By Eva Kraus
I've been kinda getting bent over lately. You know the feeling...BOHICA (Bend over...here it comes again!). Grabbing my ankles is getting old. Why the f**k to we have to put up with the Religious Reich getting to hide behind the First Amendment of Free Speech? Do you think that the sh*t coming out of the "religious" is really what the founding fathers intended? Do you think that the "religious" should get a free pass on hate speech? Do you think that they should be held accountable for their hypocrisy?
You know, I admire the Amish. I wouldn't want to be one. I wouldn't want to live that life, but hell, they live the whole deal....from A to Z. I admire that commitment. They do their thing and don't want anything from anyone, just to be left alone to do their thing.
Guess what? So do I!! But NOOOOOOO! These religious f**ks come along and want to tell everyone how to live. My way or the highway. If you don't live my way, I am gonna make sure you can't get a job, have a home or use a toilet. I am gonna call you a guy in a dress, a pedophile, a freak. I am gonna harass you where ever you go because the government says you can't stop me.
I am "the religious" and I am gonna stand at my pulpit and tell you that I love the sinner, but hate the sin. Seriously? You are gonna tell me that you love me but hate what I do. It is not what I do! It is what I AM!! Still love me? You are gonna preach the crap you do, that I am an abomination and not be held responsible for inciting violence when I am attacked? You are not responsible for the blood on your hands from those you incite? Why do we punish others for inciting violence then? What is different from what you do from what they do?
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Oh, I get it. You get to claim the "high moral ground" of religion. You get to tell me who I am. You get to tell me how to live. You get to devalue my humanity. And yes, you get to revel in your hypocrisy. You get to divorce at an over 50% rate. You get to lie, cheat and steal. You get to gamble and become alcoholics. You get to beat your spouses. You get to get caught committing heinous acts with young children You get to make porn a $13 billion industry in the US. You get to claim traditional family values. You get to sit in judgment? of me??? What a joke!
Whatever religion you are or whether you believe or not, the Bible has two basic themes....judge not lest you be judged and love thy neighbor as thyself. Rabbi Hillel said (and I paraphrase), the rest is filler.
You, who sit in judgment, are unqualified to judge. You take on an authority you are not given.
Now, I am a person of deep seated faith. Many of you reading this are not. That is cool. I believe that faith provides hope when there is none. The mere act of faith, in believing in the unproven can provide relief in a world that is full of almost unbearable challenges. While faith doesn't make the tasks at hand easier, it can make the mental burdens easier. In that sense, it is good. I also try to practice those two rules I mentioned earlier.
I am also blessed to come from a welcoming religion that supports TLGBI people. As a Reform Jew, we have at least two transmen as rabbis. That is really cool. Religion should welcome all who seek hope...it should welcome all who seek to ease their mental burdens as we navigate a difficult life. It should provide for fellowship, not only with a loving G-d, but with the camaraderie of our fellow man. It should serve to make our lives easier, not break us as this institution of man often does.
Interestingly, my most beautiful partner is an evangelical Christian. Man, I can't deal with her tribe. I just gave you hundreds of words as to why. Yet, two years ago I met this most beautiful soul in the world. How can that be? I was blessed enough to meet a Christian girl who lives by those two simple rules. She doesn't judge. She gives her money and things to people on the street. She loves all. She, like the Amish, really lives her values. She just sees me. We celebrate, not only our similarities, but our differences. She makes me a better person. She is my missing puzzle piece.
I don't always live by those two sacred rules. I admit that I judge. I judge those who hate. I judge those who dehumanize. I judge those exclude. I eat shrimp. I wear clothing of mixed fibers. If I was a farmer, I probably wouldn't rotate my crops properly. Sorry girls, I am not a virgin. All of these are offenses that carry the death penalty. Oh yes, I am a trans lesbian. Hell, I'd make a good Christian.
Bring lots of stones. Bring lots of stones for yourselves, too. You hypocrites.
And to some of you attacking my partner and me, a pox on your house, too! WTF? You've already condemned me.
Eva Kraus is a businesswoman and emerging trans voice. Her Facebook page is here.
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