Joseph Bottum, a Catholic author and speaker, who has appeared on “The World Over Live,” as seen on EWTN, has come out in favor of same sex marriage. And, first of all, any Christian who argues in support of same-sex marriage is also rallying for the morality of homosexual behavior. In Bottum’s rather lengthy tome “The Things We Share: A Catholic's Case for Same-Sex Marriage,” like many other such efforts, is oftentimes grounded in the personal and the anecdotal. In fact, he begins his essay by relating the difficulty a gay friend had with the Catholic Church’s stance on homosexual acts. This is a mistake that many heterosexuals make when looking at the gay lifestyle: to overly personalize it. The anger of many in the gay world towards the Church is part and parcel of the homosexual psychosis: an instinctual lashing-out at those who are seen as unaccepting and oppressive. It’s a childhood throw-back from the trauma of a rigid father or the ceaseless taunting on the playground. First of all, it manifests itself sexually: in the desire to embrace the supreme masculine; in the political and social sphere: with a slavish adherence to any political movement or demagogue that promises psychological peace and an Earthy nirvana.
And, herein sets-up one of Bottum’s major faults, a belief in the progressive nature of society; that the push for same-sex marriage marks some sort of evolutionary “small advance in the coherence of family life…” In reality, those that have been burdened with same-sex attraction oftentimes come from the antithesis of coherent family life. Giving in to it – will heal nothing. But, those from outside the gay-thought-set cannot see into its many troubling refractions. Instead, they bemoan the fact that the Church is standing Her ground. Bottum writes: “I believe, American Catholics should accept state recognition of same-sex marriage simply because they are Americans…For that matter, plenty of practical concerns suggest that the bishops should cease to fight the passage of such laws. Campaigns against same-sex marriage are hurting the church, offering the opportunity to make Catholicism a byword for repression in a generation that, even among young Catholics, just doesn’t think that same-sex activity is worth fighting about. There’s a reasonable case to be made that the struggle against abortion is slowly winning, but the fight against public acceptance of same-sex behavior has been utterly lost.”
Strangely, he judges that being anti-gay-marriage is somehow un-American; and that is what the Church represents: the intransigent opposition to freedom. The Church, he argues, in its current American state of being, is moreover in no way qualified to fight against the onrush of acceptance that is currently being enjoyed by those who favor nation-wide laws allowing same sex marriage. Bottum cites the sex-abuse scandals as proof that Catholicism in the US has lost its moral authority. I also find his capitulation to the mores of American youth rather bizarre. Here, we are talking about several generations that have been raised in dysfunctional and divorced homes, saturated with pornography, and brain-washed into believing that sex is merely recreation. Are they the new moral arbitrators? They also need healing. His, and others, lack of zeal concerning the issue, he surmises, stems from a belief that there are much bigger issues in need of our attention. I suppose that gays are the acceptable causality of the culture wars.
In conclusion, I think that Bottum’s rationalizing, reflecting the collective mind-think in the gay community, is completely stuck in the political and the material. There is no delving into the “Why?” Why are homosexuals the way they are? Are they just born that way? Or did something else happen in their lives? Is there any we can do to help? Are we not to be like Christ? Should we not tend to the broken? Because, He said: “They that are whole, need not the physician: but they that are sick.” The whole essay is a sad submission to what he reckons is the inevitable. As a hetersesexual, he is missing much insight, for, perhaps if had been in the gay world as a gay man – he would not be so quick to raise the white flag. I saw too many young boys die of AIDS, after just a few years, or even months, of desperate searching. I had to go to the numerous funerals of those who committed suicide; heard the stories of anguish from the men who got hooked on alcohol and drugs because what the gay propaganda mills promised was never delivered. Too many lives were lost. For that reason, I will not surrender to the whims of the moment and condemn further generations to a lie. Even though I have endlessly cited these studies concerning gay men and HIV, they are again worth reiterating here: “Although gay men are only 1-2% of the population, according to the CDC, they account for 61% of all new HIV infections in the US. Worse of all: among adolescent males aged 13-19 years, approximately 91% of all diagnosed HIV infections are from male-to-male sexual contact.” Homosexuals also have much higher rates of gonorrhea and chlamydia, and are currently seeing enormous spikes in HPV (hitherto unseen in males) and syphilis. How sad that any Catholic would leave our fellow brothers and sisters to this. Reminds me of a favorite quote from one of my most beloved Saints: “Don’t neglect the practice of fraternal correction, which is a clear sign of the supernatural virtue of charity. It’s hard; because it’s easier to be inhibited. Easier! but not supernatural. —And for such omissions you will have to render an account to God.” –Saint Josemaria Escriva
Link to Bottum’s article: