The cost of yielding to homosexual activism
Correspondent | Friday November 21, 2014 12:33
Although government has decided to appeal the high Court judgment, the triumphant LEGABIBO is in high spirit as it hopes that its victory may eventually pave the way for the decriminalisation of homosexuality. Should LEGABIBO prevail against government’s court appeal, Botswana may end up being part of the family of nations that embrace the rights of gay and lesbian sexual minorities.
Once the LEGABIBO’s agenda catches on, we should expect it to demand other gay rights like gay marriages and adoption of kids. Is Botswana organisationally, morally and spiritually ready to make a shift in this direction?
Be it as it may, hundreds of Batswana are anxiously protesting about the new development which they perceive as a license for sexual immorality. Traditionalists and Christian leaders have been shocked by the court judgment, and are already vigorously campaigning against the moral and spiritual malaise that is bound to enervate Botswana. So far, the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) and opposition legislators have not commented on the judgment. But the protesters expect them to debate the issue with a view to preserve the moral fibre.
Some of the politicians I have had conversation with feel that in a culturally conservative nation like Botswana, openly supporting the cause of gay activism is political suicide. Others say rich gay people should pump money into their political campaigns to popularise their cause. Money can get you anything you want!
The perspective and claim of the homosexuals and the court that has ruled in their favour are influenced by the doctrine of secular humanism. Democracy and human rights that feminists, homosexuals and other rights groups agitate for spring from this doctrine. The doctrine calls for the exclusion of religion in civil affairs to give humans the latitude to develop and meet their needs according to their wisdom and will (even if they atrociously offend God the Creator).
The process of internationalisation or social imperialism has exported ideas and philosophies based on secular humanism to virtually every part of the world. And those who campaign for the rights based on secular humanism often naively or deceitfully quote developed or western nations as their reference point for emulation. They don’t realise that these delinquent nations are morally decrepit, and are all out to contaminate other countries. Some bullies like the USA and the UK unabashedly threaten not to offer economic aid to countries that criminalise homosexuality. Batswana should not be deceived, bad company corrupts good habits (1 Corinthians 15:33).
Sometimes it is easy for a nation to make legal and policy adjustments through its judiciary, parliament and NGOs to accommodate attitudes and behaviour that destroy the foundation of the moral fibre. But the cost for such an action can be enormously high and irreversible. For example, in a society wallowing in the crisis culture like Botswana, once homosexuality is legalised we should expect more young people (without homosexual orientation) to be converted into the homosexual movement. And more foreign homosexuals would be motivated to inundate our country to prey on the local converts. Batswana should understand that today, even in many parts of developed countries, homosexuality is now an “alternative economy” (especially for the unemployed youth and disadvantaged minority groups).
We should expect that the institutionalisation of homosexuality could lead to a sudden rise in the magnitude of social ills such as rape, prostitution, pimpery, drug abuse, Satanism and more offensive graffiti. Social ills beget more social ills. And sexual permissiveness tends to engender social complications. For instance, if we condone homosexuality, what would stop us from legalising prostitution? What if one day the witches and wizards or Satanists flex their muscles and say they too want to register their own associations? And the crucial question we should ask is: is Botswana institutionally and financially ready to curb all these ills?
Significantly, condoning homosexuality would be tantamount to committing social suicide. The first causality is the institution of marriage or family. God created men and women for marriage and procreative sex. The decline or loss of family would deal a devastating blow to our society. The one thing that Satan prides himself on is the destruction of the family. He knows that if he can use human agents to fracture and dislodge the family, he will succeed in destroying the foundation of our nation. To achieve this, he deceives people into buying into the false argument that homosexuality is the counterpart of heterosexuality.
God has strongly condemned homosexuality (Romans 1:26-27). But He is not saying it is worse than other sins. And He does not want the heterosexuals to hate and persecute gay people. God wants gay people to be treated with respect and dignity like all other humans. But this does not mean we should “culturise” their sexual deviance.
It is grossly misleading to tell the world that God created the homosexuals the way they are. It is also false to create the impression that homosexuals are just fine, they do not need God’s intervention. We should understand that even if gay people can build good relationships with their partners or behave socially well just like some heterosexuals, this won’t make homosexuality right.
The issue of homosexuality is a major challenge to the uniqueness of the Botswana nation. Although, there are homosexuals here, the fact that Botswana did not rush head long into legalising this sexual orientation, like other nations that have been emasculated by immorality, has pleased God. From a spiritual perspective, Botswana has a history of old time religion that used to make our ancestors keep their fear of God. This pleased God who gave this nation the massive favour we fail to appreciate. God still wants us to preserve the foundation of positive values, beliefs and norms that have kept this country away from confusion that has tragically damaged other nations. A copy cat mentality that gay activists want to forcefully impose on us is unacceptably dangerous.
If peer pressure and convenience would force us into compromising the pillar of values and beliefs that have served us well since independence, we would prodigally fritter away the future and destiny we are trying to build. More importantly, we could lose integrity in the eyes of God who has always protected us from the evil strong men who have been assigned against this nation.
Finally, it is sufficiently important to acknowledge that God has given males a mantle of leadership in institutions. They are supposed to obediently enforce moral uprightness. But when male leadership goes astray, social corruption multiplies. All kinds of nefarious platforms with the potential to derail a nation are put on the national agenda. So, God requires His Church to indefatigably pray for all people in authority (1 Timothy 2:1-2) in politics, the legislature, the judiciary and civil society movement so that they may manage the affairs of society with characteristic wit, foresight and diligence.
LOG RADITLHOKWA
*Raditlhokwa is a Christian and a social commentator