Bryan Fischer
Homosexual "marriage" and the risk of suicide
By Bryan Fischer
Follow me on Twitter: @BryanJFischer, on Facebook at "Focal Point"
Host of "Focal Point" on American Family Radio, 1-3pm CT, M-F www.afr.net
There are many reasons to continue our opposition to normalizing homosexual behavior. The primary reason, of course, is that such behavior is contrary to the will of God and his plan for human sexuality.
Sex is a wonderful gift from God. It is a powerful force which, if used according to his design, is a source of bonding and intimacy between a husband and wife and the miraculous means by which children are conceived out of their married love.
Yet when this gift is misused and allowed to flow outside the channels of man-woman marriage, it becomes a devastating force rather than a liberating one. And the further from God's design it is, the more damage it does.
Every departure from God's design represents a deviation from the norm. And the greater the deviation, the greater the harm to human beings.
A new study from Sweden reveals that homosexuals who "marry" each other are 270% more likely to commit suicide than those in heterosexual marriages. This is according to a study published in the May issue of the peer-reviewed European Journal of Epidemiology. The risk, the authors acknowledge, could be as high as 480%. This is a staggering and sobering finding.
The explanation is surely found in the truth that homosexual conduct is as, Paul put it in Romans 1, "contrary to nature" and leads inevitably to destructive outcomes since it represents such a perversion of God's design for humanity. As Paul goes on to say, those who indulge in this form of sexual immorality are destined to "receiv(e) in themselves the due penalty for their error" (Romans 1:26-27).
The word "error" translates a Greek word (plane) which means "deception." Homosexuals have bought the lie that homosexuality is a benign and healthy alternative to married heterosexuality. But it's not.
The word translated "due" (Greek: dei) literally means "necessary" and indicates that the penalty is inevitable. There is no escaping the harmful effects of this variant lifestyle.
When harmful psychological outcomes are reported in the West, homosexual activists are quick to level the blame at those who advocate for normative sexuality. It's all our fault, they argue. It's a result of the supposed vitriol, the hostility, bigotry, prejudice and mistreatment they claim to receive at our hands.
But that explanation won't cut it in Sweden, where homosexuality has been a celebrated lifestyle for decades. If there is any place on earth where homosexuals can indulge in their passions with no fear of reprisal or disdain, it's Sweden.
But despite all the tolerance and affirmation they receive, "married" homosexuals are still committing suicide at 2.7 times the rate of heterosexual married couples. Write the authors of this 15-year study, "Even in a country with a comparatively tolerant climate regarding homosexuality such as Sweden, same-sex married individuals evidence a higher risk for suicide than other married individuals."
The Netherlands likewise is a place noted for its gushing accepting of homosexual behavior. It is probably the most gay-friendly nation in the world. Yet studies there, according to Life Site News, indicate that homosexuals experience exaggerated rates of "mood disorders, anxiety disorders, substance abuse disorders, suicide attempts, eating disorders, and panic attacks."
All of the psychological devastation that is connected to homosexuality is compounded by the many risks to physical health associated with it. The CDC reports, for instance, that of all the men who have ever been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, somewhere between 60-65% of victims contracted it by having sex with other men. Stigma has nothing to do with that. That's a function of the dangerous levels of promiscuous and anonymous sex that is endemic in the homosexual community.
In addition to the risk of HIV/AIDS, homosexuals suffer elevated incidences of an entire range of diseases, including anal cancer and a host of sexually transmitted diseases such as syphilis.
Gay "marriage," it turns out, is not the panacea we were told it would be for homosexuals. We were constantly lectured that we were to blame for the social ills in the homosexual community in part because we would not let them "marry" like heterosexuals could. But the lessons from Scandinavia teach us that "marriage" doesn't in fact fix anything in the world of homosexuality.
All this explains why out of love we must continue to resist the mad rush in our culture to embrace homosexuality. We resist not because we hate homosexuals but because we love them. We love them too much not to warn them about a sexual lifestyle that will leave them disease-ridden and suicidal. We don't want that for anyone.
God has something better for the homosexual. Christ said he came that we might have life, and have it abundantly (John 10:10). That offer is good for everyone, including those trapped in homosexuality.
(Unless otherwise noted, the opinions expressed are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of the American Family Association or American Family Radio.)
