Had To Get It Out

Wow, 2 posts in one day. Making up for the past week, I guess.

I just had to comment on a post that was written by an old friend of mine, Matt. I've known Matt since middle school (and probably before that since we went to the same elementary school). We have very little in common, but not being like me does not automatically make you uncool :o) Anyway, I don't think that he would mind me revealing that he is gay. Read his blog, and you will realize that he is not "in the closet" by any stretch of the imagination. And I say that not trying to imply that it is either a good or bad thing, just as a fact.
Now, I don't often feel a need to justify and/or clarify my religious beliefs. I figure, you believe what you want to believe, I'll let you, and then you afford me the same courtesy. But his last post has left me feeling a need to explain why, though I am a pretty strict Christian, I am not "that kind" of Christian.
I have traditional Christian beliefs that are in conflict with some of my friends' beliefs. Namely, I don't belive in abortion (unless, of course, the mother's life is in danger), the death penalty (how you can believe that abortion is wrong but the death penalty is ok is a little beyond me), or euthanasia. My views on homosexuality are are also fueled by my Christianity, but perhaps they aren't what you would think.
Now, does the Bible say that homosexuality is wrong? Sure. But, call me crazy, doesn't the Bible also say something to the effect of the greatest commandment being to "love thy neighbor as you love yourself?" And something else about "let he who hath no sin cast the first stone?" Oh, and how about "judge not lest ye be judged?" Maybe some "Christians" conveniently forgot about those parts.
For those of you who have not taken the time to read Matt's post entitled "bash," it was about an instance where he was assaulted for being gay. Which, just as a little aside, the guy that assaulted him couldn't even really know. It was Halloween, so I don't see why being a man dressed as a woman automatically makes you gay. But, I'm straying from the point that I am trying (ever so uneloquently) to make. I may be Christian but that guy who did the verbal and physical assaulting was most assuredly not. He may have thought he was. Just like a lot of other people who engage in gay bashing may think that they are. But do you think that God, the God who so loved the world that he sent his only Son to die for our sins on the cross, would approve of assault? Let me put it another way...if Jesus saw a man in a dress walking down the street, would He have used his fists to express his opinion? Somehow, I truly doubt it. And therefore I doubt that anyone who would is any kind of follower of Jesus. And therefore, not a Christian.
I guess what I'm saying, to sum it all up, is that I'm not (under normal circumstances) one to judge people harshly because they may not believe the same way that I do. I'm truly sorry for what happened to you Matt. And I'm truly sorry for all the hatred spewed at anyone in the name of God. I'm sure that He is, too.