An Origin Tale

I have always loved how the ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes explained variations in human sexuality.

The closest ancestor of mankind was a race of powerful "double-humans." The double-humans possessed two of every human feature, but most importantly they possessed a complete soul. They varied in that they were either a double man, a double woman, or half man and half woman. Zeus feared the power of these unified humans, as they were capable of climbing Olympus and attacking the gods. So he split them in two and created mankind as we know it. Thus we are forever fated to seek the missing half of our soul and body, be it a male or female half.

Doubt

The last few days have been very strange, to say the least. Someone I deeply care for made a statement that hit me like a kick in the stomach. Since that moment a disquieting sadness has lingered in the back of my mind. On the other hand, I also feel very numb. It seems the situation has unearthed some long-settled doubts. Perhaps in some part of my unconscious mind, I think the statement might be true.

I suppose I had never experienced anything but empathy and warmth from the person, so the statement felt like a betrayal.

I suppose I should be happy that periods of sustained doubt have not been the norm in my life.

For The Bible Tells Me So

One of the issues I will need to address when I come out to my family is the condemnation of homosexuality by most Christian denominations. My family attends a non-denominational church that promotes the problematic modern doctrine of biblical literalism (of select passages, of course). They are pretty independent thinkers, but I anticipate that they will have difficulty breaking out of their traditional framework on the subject. Without getting into my personal religious views (another possible post or dozen), I do not believe that true Christianity is anti-homosexual.



I recently watched the documentary For The Bible Tells Me So. In fact, I made the mistake of starting the film while having a 'midnight snack', and I ended up watching the entire thing. I was a bit bleary-eyed at work the following morning, but it was worth it. The film examines arguments that the Bible condemns homosexuality, and presents the case that they either: 1. misinterpret the context of the passage, 2. mistranslate words in the passage, 3. refer to something other than consensual adult same sex relations. The film is a user-friendly overview of the subject and I highly recommend it. The Would Jesus Discriminate? website is another excellent resource on the subject.



** On a side note, I will not have Internet access over the next several days as I transition to a new place. See you all soon.

The Letter

I am composing what is best described as a "coming out" letter. In my stubbornness, I refuse to call it that; I am not fond of the term, for reasons I will explain at some point. The letter is not something I will eventually mail or e-mail. Initiating this discussion with a written communication is a bit disconnected and passive for my taste (although I am sure it is the right starting point for many). The reasoning behind writing it is that I want to enter into this discussion prepared; it will be such an important interaction that I want to create a framework for my thoughts, and ensure that I address everything I want to address. It remains to be seen whether I will be ready to act on the letter after it is finished.

If anyone has thoughts on what to include or omit, I would love to hear them. I will post the letter here eventually.