Once again, angry people are challenging the constitutionality of the federal “Hate Crimes Act.” This time it’s three Michigan ministers and the Michigan chapter president of the American Family Association who allege that the act threatens their right of free speech and religion—essentially, their right to viciously condemn homosexuality.

According to the lawsuit, the plaintiffs “have a deeply held religious belief that the Bible is the unalterable and divinely inspired Word of God.” So, the only reason they’re preaching hate is because the Bible, the “ultimate authority,” says so.
But there’s a catch: you can’t pick and choose where the Bible has authority. By stating that the Bible is the “ultimate authority for both belief and behavior,” these ministers assert that they live their lives in accordance with this claim. However, these men do not live what they preach; they do not obey all explicit rules commanded in the Bible.

Logically, it is possible to use the laws of Leviticus, which condone the killing of homosexuals, to justify anti-gay bigotry. Leviticus 20:13 clearly states: “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.”

But what else does the Bible tell us to do? Don’t touch a woman on her period: “When a woman has a discharge of blood which is her regular discharge from her body, she shall be in her impurity for seven days, and whoever touches her shall be unclean until the evening” (Leviticus 15: 19). Grow yourself a Beard: “Ye shall not round the corners of your heads” (Leviticus 19:27). Stone all psychics, wizards, and the like to death: “A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them” (Leviticus 20:27). Kill all adulterers: “‘If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife, both the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death” (Leviticus 20:10)… And so on.

Obviously, these three anti-gay pastors and Michigan AFA president do not unequivocally follow literal biblical rules, or we’d see them with foot long beards and multiple arrests for stoning adulterers. Therefore, these men cannot claim that “the Bible is the ultimate authority for [their] beliefs and behavior,” because like other religious practitioners, they pick and choose holy verses to suit their own moral purposes.

The three pastors and Michigan chapter president of AFA allege that the sole reason for their bigotry against homosexuals is their faith in the authority of Bible verses. They would like for us to believe that their deeply held religious convictions are the ultimate cause for their antipathy towards gays, which would absolve themselves of all responsibility. But quoting the Bible does not excuse them of the public ministry of hate.

Let’s not forget that many Christians choose to live their lives according to the biblical verses of love, such as: “With justice you shall judge your neighbor” (Leviticus 19:15) and “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18). These commands are as authoritative and distinct as those found anywhere else in the Bible, and contrast explicitly with homosexual intolerance stated in other parts of the book.

It is important to realize that people use different biblical passages to justify a multitude of actions, precisely because the passages cover such a wide range of interests. Deeply held religious convictions are used only to explain and justify human actions, whether they are actions of love, or denouncements of hate.

If I choose to hate, it’s not hard to cherry-pick Leviticus 20:13 as my defense. Conversely, if I want to love, it is just as easy to cite Leviticus 19:18. Therefore, we find that religious convictions are not the cause of human love or hate, but rather the results of human agency and will. The choice originates not from an abstracted external source, but rather from within each individual. Anti-gay bigots will do well to remember this distinction.

Just as one chooses to not stone witches, disobedient children, and atheists to death, one also chooses to either love his neighbor or condemn him. If you decide to condemn homosexuals, you cannot simply cite the Bible as the originating authority for your beliefs. After all, it’s not the “ultimate authority” of the Bible that influences homosexual intolerance, but the perverse appeal of hate itself.