plain as day in the Bible that it is a sin. I have no right to say it is not so."
Michael thinks he is living in sin, although he doesn't believe his homosexuality is a choice.
"I'm not proud of being gay — not one bit proud of it," he said. "It is something I can't control. I can't wake up in the morning and not be gay. I don't think many gay people would choose a life where they are always made fun of and discriminated against."
Although Michael recently joined a Methodist congregation where gay unions have been performed, he is not open about his sexuality.
Mark Brown, director of Campus Crusade for Christ, said homosexuality was a sin.
Representatives of several KU ministries were adamant that homosexuality was wrong.
"It's none of their business," he said. "If I want them to know, I will tell them."
Depicted in this print hanging in the Queers and Allies office, Roman soldiers St. Sergius and St. Bacchus were joined in a same sex union during the late third century. Christian homosexual "marriages" existed into the 1700s.
Hate the sin, love the sinner
"I believe that homosexual acts are a sin in the same way that premarital sex is a sin," he said. "I think Biblical evidence is huge that God's plan is not seen in homosexuality. We see in Romans 1 that God said it is a degrading passion to lust after the same sex."
"I tried really hard to be straight," says Stan Handshy, Erie junior. His button represents his refusal to accept the Catholic doctrine that homosexuals remain celibate.
Brown worries about the consequences of homosexual sin. He fears that if gays don't repert of their lifestyle, they will not go to heaven.
"In the first verse of Corinthians, it says, 'These will not inherit the kingdom of God.' They will go to hell if they don't repent,' he said.
But Brown said God was full of love and cared about all humans.
"God loves homosexuals as much as he loves heterosexuals, and he died for their forgiveness just as much as he died for mine," he said.
Lani Maddux, pastor for Campus Christians, agreed that homosexuality was a sin but said Christians must work harder to love those he said were afflicted by homosexuality.
"People are over critical and judgmental," Maddux said. "I don't think most people know how to care, love and listen."
Maddux is working to set up a support group for the Christian community where they can discuss their struggles with homosexuality. He hopes the love of Christ and the community will help homosexuals who are struggling to release their sin.
Another campus ministry, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, adheres to a previous public statement that says homosexual behavior is sinful and damages the practitioner's relationship with God, self and others.
Student members of campus ministries believe their peers should "correct" their homosexuality.
Jill Pittman, Haskell, Okla., junior and member of University Christian Fellowship, believes campus ministries are honest in sharing the truth about homosexuality.
the title says that homosexuality is a sin, and if you choose to ignore that part of it then that means you are picking and choosing one part of a coherent document, and you are eliminating part of the truth of it."
Seth Toebben, member of University Christian Fellowship, said homosexuals should feel guilty about their sin.
The conservative teachings of the church on homosexuality have caused many homosexuals like Stan Handshy to leave their faith.
"God does not give a man a right to be with a man," he said. "They should be bowing the knee to the Lord God and should feel pretty wretched about themselves."
Ashley Wann, member of Chi Alpha Christian fellowship and Lindsborg junior, said Christians who didn't think homosexuality was a sin weren't doing anyone any favors. She compared their behavior to a doctor not telling someone they had cancer.
Findina identity
Handshay, Erie junior, grew up in the Catholic Church, which calls gay sex a sin but practices a kind of don't ask-don't tell-policy. In his religious family, homosexuality was a taboo subject.
"I don't think I heard it mentioned until I was in my early teens," he said. "It was kind of a hush, hush, whispered reference. Basically, the general view in the family was it was evil and wrong and no one in the family could be."
Because of the influence of his family and the teachings of the church, Handshy struggled with his sexuality for years.
"Due to the stigma against my homosexuality in the family and the extended family, I could not accept that I was gay," he said. "Therefore I tried really hard to be straight. I had several girlfriends and two fiancees. The whole time I tried to be straight because there was that ingrained thought that, 'You're gay, and you're going to hell.' I didn't want to go to hell."
Father Vince Krische of the St. Lawrence Catholic Center pointed to the official catechism of the Catholic Church, which states being homosexual is not a sin, so long as homosexuals remain celibate.
Krische said homosexuals were called to chastity, but they could find inner peace through friendships and prayer.
"The fact that a person is homosexual is not wrong, but the acting out on that is wrong," he said.
Handshy immersed himself in the
church and hid his sexuality. He became an altar boy. He wanted to impress his parents, especially his father, who consistently taught Handshay the importance of his Catholic faith.
But Handsby began to question the church when his own father left the Catholic Church and divorced his mother.
"With the religious figure leaving the family and switching to Methodist, I started looking at religious options," he said. "I even delved into the literature of paganism. I found that there are a lot of religions out there that are much more supportive of you being who you are and not telling you that if you don't act exactly this way all the time you will be sent to everlasting damnation. Quite frankly, that really appealed to me."
Shortly thereafter, Handshy left the church and began to work on accepting his sexuality.
Eventually, Handysh came out to his friends and told his family. His father was in denial, and the subject of his sexuality was off limits with his mother. Relations with his family remain complicated, he said.
"It's pretty strained," he said. "With Dad there are a lot more issues involved. With my mom, we love each other, we get along. It's almost like a business relationship."
Handshay said the Catholic church had not treated homosexuals fairly
"Gay people do not have the same rights in America as heterosexual people," he said. "We are second-class if not third-class — citizens."
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