Is being attracted to another man considered gay? (Israel, marriage, Commandment)

[cg81]

Originally Posted by TheHarvester

You know God? What's her phone number?

Look it up in The Directory.

[TheHarvester]

I wish The Directory had never existed.

And here come the negative points. I really shouldn't be over 100, given the fact that I disagree with most people about most issues. So, hit me.

[bigthirsty]

Originally Posted by TheHarvester

Johnny Depp makes me weak in the knees. I think he's drop-dead gorgeous. I'm male and heterosexual. I have no interest in seeing Depp without his clothes on. And I'd be totally freaked out if he came onto me in a sexual way.

Does this mean I'm attracted to Johnny Depp and not gay, or what? "Being attracted to someone" is a vague statement. I'm attracted to my mom's neighbor, a 96 year old woman. Do you think I want to have sex with her? I'd have to flip a coin between her and Johnny Depp.

But does any of this really matter? Be who you are, but wink. Don't take yourself too seriously, enjoy what you enjoy, and don't feel obligated to define yourself according to the narrow definitions of a culture that is collapsing thanks to its own self-absorbed fascination with its internal contradictions.

For those who don't understand what I just said, let me summarize it this way:
Johnny Depp is totally hot!
I don't want to have sex with him!

I also think little girls and puppies and huge gnarled oak trees are totally hot. So what? None of that has anything to do with sexual preference or procreation.

yeah.. i've never found oak trees hot.. but I kinda see where you are going. I looked at it less as "I think that celebrity is good looking" and more as "there is the guy out there that I find attractive". If you find some dude attractive then you might just well be gay and to quote Jerry Seinfeld.. "not that there is anything wrong with that!"

[Lakewooder]

"Biblically, a man should not "lay" w/ another man in the same way a man "lays" w/ a woman. Lay means having sex w/ a woman the way he has sex with a man"

Actually, that's not physically possible anyhow.

[cg81]

Originally Posted by TheHarvester

I wish The Directory had never existed.

And here come the negative points. I really shouldn't be over 100, given the fact that I disagree with most people about most issues. So, hit me.

I see no need to give anyone negative points. This is a forum for debate, after all.

[TheHarvester]

Originally Posted by bigthirsty

yeah.. i've never found oak trees hot.. but I kinda see where you are going. I looked at it less as "I think that celebrity is good looking" and more as "there is the guy out there that I find attractive". If you find some dude attractive then you might just well be gay and to quote Jerry Seinfeld.. "not that there is anything wrong with that!"

I know many straight men who love to look at Depp, or Brad Pitt, or George Clooney, etc.

If you think it's gay to find beauty in someone of your own gender, then the problem is in your brain, not mine.

And as for these people quoting scripture, namyohorengekyo.

[GCSTroop]

Originally Posted by cg81

IMO, intending to carry out an act, or actually carrying it out, is the same to God. He sees the heart.

I think, I did a poor job of explaining my opinion on this. What I wanted to get at was that in the Bible, pedophilia is almost seen as OK. Having sex with children and all, yet when it comes to homosexuality, which seems to be a much lesser sin (come on, is it really a sin??? ) people aren't so possessed to believe it's that bad. After all, pedophiles are still allowed to marry. So are murderers, rapists, and all kinds of felons. So, this leads me to believe that the worst thing man can do, in a Christians eyes, is practice homosexuality. I guess it was so bad, God couldn't add it to the Ten Commandments. I guess it was so bad, that it couldn't be talked about directly and must have been alluded to in several poorly written biblical passages, particularly Leviticus and Romans. And, I suppose homosexuality was/is so bad that they are not allowed to marry? You know what else is funny, and I just brought this up on another thread?? Almost the exact same sentiments were had about interracial marriages less than 50 years ago. Now, almost no one would dare say it is a sin. Why? Because religions moral values change quite frequently. Don't believe me? Look at history from say, oh I don't know.... the year 1 A.D. to Present day.

[bigthirsty]

Originally Posted by TheHarvester

I know many straight men who love to look at Depp, or Brad Pitt, or George Clooney, etc.

If you think it's gay to find beauty in someone of you're own gender, then the problem is in your brain, not mine.

And as for these people quoting scripture, namyohorengekyo.

Yeah see its not my "problem".. Its what I think... Why do I think that? Well in all my years of growing up, and trust me.. I'm all straight.. I have never .. EVER heard one of my straight friends.. EVER comment that they "love" to look at Depp, or Pitt or Clooney". EVER. Straight guys, from my experience.. just don't talk like that. Now.. that might seem strange to you.. that might seem odd.. but I'm just telling you my experiences and how those experiences shaped my thinking. If you can't handle somebody elses opinion and thus their experiences then maybe.. just maybe.. the problem is in YOUR brain.. not mine.

Now.. if you sat some of my friends down and said.. "hey. do you think clooney is a good looking man" they would probably say "yes". Do they "Love looking at him".. I'd say no.

So to summarize.. I didn't say it was "gay" to find beauty in your own gender. I simply stated that if you are attracted.. now understand the difference.. attracted to another man.. you might .. just might.. be gay.

so next time don't spin my words.. thanks in advance.

[Pathwalker]

Originally Posted by cg81

What I meant was, our temptations do not make us sinners in God's eyes. It's how we act on them that says what we really are. I don't think I'm disagreeing with you...

Originally Posted by kaykay

I certainly do agree with you, Rob, that it is possible to have homosexual tendecncies and not act on them. Whether this makes you "gay" or not, may just be a question of semantics. And no, I don't feel that's "who" you are in the sense of your sexuality defining you ... anymore than I feel that heterosexuality "defines" who I am. It is one aspect of our lives if you know what I mean. But anyway, sorry if I offended you by agreeing with cg. Sorry if you don't feel like you've been heard in this because I think you have.

Apparently I misunderstood you both. My apologies.

[TheHarvester]

Originally Posted by bigthirsty

...in all my years of growing up, and trust me.. I'm all straight.. I have never .. EVER heard one of my straight friends.. EVER comment that they "love" to look at Depp, or Pitt or Clooney". EVER. Straight guys, from my experience.. just don't talk like that. Now.. that might seem strange to you..

It's strange to me because I grew up in a different culture from yours. That's all. In some countries, boys hold hands when they're friends. That doesn't make them gay. My guess is that you're from somewhere like Pennsylvania or Ohio or Idaho or Alabama where homophobia is so dominant that men aren't allowed to see beauty in anything but a Pamela Anderson poster. And that's fine.

Originally Posted by bigthirsty

So to summarize.. I didn't say it was "gay" to find beauty in your own gender. I simply stated that if you are attracted.. now understand the difference.. attracted to another man.. you might .. just might.. be gay.

so next time don't spin my words.. thanks in advance.

OK, I won't spin your words. What are you words and what do they mean? What does "attracted" mean? When I love to look at a Johnny Depp poster but hate the concept of seeing him naked or having physical contact with him, am I still gay? You need to define what you mean by "attracted" if you want to have a meaningful discussion.