[DrPhil]

I don't agree with the distinction between being of a particular sexual orientation and the acts. Just as there are heterosexuals who do not act on it for whatever reasons, there are homosexuals who do not act on it. However, the freedom to act on it in a consensual manner and "go beyond the bedroom" is what this is about as far as I'm concerned. When people say "I'm fine with it as long as 'they' keep it away from me and I don't have to see it," I just cringe and I think about when I was younger and felt the same way because I was going based on what I was raised to believe.

With that said, I would lose many friends and family if I refused to be close to people who believe homosexuality itself is a sin. That includes those who believe homosexual acts are a sin because I think it's impossible to be openminded to an orientation if you believe that acting on the orientation is a sin.

So, I will continue to love and interact with my family and friends who believe that all of it is a sin and I will continue to respond when they make comments around me. They are free to feel however they feel and to express it; and so am I. That's how my family, friends, and I operate.