Achieving physical and mental wellbeing is a universal aspiration. No matter our background, we strive, successfully or not, to move in the direction of goodness. This motion is a constant march forward, an evolution to a place where all may rejoice in harmony, where we will find a balance between our external and internal self. Some of us rely on principles and ideals set by our religion. Others use a more secular approach. Some of us want to lead and others enjoy following. Regardless your path, with each step there is a decision making process that requires constant evaluation. Finding harmony requires a great deal of retrospection.

This morning I was looking back to an online conversation that arose after my friend Tim Durling quoted me on his Facebook post. He referred to the contention The Marién Revelation stirs when dealing with Jesus of Nazareth’s sexuality. The discussion was generally polite. Surprisingly, the most heated arguments came from a transgendered individual and a gay man who were offended by the argument. So much so that one of them labeled me paranoid and delusional. The conversation triggered over sixty comments, most of them of unusual length, in the period of two hours.

The most interesting point is that neither my book nor the quote defines Jesus as a gay man. The insinuation is there. However, it is up to the reader to navigate those waters and to address the underlying questions: Would you still believe in him if he were? Would you still love him? Is your love for the Son of God unconditional?

I pose those questions because as I say at the beginning of this blog, finding harmony requires a great deal of looking back. In order to gain harmony within myself, I had to look back at what made me fight against my own sexuality. I had to understand why people hate homosexuals to such a degree that in their way of seeing things, it is fine to kill a gay person. The most recent example is the American Evangelicals who promoted kill-the-gays policies in Uganda. I invested many hours of research hoping to try and comprehend such hate. In the process, I found that organized religion, especially the Catholic Church, has been the most fervent promoter of misinformation regarding homosexuality. Also, in the quest for an ideal masculinity, heterosexual men have used their physical superiority to diminish women and the effeminate. But that’s another blog.

Once a person understands why his or her inherent sexuality is feared, it’s easier to move to a position of power. In acquiring this knowledge, the person has appropriated arguments and mechanisms that he or she can subvert and in turn use to disarm the oppressor. Since most arguments against homosexuality derive from misinterpreted or misunderstood religious perceptions, homophobia must be fought within the same context. This is why The Marién Revelation goes there. The biblical Jesus had nothing against same sex love. He even went to the extreme and put himself in situations that allow us to interpret that he might have had a male lover. Of course, most of us don’t dare think of him in this manner, the irrational disgust for this image derives from the conditioning imposed upon us by our culture, a culture that celebrates heterosexuality as the only natural and accepted way, a culture immersed in the rule of heterosexual supremacy.

Let’s pause for a moment and define this concept. In my view, heterosexual supremacy is a cultural condition resulting of the homophobic rhetoric exercised by the hegemonic institutions I already mentioned. Heterosexual supremacy is a synonym of heterosexism.

To quote Clayton Gibson, the founder of MyOutSpirit.com:

“it is a belief in the superiority of heterosexuality over homosexuality, and it typically includes as its inevitable correlates moralistic denunciations of homosexual sex as “intrinsically disordered,” […] It is the position of the orthodox Roman Catholic institution and most conservative religions.”

Just like homophobia, heterosexual supremacy is virulent and affects people on any side of the gender spectrum. The examples above, the transgendered individual and the gay men who were offended by the post in which I was quoted, are examples of it. There is also the passive version of heterosexual supremacy. In rereading the conversation, there were many postings that referred to the unnecessary nature of such a debate. And I quote:

“Jesus’ only request for being saved was to believe in him. To love him and, by following his example, we love one another. What else is there to be said?” Facebook User.

	Failing to recognize the importance of the debate is failing to recognize that people who love people of their own sex are still oppressed. As individuals, we cannot achieve universal balance until the people around us have the opportunity to enjoy the same rights and privileges. Allow me to finish this blog in the words of my friend Stella Zimmerman, who joined the online debate towards the end:
	“Until homosexual people enjoy the same rights that heterosexuals enjoy, there’s plenty to be said and should be said. I can say I love my gay brothers and sisters, but if I don’t act to dignify their existence, words became just words, empty, meaningless.”