RELIGIOUS leader Dr Myles Munroe has fiercely condemned homosexuality in the wake of a recent gay pride celebration in Grand Bahama, referring to it as a “massive deception…dismantling the very core of the natural existence of humanity.”
In a lengthy press statement released on Saturday, the prominent author and pastor of Bahamas Faith Ministries International (BFMI) suggested that forces are deceptively working to convince people that homosexuality is normal.
His statement came days after The Tribune reported that four-day gay pride celebrations kicked off on Friday at an all-inclusive resort on eastern Grand Bahama. His denouncement of the events marked the first public criticism of the celebrations from a major public figure.
As for the event in east Grand Bahama, Dr Munroe said the issue must be addressed from a position that goes beyond religion. He questioned what role government and tourism officials may have had in furthering the event and noted that the celebrations attracted the international press.
“In the guise of ‘civil rights’ and ‘human rights’ the LGBT minority community have decided to ‘celebrate’ the civility of their very uniquely chosen lifestyle and sexual preference publicly,” he said. “I am not sure what their mission or goals are in this effort but obviously they have received enough incentive and motivation to attempt something that 90 per cent of the Bahamas and Bahamians consider unacceptable and violates their collective convictions, moral standing and values.
“I am not sure what role is being played by government, the Ministry of Tourism, or other parties that may have provided, if any, the incentive for this defiant social act, but I believe this must be addressed from the perspective not from any religious position, but rather from the concern for our very small fragile social fabric being held together by values and moral standards that provide the framework for a healthy Bahamian society.”
Frequently dismissing homosexuality as unnatural, Mr Munroe warned that gay activists are appropriating the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s to advance their agenda. He said any comparison of the oppression gays face to the racism blacks faced before the Civil Rights Era is “illogical” and “dishonest.”
“I have with great disappointment stood on the balcony of history and watched with horror and shock the highjacking and raping of what we have come to know as the Civil Rights Movements,” he said. “What made it more distressing was to see many individuals who were actively involved in these historic resistance movements abandoning the sacrifice of many who died for the noble causes of human dignity for the majority who were being abused, to use their blood to cover the demands of minority sectors of society to justify and civilise their selfish and unnatural preferences.
“I myself tasted the negative impact of civil oppression by a regime that devalued my humanity, but this was not because of a lifestyle I chose, or a behaviour that was by orientation, or a disposition preferred, but rather a reality that was ‘natural.’ I was a victim of my inherent pigmentation. I was born black and had no choice in the matter. In the Bahamas I and my family along with the majority of the Bahamian population were discriminated against, devalued as humans, disfranchised, and oppressed by a minority regime.
“I have with all my logic sought to understand but still cannot equate the philosophy, ideology or purpose for the Civil Rights Movements with the agenda of the homosexual LGBT community. I think the attempt to equate the historical Civil Rights Movements with the demands for the right to dignify, glorify and accept as normal the practice of a lifestyle that could render the human race for which they sacrificed extinct is illogical, dishonest, and is the abuse of the blood and imprisonment of many. It’s a highjacking of the gains paid for by the blood of honourable men and women for an unnatural human-destroying behaviour.”
In a recent interview with The Tribune about the event, organiser Victor Rollins underscored the critical need for outreach and empowerment within the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered (LGBT) community.
He said he envisioned the pride weekend as an opportunity to target the marginalized community, members of which he felt were often stigmatised, manipulated or exploited.
In his statement Dr Munroe also accused the media, both nationally and internationally, of favouring stories that glorify homosexuality.
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