As a Christian on campus who is not affiliated with the TCF leadership, I would like to express my reactions to the TCUJ ruling and the popular opinions it has brought to light. I will start by saying that I do not know whether TCF discriminated against Julie Catalano on the grounds of her homosexuality, and that I believe that the TCUJ does not know either. If TCF did discriminate, I am sure it was due to unconscious prejudices and was not intentional. Everyone makes mistakes, and if the TCUJ is correct in ruling that TCF did discriminate, then to me, the probationary punishment is fair. I do not think that one mistake should result in permanent de-recognition for any group. (By that logic, the TCUJ should have dissolved itself after admitting to procedural error in the first hearing.)
What interests me far more than the specific case is the ideologies expressed in reaction to it. There has been a surprising number of Viewpoints and letters written arguing that any group whose beliefs are dangerous or otherwise odious should not be allowed to exist. This is political correctness gone fascist, pure and simple. I assume that the vast majority of Tufts students understand this, and I will not waste my time arguing against such a basic lapse of reason and consistency.
I will, however, address the more serious and widespread matter of how students view Christianity in general. I get the impression that most people do not have any clue what it is about (or what all major religions are about, for that matter). I am speaking specifically about the recently proclaimed idea that a person's identity and beliefs are inseparable, and that self-acceptance of one's nature should be taken for granted. Nothing could be more contrary to religion than these concepts.
All that Christianity promotes can be reduced to three categories: Love God; Love your neighbor; Love yourself. It is the last category that matters here. Love yourself does not mean you ought to think you are perfect. It means you should recognize how you are imperfect, and seek to improve yourself. We all suffer from imperfections in our (fallen) natures. For example, many are prone to being angry without cause, or even hateful. Christianity frowns on this sin, and helps us to control it, so we may love our neighbors better. Some people are prone to procrastination, others to malicious gossiping. I am prone to impatience with people who disagree with me. And everyone is prone to pride: the sin of believing yourself more important than everyone else and that your agenda is more important than God's.
If anyone reading this has had contact with real Christianity (as opposed to the watered-down virtual-Unitarianism that often goes by its name), then you know that the first thing to do if you seek a relationship with God is to identify your failings. Then you can renounce them and pray for God to help you improve. We never do, in this life, become perfect, but a lot of improvement is possible. I can personally attest that I am a more humble, generous, and loving person than I would be without Christianity. Had I instead accepted myself as I was, I would be obliged to hate those who were different (as so many children do, before they learn better), and to have sex whenever I felt like it. Instead I can control those tendencies, and replace them with the infinitely fulfilling love of God.
As with all true things, there are subtleties and complexities to this. The Church (which means Christians in general, through history), must decide when a tendency is sinful and to be denied, or when it is a good and individual aspect of our unique God-given identity. I think we can all agree that the tendency to hate those who are different is the former, while the tendency to be good at math but poor at language is sprobably the latter. What about the tendency to be sexually attracted to the same sex? The Judeo-Christian tradition has ascribed homosexuality to the former category. We can never be certain that we are right to do so, but we are pretty sure.
For one thing, the bible is quite clear that homosexuality is not the will of God. To argue on more generally convincing grounds, a homosexual relationship does not naturally result in procreation, and the form of the human body was clearly designed for sex to be between a man and a woman. There is simply no explanation for what role homosexuality is intended to fulfill. It meets all the criteria for an unintended aspect of fallen nature. For these reasons, Christians will always encourage homosexuals to avoid succumbing to their particular temptation.
To Christians, the debate regarding homosexuality is often confusing. Why is this one sinful tendency to be accommodated while all others may be renounced? Perhaps it is because many homosexuals really cannot live a heterosexual life, and must instead abstain from sex altogether to be consistent with Christian teaching. This is a tragic reality, but not unique. Alcoholics have such a strong predisposition to abuse alcohol that they must abstain from it altogether. Christians like myself who abstain from premarital sex also know what it is like to have to completely deny a strong temptation. I give my utmost sympathy to those homosexuals who try to live a Christian life, but the Church cannot grant them an exception to the moral laws of God. Everyone must work towards self-perfection, even though we each have a different battle fight.
I hope this Viewpoint helps some people to understand what Christianity is about on a practical level, and to question that infinitely prideful error that claims we are perfect the way we are. Please also understand that our refusal to promote homosexuality is an act of love. To compare TCF with the KKK, as has repeatedly occurred, is thus to understand its position exactly wrongly.
Andrew Gould is a senior majoring in art history.
