At the convention we filed our report by title. A series of experiences gradually convinced me that indifference toward gay and lesbian people was not a defensible position for a follower of Jesus to take. The first experience that unsettled my indifference was an acquaintance with a growing number of same sex couples living in committed, stable relationships. These couples, one of which had been together for over forty years, were some of the most responsible and caring people I knew. As I thought my way through the subject, I realized that sexually transmitted diseases among heterosexual people have been kept in check through monogamous relationships.
Promiscuity can be physically as well as emotionally dangerous.
Long ago the church in its wisdom decided to support marriage for practical reasons. Instead of encouraging them to settle down with one partner, society has done everything possible to encourage promiscuity, brief encounters with strangers under cover of darkness. To do less for our gay brothers and sisters would be less than loving. The experience that finally turned me into a fervent supporter of equal rights for gay and lesbian people was my testifying before a committee of the House of Representatives that was considering the possibility of overturning the recently enacted District of Columbia domestic partners act. Although I had the support of my two church wardens, both professional lobbyists, I was not prepared for the hatred and vitriolic denunciation of homosexual people that I found in that committee room.