Sometimes you're obviously a bigot, sometimes you're not

Fundies, in this case the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission is whining again about being persecuted. The particulars in this case is the release of the top ten examples of persecution in 2009. I won't repeat them because most (probably all) have been proven false -- or the core incident has been wildly misinterpreted. Even the two murders in this list were due to mental illness and not specifically anti-Christian attacks. The rest appear to be Christians upset that other people have rights too.


At what point is a Fundie truly a bigot? In some cases it is obvious, such as when they say nasty (and untrue) things on their way to depriving us of rights. But what about the case of Joel Osteen, pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston? On one side he says gays are welcome, offers a heartfelt prayer at the swearing in of Houston's new lesbian mayor, refuses to call gays sinners, and refuses to get involved in politics -- especially in taking rights away from others. On the other he says homosexuality is not God's best. I disagree with this last bit, but that isn't enough to make him an enemy of gays. Alas, not all gays see the distinction.


In contrast, is there a difference between a religious person having a "principled opposition to homosexuality" and bigotry? If having a principled opposition means claiming homosexuality is psychologically harmful and a threat to society, despite all psychological organizations refuting these claims, then, yes, that's bigotry.