Oh, and this old saw, "Hate the sin, love the sinner," makes gay people feel EVER so much better.
"Now, now, dear...I don't hate YOU, not in the least.
I only hate the very essence of your sexuality, the fact that you're emotionally and physically attracted to your own gender. I don't want you to think I hate YOU at all. You see, your deepest expressions of sexual intimacy are so loathsome to God and to me that you must remain celibate for your whole life, because of course, you aren't allowed to express your orientation physically--that would be sinning. And naturally, you'll agree with me that that's what you want to do--be celibate to please God...oh, and me, too."
I can see how that is absolutely the most loving attitude to take toward gays and will make them feel so very cherished.
If that's what they feel, that's what they feel. And they can say and feel whatever and however they want.
Now, when it comes to policy based on that view, in particular public policy, I'm a gunna fight back, preach against it, protest policies in place based on that view, and scream bloody murder.
Private policy under that view, I'll say something about it, question it, and criticize it. Because the message is, "They can be homosexual, but not in MY house." ...and sure, homosexuals are free to change congregations and move out of the house, but it's next to impossible for an underage homosexual to leave that atmosphere.
Once again, I pose the challenge to parishioners who find Savage this offensive toward their beliefs, that if it's offensive to their beliefs as well to say that homosexuality is an abomination, that it creates the identical reaction as calling the Bible "bull ****".
Do parishioners in these churches consider how that sounds to these same teenage kids? Do we consider the same innocence and sensitivities of these kids when they're told their sinful just for loving someone of the same gender?