Well expressed, Ummjake. If my son came home spouting stuff about homosexuality being 'haram' I would certainly object to it strongly too.
The fact of homosexuality being found in the animal kingdom is indeed well documented. There are cases of 'gay' animals being found in some colonies. It is (humourously) called the 'science that dares not speak its name'. I do recall an interesting documentary on Showtime (the Arab world satellite network) about this not long ago.
What this fact of nature indicates that it is not the 'unnatural' behaviour moralists have always claimed it to be, since given a free reign, even animals engage in it naturally. Human - and animal - sexuality is so much more complex than just the 'man and woman.. they make baby' narrative which religionists are have been using for centuries.
And homosexuality being condemned in the Christianity and Judaism? Hmm, you may want to check your facts on that one. Sure, the Vatican don't like it, but there is a lot of scholarship to explain why the anti-gay interpretation gained traction over history - gained traction until it was considered a "fact" - but was, in fact, not correct.
Understanding the nature of religion as a way of leveraging power over others really helps to explain why we follow its rituals and ideas with such dedication, even flying in the face of logic, science, or reason.
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"let's slip out of these wet clothes and into a dry martini" Mae West
Well expressed, Ummjake. If my son came home spouting stuff about homosexuality being 'haram' I would certainly object to it strongly too.
The fact of homosexuality being found in the animal kingdom is indeed well documented. There are cases of 'gay' animals being found in some colonies. It is (humourously) called the 'science that dares not speak its name'. I do recall an interesting documentary on Showtime (the Arab world satellite network) about this not long ago.
What this fact of nature indicates that it is not the 'unnatural' behaviour moralists have always claimed it to be, since given a free reign, even animals engage in it naturally. Human - and animal - sexuality is so much more complex than just the 'man and woman.. they make baby' narrative which religionists are have been using for centuries.
And homosexuality being condemned in the Christianity and Judaism? Hmm, you may want to check your facts on that one. Sure, the Vatican don't like it, but there is a lot of scholarship to explain why the anti-gay interpretation gained traction over history - gained traction until it was considered a "fact" - but was, in fact, not correct.
Understanding the nature of religion as a way of leveraging power over others really helps to explain why we follow its rituals and ideas with such dedication, even flying in the face of logic, science, or reason.
-------------
"let's slip out of these wet clothes and into a dry martini" Mae West