I don’t think that ought to be controversial among Christians of any type. Surely Jesus Christ taught that God loves everyone, both saints and sinners, even if God may hate the sin. Gandhi was right – many so-called Christians are not following the teachings of Christ.
I don’t want to nitpick the well-meaning words of a 16-year-old kid, but I think there is still an implication in her sentiments that God loves gay people in spite of their orientation. I don’t see that she’s unequivocally saying there’s nothing wrong with it.
On the other hand, the line where she said “Jesus loves you and your partner” implies an acceptance of a relationship, which is more than just being forgiving of something perceived as “sinful,” so maybe that’s an indication of what she thinks.
While I think it’s probably silly to give too much significance to the words of a teenager, on balance, I think it’s probably a net good, since a certain percenage of her fans are going to be kids struggling with sexual identity issues.
Specifically what teachings do you mean? Love is not an emotion, but means wanting for someone what God wants for them, which presumably is living a life free of sin. It’s not contrary to the teachings of Christ to hope that you yourself and others will follow God’s will. It seems to be what is defined as sin that is the disagreement? And for some, even “love the sinner, hate the sin” isn’t going far enough.
No she isn’t. She said/did a good thing here but let’s not get out of control.
She says that several times. One of the quotes actually says it’s wrong to hate someone because they’re gay. What OP did you read?
You’ve also read her autobiography? I’m surprised to see such a wide readership of her works on the SDMB.
If it’s good enough to be included in many hymnals, it’s good enough for me!
The way some people portray Christ (usually non-Christians) one would think he was like some hippy Abbot of Thelema (from Rabelais), ‘Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law’, all you need is love, don’t judge people.
That’s not Christ at all. Sure, he’d sit down with sinners, but in order to preach to them that they should repent for the Kingdom of God is coming. Not judgmental? This guy was planning to judge everybody, and send their asses to eternal hellfire if they hadn’t repented.
This ‘gentle Jesus, meek and mild’ that non’believers pick up on is BS, a toddler’s version of Christ, leaving out all the religious zealot side of his character (dare I say the fundie part?) evidenced in the NT by such comments as, ‘I come with a sword’, etc.
Believe me, the fundie apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Where do you see that implication?
Yeah, but the sinners he was usually railing at were the assholes who went around acting all holier than thou, cheating other people, going around and ignoring those in need. Remember the “Sermon on the Mount?”
Jesus’s rule was basically like the SDMB’s: don’t be a jerk. People who acted like Falwell and Robertson were the kind Jesus always spoke against.
You were supposed to help the poor and the needy, and basically not think about yourself all the time. Not be such a greedy bastard who looks down on others and is always pointing out THEIR sins.
Personally, I think whether you believe in Christianity or not, Jesus had some good points – “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” (Of course, right after that, you heard, “OW!!! Mom!!!”)
Did I say I had?
Jesus may not have been a ‘hippie’, but the Bible does not include his specific teachings on much of doctrine. In particular, it is silent on his opinions on ‘homosexuality’. Christian attitudes about homosexuality stem from Paul (well, and Leviticus), not anything Jesus said in the Gospels.
Oh, and, I think Miley’s statements are excellent and may indeed help some kids.
People don’t change their minds over the course of a lifetime, they just die, and the next generation is just a little bit more enlightened.
Two of Cyrus’s other quotes:
“ya thats lame! God’s greatest commandment is to love. And judging is not loving. That’s why Christians have such a bad rep. <3 u”
“I believe that EVERYONE deserves to be happy. That’s all I’m saying ;)”
It’s a shame that the most outspoken of Christians are the ones who are intolerant, much as the most outspoken of Muslims are the ones who hate America and kill infidels, and the most outspoken atheists are the ones who hate all religious people and want to eradicate religion period. Because of this, these stereotypes are often attached to all adherents of a certain religion (or lack thereof). It’s time more people speak out and show that there actually are smart people of faith (or non-faith). (Maybe “wise beyond her years” was a little bit much- “smarter than the average 16-year-old,” maybe. For example, commenting on her various scandals to Glamour magazine, she said, “The minute I stop making mistakes is the minute I stop learning.” I like that quote- I think it’s true. We all make mistakes- of course, ours aren’t covered by the press, but we do learn something from them.)
I agree. Look how far African Americans have come. There is still hatred of them, of course, but they are for the most part accepted and tolerated by the generations who were born after the civil rights movement. I bet the same thing will happen to gays.
But what does it mean to you?
And to nitpick further, she also did not unequivocally state that the Pope is Catholic. Since she’s not a leader or subject matter expert, and is after all just a kid, you can really only fairly judge her by what she said, not by what she omitted, and if it drives religious bigots nuts then so much the better.
For better or for worse, the Miley Cyruses of the world have a tremendous influence on kids - in her specific case, the 10-to-14 girls set. You can bet your ass this will be heard by a lot of young girls who’re just realizing that they’re homosexual, and it’ll help them.
I would have paid good money if she would have Twittered “If you are bi-sexual you get The Best of Both Worlds!”
Well, you disagreed with the impression mobo had of her after he read her autobiography. I assumed that meant you were equally familiar with her oeuvre.
Quoth Giles:
Absolutely it oughtn’t to be controversial, but the unfortunate fact is that it is. And Miley Cyrus might even lose some audience share because of this (though I hope that she gains even more from it). An entertainer standing up and saying something like this, even with the knowledge that it might mean a decrease in audience, is laudable.
Ok, back up, I know next to nothing about Miley and Billy Ray, so first, this all got started because of the Miss Bigoted Bimbo (er, excuse me, Miss California) flap? What did Miley say to Perez Hilton? And IS Billy Ray known as a right-winger? And what exactly has she overcome other than be the the famous daughter of a famous dad? And DID she appear nude somewhere?
Fight my ignorance about this young lady, please.