Ellen Page Comes Out

So, "news" presents us with 26 year old actress, Ellen Page "coming out" as a homosexual.  Why is this "newsworthy?"  I do not condemn Ms. Page - and I hope she does not condemn me for being Catholic, not that she knows me from Adam.  Why do homosexuals feel such a need to "come out?"  It's almost like they want our blessing for their participation in what is something we can never condone.  Why else is it a "coming out" and not just an acceptance of a person's chosen lifestyle?

When it comes to this subject, I am wondering why approximately 3.5% of the population gets so much attention?  I mean, really!  If 96.5% of the population is heterosexual, then why does it seem like there's so much attention on the homosexual community?  How many television sitcoms now have an openly homosexual character in them?  The law of averages would hold that less than 1 in 10 shows would have person portrayed as a homosexual.  But do we really see that?  I'm no expert on television sitcoms, I rarely watch anything like that anymore.  I liked the days of the Dick Van Dyke Show and the Andy Griffith Show, etc.  Now I suppose someone will bring up the character of Floyd the Barber due to his effeminate personality - and say he was a homosexual - however, there is not even one instance of  Floyd "coming out" or even hinting upon an interest in same sex attraction.  Floyd was just an effeminate character, and that does not ipso facto mean he was homosexual.  That being said, let's not make this about me, the point is there is no real need to portray people with same sex attraction as prevalently as we see them today.  Again, even if we went with the odds, less than one show in ten would have such a portrayal. 

In reality, about 4.4% of actors are or will be portraying homosexual characters in television this year.  That's still about 1% greater than the actual population.  My point, however, is not in the number of actors, but in the number of television shows disproportionately portraying actively homosexual couples. 

Here is a list of shows scheduled to air this year which have homosexual characters:

Getting On (HBO)
Brooklyn 99 (Fox)
Please Like Me (ABC)
Sean Saves The World (NBC ends in 2014)
The Girl's Guide to Depravity (Cinemax)
House Husbands (Nine-Network)
Anger Management (FX)
House of Lies (Showtime)
Suburgatory (ABC)
Awkward (MTV)
Nurse Jackie (Showtime)
Glee (Fox)
Modern Family (ABC)
Benidorm (ITV)
Two and a Half Men (Fox)
Arrested Development (was Fox, now Netflix)
My Family (BBC1)

(Source)

These are just the ones still in production and does not count many, many more which have gone into re-runs and are still airing. And don't even get me started in talking about shows which portray extra-marital relationships among heterosexuals, and do so in a positive light!  That's another whole subject in itself!

Now again I must state, I do not "judge" those who have chosen this lifestyle.  This is a "free country" and people have the "right" to choose how they will pursue happiness, or what they perceive as such.  Likewise, it is the right of a Catholic to express his/her views on the matter.  The thing of it is, those who are homosexual and/or proponents of that lifestyle already know that faithful Catholics cannot give their blessing to such a lifestyle - and no one who claims the title of "Christian" can, for the Scripture is quite clear on this matter in both the Old and New Testament.

What Does Scripture Say About Homosexuality?

1 Corinthians 6:9-10
Leviticus 18:22
Leviticus 20:13
Romans 1:26-27
1 Timothy 1:10 

And there are several other verses where homosexuality is implied (like references to sodomy).  The point is, Scripture, both Old and New Testament, clearly speak out against homosexuality as an abomination to the Lord and those who remain in this lifestyle and remain unrepentant will perish.  This is not my judgment, but the real representation of what Scripture teaches.  Therefore again I state, no Catholic/Christian can be supportive of the lifestyle.  Does this mean we "hate the sinner?"  No, we are still called to "love the sinner, but hate the sin."

We may have friends and co-workers who are engaged in homosexual relationships.  This does not mean we cannot be friendly toward them as persons and/or work with them on a professional basis - and likewise, they too can (and most often do) share the same feelings toward us and even respect our choice of lifestyle.  If the discussion comes to head, well, the workplace is not really the right place for such a discussion, especially between people on the opposite sides of this debate.  Even after-hours, when we might be seeing each other out on dates, etc.  It is not our place to "judge" them - and if they know who we are at all, they already know our stance on the matter.  If they come to us honestly seeking our counsel - and are not merely attempting to bait us into a debate which can be hurtful to each other, then we can discuss the matter with them, but again - outside the workplace would be better.

In summary, don't ask us to support homosexual marriages and don't expect us to accept as moral ANY sexual relationship which is outside the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony between a man and a woman.  While we, Catholics, accept the validity of a civil marriage between a man and a woman, we cannot give our blessing to such civil unions between persons of the same sex.  And please, accept and understand our reticence to even using the same terminology of our Sacrament of Holy Matrimony/Marriage.  Perhaps you can also be understanding of our frustration at seeing this lifestyle portrayed so prevalently in the media when better than 96 in 100 persons in this country do not live that lifestyle.