Say Only the Good Things Men Need to Hear

By Father Kevin M. Cusick

The homosexual lobby has certainly won a victory in at least one sense: everybody in America is now openly discussing sodomy, to include the Boy Scouts.

The so-called "gay" lobby has claimed all along that they are only asking to be treated equally but, as one husband and father recently stated, they began by asking for tolerance and ended by demanding tribute. The absurdity of the recent decision to admit “openly gay” boys into the venerable institution of Scouting can easily be demonstrated by asking, has anyone ever needed to describe themselves as “openly heterosexual”? The answer to that question is “no” and thus is revealed the truth that the enshrinement of sodomy is not about equality.

Any attempt to misrepresent Catholic teaching on same sex activity must be steadfastly resisted with the truth.  “Homosexuality refers to relations between men or between women who experience an exclusive or predominant sexual attraction toward persons of the same sex. It has taken a great variety of forms through the centuries and in different cultures. Its psychological genesis remains largely unexplained. Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered." They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.” (CCC 57)

Chastity is not optional for salvation and Scripture and tradition make clear that chaste thought and speech are not optional for chastity.  For the sake of salvation we urged to “say only the good things men need to hear” which precludes impure speech.  The senses are now assaulted in unprecedented ways through ubiquitous pornography on the internet to which we now add the societal slide into impure and suggestive speech which approves immorality.

Parents have customarily been the ones to discuss matters of marital intimacy with their own children.  Physiological sex education is not best handled in a group or classroom environment as children each differ in their development.  The social context has disrupted this process which balances the need for information with respect for chastity.

It is good to repeat the Church’s teaching on those who experience same sex attraction. “The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.”

(CCC 2358)

 Young people now exposed in increasing numbers to the agenda of the homosexual lobby will be left with questions and their parents will need to be equipped with answers.  A distinction must always be offered that loving and respecting others does not mean acceptance of their ideas or agendas when such are opposed to the law of God.

It will be left to others to figure out what “openly gay” means and who decides how much of such disruptive behavior is tolerable for the common good. The pastors and bishops who just want to get along and who are currently bending over backwards to accommodate the policy are certainly attempting to err on the side of charity.  Our Catholic teaching on social justice, however, demands that charity always include a concern for the common good.  Those who now openly suggest that the new so-called “compromise” cobbled between Scouting and the same-sex lobby is tolerable may change their tune when the financial well-being of a parish community or diocese is brought into jeopardy by the phone call of a lawyer who announces that a claim has been filed by a Scout or family who claims that an “openly gay” individual feels that their chosen behavior has resulted in discrimination.

Those who like this writer were Scouts for many years know that the programs were always “policed” by the parents who cared to participate enough so that they could calibrate the well-being of the youths participating.  Elimination of cruelty and injustice and the righting of wrongs between individuals are always best handled by parents in the Scouts as in every other organization.  Now it appears they will be trumped by the lawyers and I don’t expect them to hang around long enough to suffer the consequences.

A version of this column appeared in a recent issue of The Wanderer Catholic Newspaper.

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