My heart aches for the victims of another senseless mass shooting.  Each new shooting generates its own unique horror and reveals another facet of hatred. I can only try to imagine the pain and anguish experienced by the surviving victims and their families. What makes this one different is that the gun man’s target was the gay community.  This fact doesn’t make it more horrible or less horrible, just different.  When it comes to homosexuality, I agree with the statement by Pope Francis who said, “Who am I to judge?”

Gay people must have to contend with rejection a lot.  If they “come out of the closet,” they face the prospect of being rejected by their parents, their family, their friends, their church, and some would even try to convince them, their God. If they choose not to come-out, they still have to silently listen to hateful statements made by others.  While many people struggle with feelings of depression, of being unlovable, and of low self-worth, it is easy to see how these feelings might be magnified in a sensitive gay person.  It is not surprising to me that an estimated 30% of gay youth attempt or successfully commit suicide.  To a vulnerable, young gay person, the message of hatred the shooter sent only reinforces the negative feelings with which they already struggle. How evil it is to murder someone just because of they way they were born.  It breaks my heart. God loves each and every one of His creations!

Christians are called to love everyone. If a person loves someone of the opposite sex or of the same sex, it shouldn’t matter, as long as what they share is a self-giving love.