Megachurches and Homosexuality

Recent letters to the ST forum have placed the spotlight on the mega churches in Singapore. It all began with Dr Lee Bee Wah’s letter. In that letter (reproduced on KTM’s blog) Dr Lee talked about how a family member had become distant from them and how the family member had ignored her studies as a result of her new found faith. In response there were letters both defensive and otherwise.

This is rather interesting as it coincides with another issue; namely the spotlight on homosexuals. The spot light on homosexuals arose as a result of Mr Lee Kuan Yew’s comment that the unlamented Section 377A (or lamented; depends on whose perspective you come from) would have to go. This brought about a flurry of chest beating and cries from the fundamentalists ranging from academics and the common man in the street. Then you had the revocation of Prof. Douglas Sanders license to speak in Singapore, the ban of a picnic in the Botanic gardens, police filming a run at the Singapore river and Otto Fong’s coming out.

Of course it may seem as if there is no correlation between the church leaders and homosexuals; however if one would look at this letter by Derek Hong one would realise that the two related in more ways than one, so to speak.

Notwithstanding the usual misinformation inside the letter (how homosexuals want to influence society and all that crap), this letter highlights an interesting issue. I refer to the pastor’s line that “I have been reliably informed that NOW IS THE TIME TO SUBMIT OUR FEEDBACK. ” Indeed I do wonder who was the one doing the informing and whether the person is reliable a not. In a way this is similiar to the revocation of Douglas Sanders licence, where having been given the licence it was suddenly revoked as ” based on additional information received, police saw the event as ‘contrary to the public interest’. Then look again at Mr Alex Au’s post regarding the picnic.  This seems to suggest that the Christian right has friends in right places.

And if you look at the anecdotal evidence with regards to the prevalance of the megachurches, or take a walk to one of the places where these churches hold their regular services, then it can be seen that the possible influence of these organisations is vast indeed. While the situation in Singapore is by no means analagous to that in the United States, the fact that religious organisations are protected somewhat by the Sedition Act does make a situation possible. In fact on reading Derek Hong’s letter I was minded of an old historic event: The Council of Clermont. During the council Pope Urban II called for a crusade against the Saracens in the “Holy Land”, thus setting the stage for a violent confrontation between Islam and Christianity which does seem to continue on today. Derek’s attack on homosexuals seems to be no different from Pope Urban’s sermon at Clermont. And given the potential influence of these organisations, coupled with the support of friends in high places, there is a danger that if nothing is done to redress the evident imbalance between the homosexuals and conservatives in society, instances of discrimination could increase and Singapore’s progress could be stifled as a result.

There are many bones of contention; the above is merely a tip of the iceberg. Indeed in light of Derek’s letter I truly wonder how some can still talk about social responsibility when these organisations are actively trying to discriminate against fellow human beings; but of course perhaps I am unenlightened enough to comprehend the greater mysteries of life and what have you. Nevertheless there is one viable solution to be taken and that is to repeal that ridiculous law. However it appears that 377A will be here to stay, for now.