Via email, I was recently challenged with the question of, what is better for a man with homosexual desires; Islam or Unitarian Universalism?
Obviously Islam is better for gay men.
Think about it, in Unitarian Universalism (UU) there's no fixed teaching of self control and self deprivation. These teachings of self control where one shuns the destroyers of spirituality (such as excessive-eating, drugs, fornication, adultery, gambling, alcohol etc.) all aid the spiritual development of a person. These teachings are within Islam and indeed are fixed yet in Unitarian Universalism these teachings are not present as fixed rules. This is a huge problem within Unitarian Universalism; the destroyers of spirituality are not forbidden. Thus we have one faith which comes with fixed spiritual practices coupled with defined parimeters which keep one away from the destroyers of spirituality whilst the other faith (Unitarian Universalism) comes with no fixed spiritual practices and no defined parimeters to keep one away from the destroyers of spirituality. Clearly Islam is more appealing for the one who wants spiritual nourishment.
Because of the lack of these teachings, in Unitarian Universalism, one of the pitfalls for a homosexual is that they end up acting upon their lusts. Not only that, the severe danger of them becoming promiscuous homosexuals is noticeable - homosexuals are generally more prone to promiscuous behaviour than heterosexuals. Therefore, in Unitarian Universalism not only is the gay man's spirituality impacted on negatively but the gay man's mental and physical health could well be in jeopardy.
Mental health of the gay man
Unitarian Universalism opens the door for promiscuity for both heterosexuals and homosexuals. The emotional pain it causes people is one thing but psychologists are zoning on other mental health issues arising from promiscuity
"Promiscuity is one example of a class of high-risk behaviors,” says Deirdre Lee Fitzgerald, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic. “It is comparable to, and may coincide with, behaviors such as heavy drinking, gambling, and other thrill-seeking behaviors like driving too fast."
Why do people have many sexual partners? It's exciting, Fitzgerald says, or, among their peers, it’s a kind of activity that brings them status. Another reason: It helps “them avoid dealing with other challenging emotional issues.”
Here we see Islam looks after the gay man's mental health whilst Unitarian Universalism does not.
Physical health of the gay man
What do I mean by Unitarian Universalism putting gay men into physical harm? Well, without those teachings of avoidance and self-control then not only is the gay man given a 'licence' to act upon his desires but he's left unchecked too thus meaning homosexual promiscuity.
Unitarian Universalism, as we have discussed, opens the door for sexual promiscuity. Many of us are aware of the problems in the Western world of sexually transmitted disease due to an acceptance of promiscuity. UU does nothing to protect the gay man from sexually transmitted diseases - despite the incidence of HIV estimated to be 50 times greater than the incidence of HIV within the heterosexual population:
According to Dr. Lansky, then, based on the 4 percent figure, the CDC estimates that in 2007 there were 692.2 new HIV cases per 100,000 homosexual men - or fifty times more cases than the rest of the population.
Is Unitarian Universalism attempting to protect the gay man from this tragedy? I don't see it. In Islam I do see the rules which keep people from such an tragedy.
Spirituality in Islam
In Islam Muslims have to pray 5 times a day at set periods during the 24 hour day. You drop everything and remove yourself from the material world and stand before God. The Buddhists talk about distancing yourself from the dunya (world) - yet in Islam you can see it and practice - it actually happens in Islam in a practical fashion. Of course, you can pray more than 5 times and perform dhikr (remembrance of God) throughout your day as a Muslim. However, Universalism does not offer you anything set spiritual framework. There's no framework for praying - no nothing. It basically leaves it to the individual to do what he/she wants. We all know what happens in society when people are left to do what they want without any governance - anarchy!
We have already touched on the fact Islam eliminates the destroyers of spirituality whilst Universalism does not. Which one is better for one's spirituality? It's obviously Islam.
Summary
We see Islam looks after the gay man's spirituality health, physical health and mental health. Unitarian Universalism does not.
Which one is better for the gay man? Islam.
Tags: CDC, gay health, eye on queer, gay debate, gay muslims, universalism, farhan qureshi,
AIDS Rate 50 Times Higher in Homosexual Men: Center for Disease Control,
Price to Pay for Promiscuity, gay night clubs, soho, gay celebrities, lil wayne, tommy Sotomayor,