© Bryan Fischer
August 10, 2016
Follow me on Twitter: @BryanJFischer, on Facebook at "Focal Point"
Host of "Focal Point" on American Family Radio, 1-3pm CT, M-F www.afr.net
There are many reasons to continue our opposition to normalizing homosexual behavior. The primary reason, of course, is that such behavior is contrary to the will of God and his plan for human sexuality.
Sex is a wonderful gift from God. It is a powerful force which, if used according to his design, is a source of bonding and intimacy between a husband and wife and the miraculous means by which children are conceived out of their married love.
Yet when this gift is misused and allowed to flow outside the channels of man-woman marriage, it becomes a devastating force rather than a liberating one. And the further from God's design it is, the more damage it does.
Every departure from God's design represents a deviation from the norm. And the greater the deviation, the greater the harm to human beings.
A new study from Sweden reveals that homosexuals who "marry" each other are 270% more likely to commit suicide than those in heterosexual marriages. This is according to a study published in the May issue of the peer-reviewed European Journal of Epidemiology. The risk, the authors acknowledge, could be as high as 480%. This is a staggering and sobering finding.
The explanation is surely found in the truth that homosexual conduct is as, Paul put it in Romans 1, "contrary to nature" and leads inevitably to destructive outcomes since it represents such a perversion of God's design for humanity. As Paul goes on to say, those who indulge in this form of sexual immorality are destined to "receiv(e) in themselves the due penalty for their error" (Romans 1:26-27).
The word "error" translates a Greek word (plane) which means "deception." Homosexuals have bought the lie that homosexuality is a benign and healthy alternative to married heterosexuality. But it's not.
The word translated "due" (Greek: dei) literally means "necessary" and indicates that the penalty is inevitable. There is no escaping the harmful effects of this variant lifestyle.
When harmful psychological outcomes are reported in the West, homosexual activists are quick to level the blame at those who advocate for normative sexuality. It's all our fault, they argue. It's a result of the supposed vitriol, the hostility, bigotry, prejudice and mistreatment they claim to receive at our hands.
But that explanation won't cut it in Sweden, where homosexuality has been a celebrated lifestyle for decades. If there is any place on earth where homosexuals can indulge in their passions with no fear of reprisal or disdain, it's Sweden.
But despite all the tolerance and affirmation they receive, "married" homosexuals are still committing suicide at 2.7 times the rate of heterosexual married couples. Write the authors of this 15-year study, "Even in a country with a comparatively tolerant climate regarding homosexuality such as Sweden, same-sex married individuals evidence a higher risk for suicide than other married individuals."
The Netherlands likewise is a place noted for its gushing accepting of homosexual behavior. It is probably the most gay-friendly nation in the world. Yet studies there, according to Life Site News, indicate that homosexuals experience exaggerated rates of "mood disorders, anxiety disorders, substance abuse disorders, suicide attempts, eating disorders, and panic attacks."
All of the psychological devastation that is connected to homosexuality is compounded by the many risks to physical health associated with it. The CDC reports, for instance, that of all the men who have ever been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, somewhere between 60-65% of victims contracted it by having sex with other men. Stigma has nothing to do with that. That's a function of the dangerous levels of promiscuous and anonymous sex that is endemic in the homosexual community.
In addition to the risk of HIV/AIDS, homosexuals suffer elevated incidences of an entire range of diseases, including anal cancer and a host of sexually transmitted diseases such as syphilis.
Gay "marriage," it turns out, is not the panacea we were told it would be for homosexuals. We were constantly lectured that we were to blame for the social ills in the homosexual community in part because we would not let them "marry" like heterosexuals could. But the lessons from Scandinavia teach us that "marriage" doesn't in fact fix anything in the world of homosexuality.
All this explains why out of love we must continue to resist the mad rush in our culture to embrace homosexuality. We resist not because we hate homosexuals but because we love them. We love them too much not to warn them about a sexual lifestyle that will leave them disease-ridden and suicidal. We don't want that for anyone.
God has something better for the homosexual. Christ said he came that we might have life, and have it abundantly (John 10:10). That offer is good for everyone, including those trapped in homosexuality.
(Unless otherwise noted, the opinions expressed are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of the American Family Association or American Family Radio.)
© Bryan Fischer
The views expressed by RenewAmerica columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of RenewAmerica or its affiliates.
(See RenewAmerica's publishing standards.)
