I thought the Dark Ages were over. Any church that rails against homosexuality has blood on its hands for the beating, murder, and suicide of gay and lesbian youth. The recent Catholic church’s as well as others’ condemnation of homosexuality perpetuates the approval of this bloodshed.
I have been to Native American Indian religious ceremonies. They are very inclusive and closer to God than any church I have ever attended or preached in. I bring this up because of Fred Martinez. He was a 16-year old Navajo who considered himself gay, transgendered, and nadleeh a balance of masculine and feminine traits. In Navajo culture, this is considered a spiritual gift. Fred was savagely beaten and murdered, becoming one of the youngest hate-crime victims in American history.
The white man used to call the Indians savages. Who is the savage now?
Rick Tibben
Nipomo
This article appears in Nov 21-28, 2006.