Okay, let me weigh in on a few points.
(1.) I will weigh in on the question of whether sexual preference is genetically pre-determined by saying that I am not capable of weighing in on that subject, and neither is anybody else who does not have an advanced degree in genetics and who has not made meticulous study of the research and the arguments involved.
(2.) Turning now to Christians: The fact is, Christians are as diverse as birds; they come in all shapes, sizes, and temperaments. However, for those Christians who take the Bible literally (of whom I most certainly am not one), honestly, the theology that makes the most sense is what Giggle Baron has put forth. I'll say again, I am not of the same view as Giggle Baron is, but given that you take the Bible literally, including the story of Sodom and Gomorrah and Paul's references in the epistles, then Giggle Baron's statement is doctrinally sound.
(3.) Related to that, let us realize what Christianity is. It is a faith that is entirely about voluntary association. It does not even remotely translate into a blueprint for running a government and passing laws. A Christian republic is a contradiction in terms, because all of the theology of Christianity is about the spiritual lives of individuals, shared by voluntary association; and all behavior that they engage in as Christians comes via personal persuasion and, if they experience it, the inner guidance of the Holy Spirit. There isn't anything in the New Testament that even remotely justifies translating Christian injunctions into civil laws. Thus, if you're a Christian fundamentalist and you believe that divorce is a sin, you're on solid theological ground telling your fellow Christian that he should not divorce his wife (or her husband), but you're showing a miscomprehension of your faith if you think you've been commanded by God to press for laws that make legal divorces hard to get.
(4.) Christians, if they follow their theology, know that they are commanded not to hate anybody, under any circumstances whatsoever. There will certainly be some people who they believe are going to hell if they don't repent and get cleansed in the blood of the lamb, but that just means that such people need to be proselytized to. They're certainly not to be hated.
(5.) Now, let's come to homosexuality. No matter what your theology is, you cannot responsibly go around saying that homosexuals can't sustain monogamous relationships, that homosexuals can't be trusted around children, that homosexuals don't have any morals, that homosexuals undermine the sanctity of heterosexual love by practicing homosexuality, that homosexuals are always on the prowl to make new converts because that's the only way they can reproduce themselves, or that homosexuals can't be good parents. These stereotypes simply don't hold up if you're making any serious effort to pay attention to reality.
(6.) Now I'll give you my truly personal perspective. I'm a man. Sexually, I'm attracted to women, especially the ones who will let me tickle them. And being in the performing arts, I spend a lot of time with gay people, especially gay men. A play I wrote, which involves a gay relationship, was recently directed for me by a gay man, and we became close friends in the course of doing the show together. I don't know if his homosexuality is genetic or environmentally conditioned. I don't care, either. He's my friend, I look forward to having a drink with him in the Village soon again, and if there's anything I can do to help further his right to be protected from discrimination and to be married to another man should he so choose, I'll do it. What's more, if I'm going to hang out with a group of guys, I really prefer at least one or two of them to be gay, because heterosexual men in a group tend pretty quickly to start talking about women in terms that I find quite disgusting, and if it isn't "deviant" it certainly ought to be.
(7.) Oh, I almost forgot. The word "gay" comes from the early twentieth century, when male homosexual travelers used the word with a particular inflection to refer to glittery, ostentatious dining and drinking facilities that catered to them as clientele. (As in, "Is there any place gay" (soft upward inflection) "around here?") And yes, language evolves. Gay used to mean happy; now it means homosexual.
Okay, can't think of anything else.
