The Issue Before Us

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power: proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.  For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers and will stop listening to the truth and will be diverted to myths.  But you, be self-possessed in all circumstances; put up with hardship; perform the work of an evangelist; fulfill your ministry.  2 Tim 4:1-5

With the legalization of so-called "gay marriage" in Great Britain, I feel compelled to express what many Christians have yet to realize and only a few are saying openly.  Persecution is coming.  The issue that it will hinge on more than any other is a perceived discrimination against homosexuals.

I'm not a doomsday prophet.  Quite the contrary.  I am a man of hope.  I believe in the power of Truth, whether perceived in the natural law or accepted by faith in God's revelation - or both.  I believe in the basic goodness of human beings, made in God's image, yet I all too easily recognize man's selfish inclination toward sin - thinking he knows better than nature or nature's God.  Though I regrettably know the latter from personal daily experience, I still want to do good and be loved for the goodness that remains in me.  Thus, I can say with all honesty that I am able to accept and love any person in return, even as I am able to identify any objectively immoral behaviors in that person's life as I do in my own.  Whatever difficulties lie ahead for those who continue to recognize the truth about the immorality of homosexual acts, I do not believe it justifies a hatred for their persecutors, and as bad as the persecution may be, I do not believe it will last forever because the goodness rooted in man will eventually result in a social awakening and a turning back toward the Truth (repentance).  For now, we are on the slippery slope downward, and before coming to that re-awakening, we will have to pass through what I believe will be one of the fiercest persecutions in all of human history.

To be clear, this is not only an issue facing observant Christians.  Faithful Jews, Muslims, and all who live according to the natural law will suffer the same consequences.  The great irony is that the homosexual "rights" activists call for tolerance will not be reciprocated.  There will be few governments willing to tolerate the views of those who oppose "gay marriage," to the point where the latter will be charged with crimes of "hate speech" and "discrimination."  Hard choices will have to be made.  People will be imprisoned.  Churches will have to decide whether or not to continue preaching and practicing the full Truth.  The majority of people, for a time, will be more willing to "live and let live," rather than be labeled as bigots and risk losing their position in society, be separated from their families, pay fines, go to jail, and in some places, lose their very lives.  When the groundswell is so big against those who uphold truths which had previously been held through all of human history, the relativists will have little moral issue with exterminating the "backward" thinkers who "stand in the way of social progress and peace."  It's coming.  I don't know if it will be years or decades from now, but it's coming.  The next, and perhaps greatest persecution in history is unmistakably on the horizon.  Only a fool who chooses blindness could fail to see it.

So what can we do?  It seems to me that we'd be wisest to focus on personal holiness rather than spending too much time worrying about the moral decay of our society.  We must develop habits of prayer that involve praising God, thanking Him, begging His forgiveness for the faults we cannot fail to identify in ourselves, and to implore His help on a daily basis.  We must look at creation and seek to understand it better on its own terms, because we'll need this understanding to state our case before non-believers.  We must study God's Word and increase our faith in it as the unchanging TRUTH that it really is.  We must follow where that all leads... to the Church.  We must be nourished by the grace of God given through the Sacraments, frequently going to Confession and Holy Communion.  This is a plan for life, whether persecuted or not, but do not delay and do not lose hope.  The words of St. Peter are comforting in this regard...

Rejoice, beloved, in the measure that you share Christ’s sufferings. When his glory is revealed, you will rejoice exultantly. Happy are you when you are insulted for the sake of Christ, for then God’s Spirit in its glory has come to rest on you.
  1 Pet 4:13-14