"Given that sexual orientation is innate and that we are all, in theological terms, children of God, to deny access to some sacraments based on sexuality is as wrong as denying access to some sacraments based on race or gender.
" - Jon Meacham Judgment is something that, on some level, we all fear.
Harsh judgment, whether it completely consumes your life or is barely a passing thought, no one can deny they've thought about it.
What other people think of you, how they sum you up and mentally label you.
If your sexual identity varies from the 'norm', chances are you've thought about how people might judge you for it.
It's only common sense - evolutionarily, it's in our best interest to please our peers.
When we were in an age when survival was key, we had to have a good back-up system to keep us alive.
Thus, we had to keep them happy.
But those days are long gone, and still the fear remains - that other people won't like us.
Those people who don't like us...
Well, they'll go and tell others, and then they won't like us either.
The eventual fear is that being disliked by a few will mean being unloved by all.
Let's be honest - the days of needing a team to back you up are long gone.
But there will always be the need to feel loved and cared for.
If your sexuality differs from others, you might get to feeling as if you need to hide it, cover it up, or disguise it.
And this is usually because of the irrational fear that we won't be accepted.
Sadly, for many, this is true.
There will be those around you that will not accept your differences.
But here comes the big question - does it really matter? Do they have any right to say what is normal, correct, or different? The answer is that they don't.
They don't have any right to tell you how to live.
Just as you have no right to say how they should live.
Much of the time judgment is born out of a domino effect.
You see it in siblings all the time.
An older sibling will scold a younger one for doing something unwholesome, when someone comes along and remarks, "But you used to do that all the time!" Somehow you know that this is why the one child is scolding the other - they had been yelled at for doing a similar thing and taught that it was wrong.
Now they pass along the anger they felt when they were punished.
Most likely the adult that punished them had a similar situation, and it goes on and on.
The world is a much bigger place than it used to be, filled with a myriad of different people.
You can find people who care for you, in all of your truth and honesty.
The more truthful you are, the happier you'll be and the more people will be attracted by your self-honesty.
The instinct to fear judgment that might be passed on because of your sexuality, works off of some assumptions.
But mainly that those around you will have a negative reaction to your "big secret.
" Don't be alarmed if, in this day and age, those who love and care for you don't immediately threaten to kick you to the curb.
If people love you and know you, most of the time they won't be that surprised.
A friend of mine was dating her boyfriend for two years, and they loved each other deeply, though many people had commented that something was a little different about them.
One day her boyfriend began crying and made a confession - he told her that he was sorry, but he had finally realized that he was gay.
He was afraid he would break her heart, but she was overjoyed at his truthfulness.
She had never even guessed that his sexual preference was different than hers, but she was so happy that he was moving in the right direction.
It was the sweetest break-up I've ever seen! They're still best friends to this day, and they never stopped loving each other - they just had to admit that their love was different.
People who judge you for your sexual preference have no right, no designation, no finger given specifically to brandish, no laws or personal obligations.
In the end, it boils down to choice.
They choose to be the callous, judgmental people they are.
They choose to be public with their opinions.
And you can choose to listen to them or ignore them.
After all, it's your life, not theirs.
At the end of the day, the curtain will close for all of us.
And what happens after that? Your guess is as good as mine.
I don't pretend to know all the answers.
I only see humanity, in all its diversity, in the here and now.
For me, when people are suffering in the here and now, that's all that matters.
It matters because it's real and in the here and now.
Plants and animals are classified by scientists.
And since we, as human beings, fall into the category as that of an animal, we are also classified.
It's a fascinating and interesting subject that is only tainted by religion.
The following is a brief breakdown of where we are as a species and how much we have advanced in terms of understanding who we are as sexual human beings.