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 A Nation's Songs Why the USA Went GayThere’s no point in mincing words. The culture has shifted when it comes to homosexuality and so-called gay "marriage.” Why? The answer, next on BreakPoint. Listen Now | Download
“Americans are becoming more comfortable with gay marriage, seeing it as both a moral and a civil rights issue. But there are many out there who are still fighting against the cause. And as gay men ourselves, we’d just like to say to those people, ‘Fine. Keep marriage between a man and a woman. And in response, we will marry your girlfriends.’ ” They go on to proclaim a litany of reasons why gay men are smarter, more attractive, better dressed, more fun, better heterosexual lovers (I’m not kidding) and generally more in-tune with the desires of women than straight men are. Aside from its extreme creepiness, this video contains decades worth of stereotypes and entertainment-driven folk images of the homosexual male. Writes one commentator very bluntly at the Patheos.com blog “Bad Catholic”: “According to Hollywood, gay men are…just fabulous. You can hardly turn on a sitcom, read a novel, or watch a movie without seeing the Gay Man Abstraction. . . " a guy who’s “funny, cute, kooky, has great taste in clothes, and will always solve [the] straight female protagonist’s problems by the end of the episode.” And a recent survey from the Hollywood Reporter confirms how this portrayal has changed the public’s attitude on homosexuality and same-sex “marriage.” When asked whether favorable portrayals of gay characters on shows like “Glee,” “Modern Family” and “The New Normal” had changed their views on gay “marriage,” twenty-seven percent of respondents—or over eighty percent of those whose views had changed—said that they were more in favor of gay “marriage.” Says pollster John Penn, that’s due especially to the influx of young voters who grew up watching these shows. “Views on gay marriage are totally defined by age,” says Penn. “Almost twice as many voters under 35 say these shows made them more in favor of gay marriage. . ." Translation: The hearts and minds of Americans—especially our young people—are being changed when it comes to same-sex “marriage” and homosexual practice because of entertainment, not arguments. But what popular media isn’t telling us about homosexuality and gay “marriage” is more manipulative still. In the well-adjusted, sex-savvy, healthy and loving portrayals we see of gay characters and their relationships, something important gets lost: the cost of living counter to God’s design: a higher risk of HIV, greater promiscuity, depression and substance abuse, and a lower life-expectancy—all well-documented consequences of an active homosexual lifestyle. But in this election, entertainment-driven stereotypes which ignore these realities may have tipped the scales for the first time ever. Three states have just voted to allow same-sex marriage, and more importantly, polls now show that a majority of all Americans favor the change. Scottish politician Andrew Fletcher once said, “Let me write the songs of a nation, and I don’t care who writes its laws.” If he were alive today, he might add, let me write the popular sitcoms of a nation. Folks, we’ve spent years, money, talents, reputations and voices communicating the logical, moral and political reasons why marriage can only mean a man and a woman for life. But we’ve failed to do what the other side has succeeded at for so long: capturing the culture’s imagination. Christian ideas have been very present in theology and politics, but not the arts. And so now we face a political road ahead that’s rougher than we’ve faced in a long time. And so our real work lies in the culture. And rather than give up and accept the “new normal,” we’ve got to take a page from the other side’s playbook. We’ve got to realize that the ideas that most effectively shape a culture are not necessarily those that are argued, but those that are embodied. They capture the heart and mind because they capture the imagination. Further Reading and Information
Gay Men Will Marry Your Girlfriends THR Poll: 'Glee' and 'Modern Family' Drive Voters to Favor Gay Marriage--Even Many Romney Voter |
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A video surfaced earlier this week produced by CollegeHumor.com, that features young men who say they’re gay, offering a message to opponents of same-sex “marriage”:
Comments:
Breakpoint has correctly identified a problem. We have created an artful web series that you should watch. We have over 3500 views so far, but we can get more. Let me know what you think of it. youtubeDOTcom/leavingedenseries
-Greg
We need to be the message ourselves as we reflect God's image (male-female) and purpose for marriage to the world. Preach the Word and they will hear it. Be the Word and they will see it. Dilute the lies with truth and righteousness. Expect God to be God and to do what He's said He would.
The pro-life movement has had success in changing public opinion on abortion. I think a big reason for this is the advent of high resolution 3D ultrasound images of unborn babies. People have a visual image that resonates within them. Then it’s the abortionists who have to explain why the baby in the image is not really a baby. And when you’re explaining you’re losing.
It seems to me that marriage advocates need a visual image or some mantra that resonates with people’s sense of fairness; a marketing campaign, which will get their attention so they’ll listen to our arguments. Perhaps we need fewer philosophy majors and more marketing majors?
Furthermore, divorce has been a social disaster in America. Christians have been prominant in defending traditional marriage from gay marriage, but where is the effort to change public opinion on divorce and reform divorce laws?
I see little to give me hope that the next generation (my grandchildren) will repent of the notion that homosexuality and same-sex marriage are normal variants and are even allowed in God's grand scheme. What does give me a bit of hope is noting that we are beginning to turn the tide some on abortion. But Christians cannot hold themselves out demographically as paragons of virtue when it comes to marriage. We ARE less messed up in our marriages than some have painted the picture, but anecdotal evidence (ask your kids how many of their classmates come from broken homes) still speaks loudly as we look around. It's proof to the average person that we don't know what we're talking about.
It is still my prayerful hope that enough praying people can help usher in revival and folks will begin to have their eyes opened. I am an optimistic person by nature. But I also know that Christ has to call his church home sooner or later. God cannot stay His hand of judgment forever.
There has always been a faithful remnant. That may be what we have come to. The faithful must not go silent.
Our popular culture is trying hard to change peoples minds about homosexuals. We need to remind our culture of the truth. As the article above states we need to get more involved in the arts. But can we? If we write a play about a self destructive homosexual would it get produced? Would a documentary about homosexual suicide get a distributor? This will be an uphill battle.