Choose religion despite sexuality

This is in response to the recent article, "Can we honor this and bless this," by Nancy Gier. I want to thank Ms. Gier for writing about such a controversial topic - homosexuality and the church.

There should not be the rule that Christian equals heterosexual. There should be no rule at all. No matter what your religion is, you should have the right to choose your sexual orientation.

It is fine for an individual to follow the words of the Bible, because they believe that they are true. But that is their belief, not everyone's, so they cannot expect others to act as they would.

Yes, the Bible tells us that homosexuality is a bad thing; it even goes so far as to say that it is a sin (Leviticus 18:22). But the ancient words of the Bible should not determine who we are attracted to. You should make the decision for yourself, as some of the people quoted in Ms. Gier's article have.

But do people choose to be homosexual? I don't think that they do. But I do think that a person can choose to believe whatever they want to about the Bible and still be able to uphold their own views and practices. That is how it should be. It is possible to allow the Bible to guide your life but not to rule it, as proved by the figures in Ms. Gier's article.

I am a Christian, and I am heterosexual. I do set in store the words of the Bible. But I think that others should be able to choose if they want to do the same.

Brooke Schleehauf

Algonquin