{"id":11331,"date":"2012-05-18T10:54:19","date_gmt":"2012-05-18T14:54:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/news\/?p=11331"},"modified":"2012-05-18T11:05:51","modified_gmt":"2012-05-18T15:05:51","slug":"why-would-anti-bullying-youth-convention-speaker-mock-the-bible-christian-teens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/2012\/05\/why-would-anti-bullying-youth-convention-speaker-mock-the-bible-christian-teens","title":{"rendered":"Why would &#8220;anti-bullying&#8221; youth convention speaker mock the Bible, Christian teens?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The report is difficult to believe: A paid \u201canti-bullying\u201d expert is caught on video ranting at a national convention of high schoolers and is recorded bullying the Christian kids who were offended by his obscenities. They quietly follow his advice to homosexual youth in his \u201cIt Gets Better Project\u201d\u2013 to passively walk away from bullies, but instead of praising them, he mocks them.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_11335\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11335\" style=\"width: 480px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/11-e1337352266503.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11335\" title=\"1\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/11-e1337352266503.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"269\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11335\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dan Savage speaking to national high school convention<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>It seems that at the National High School Journalism Convention, author and sexual advice radio host Dan Savage was offended when a bunch of teenagers got up and walked out of his speech as he berated the Bible, repeatedly calling it a street obscenity for bovine excrement. When one by one, a number of kids silently stood and left the auditorium, he then called them another offensive street obscenity.<\/p>\n<p>The ironies are incredible. Confronted with the video \u2013 which has gone viral on the Internet \u2013 the anti-bullying role model refused to recant, apologizing only for the obscenity he called the kids who walked out of his address.<\/p>\n<p><iframe width=\"480\" height=\"355\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ql_fDJM-UFY\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The controversy raised by Savage\u2019s tirade has raised so many questions on so many levels. Has the national anti-bullying initiative been hijacked by activists who have only one message \u2013 U.S. teens must be tolerant of homosexuality? That anybody who disagrees with that message must be bullied by peer pressure into compliance? That the tyranny of political correctness must be wielded against any teen who dares to dissent &#8212; particularly on moral or faith-based grounds?<\/p>\n<p>Christian kids have grown used to nobody worrying about their rights in academia \u2013 where it is perfectly kosher to attack biblical teachings, church history and personal beliefs, but \u201cunconstitutional\u201d to pray, evangelize or defend the faith.<\/p>\n<p>However, this time, incredibly defenders of the kids who walked out on Savage have come from across the spectrum \u2013 prominent rabbis, Southern Baptist theologians, Mormon commentators, Catholic academics and even gay rights activists.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_11336\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11336\" style=\"width: 480px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/21.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-11336  \" title=\"2\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/21.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"330\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11336\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A student walking out during Savage&#39;s speech<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cAs an Orthodox rabbi with a gay Orthodox Jewish brother, I have endeavored mightily to reconcile the dictates of my faith with the most human, loving and respectful approach to homosexuality,\u201d writes the Huffington Post\u2019s Rabbi Shmuley Boteach. \u201cI have counseled hundreds of gay men and women of faith who seek to find their place in G-d&#8217;s love amid a gay lifestyle.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut such efforts at reconciliation are undone by the gratuitous hate-filled bigotry of people like Dan Savage whose response to prejudice against gays is to offer insulting and degrading prejudices against religion. Just what Savage felt he was accomplishing by irresponsibly using obscenities about the Bible at a journalism conference for high school students is beyond me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Under a headline \u201cDan Savage Was Right\u201d on the website \u201cOn the Square,\u201d Joshua Gonnerman writes: \u201cHe rejected the Bible as \u2018bullshit\u2019 in a keynote address to high-school journalists, and then described students who chose to walk away as \u2018pansy-assed.\u2019 \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHis hypocrisy is painfully evident.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSadly, far too many voices telling people to quit judging, be more tolerant, and love more are the voices of individuals who judge the most, are the most intolerant, and full of hate,\u201d noted Mormon writer Ryan Jenkins. \u00a0\u201cIt is very troubling, especially given what he is supposed to be speaking about. He should think some personal things through before his next public speaking opportunity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think one lesson we can learn from this incident is the importance to read the scriptures and liken them to ourselves for our own profit and learning. Scripture is given \u2018for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness\u2019 (see 2 Timothy 3:16). As is evident from this public incident some people see the Bible as a threat to their lifestyle rather than spiritual guidance in mortality.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gay rights proponent Andrew Kirrel adds:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a proudly heterosexual libertarian committed to advancing gay rights, I think Savage does a lot of good. His \u2018It Gets Better\u2019 campaign is an inspiringly non-aggressive response to the anti-gay prejudices of bullies and politicians alike. We need more hopeful messages like that.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_11337\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11337\" style=\"width: 480px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/31-e1337352306531.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11337\" title=\"3\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/31-e1337352306531.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"336\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11337\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A convention delegate walks out during Savage&#39;s tirade<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cBut when Savage behaves this way, he does more to hold back the equality movement. I understand he has no interest in converting Bible-thumpers to see the world his way, but when gay rights activists stoop to the same level as gay-bashers, and become religious-people-bashers, they polarize the debate even further. The word \u2018tolerance\u2019 should always be Savage\u2019s greatest weapon.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll of this only makes the gay rights movement look hateful in the eyes of our opponents.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd in America, It does seem like Bible-bashing is met with significantly more an outrage than are generic homophobic remarks. But those \u2018Bible guys in the hall\u2019 didn\u2019t beat you up, Dan. They are just Christian students who feel unwelcome during your speech\u2019s aggressive Bible-bashing. You really didn\u2019t need to insult them after they had already left. Besides, you can\u2019t fault the students for doing exactly what you would tell bullied homosexuals to do when they felt bullied: <em>walk away.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Jake Naman, an 18-year-old Christian from Redlands, California, was in the crowd before Savage\u2019s words turned ugly. In an interview with FOX News, he described what Billy Hallowell at The Blaze called \u201cthe lewd and inappropriate commentary Savage presented to the students.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_11338\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11338\" style=\"width: 480px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/111-e1337352333874.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11338\" title=\"11\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/111-e1337352333874.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"331\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11338\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">More students leave in the middle of Savage&#39;s speech<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cBut while Naman was becoming more and more uncomfortable throughout the speech,\u201d noted Hallowell, \u201cthere was a specific point at which he knew that the rhetoric would come flowing \u2014 when Savage mentioned \u2018the Bible.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u201cThe very second he said the Bible and paused, I knew it was going to get ugly,\u201d Naman told Fox News. \u201cIt was about to be a bashing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a show of courage, Naman, who says he felt bullied &#8212; ironic, considering the catalyst\u2019s \u2018It Gets Better\u2019 efforts &#8212; stood up and walked out of the event, reported Hallowell.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI felt like in my heart I couldn\u2019t just stay there at all. It was a really weird feeling I just had to get out,\u201d Naman said. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to cause a scene but I really could not stand to be in that room anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf Dan Savage had gotten up there and said \u2018God hates homosexuals and they\u2019re all going to hell,\u2019 there would have been huge outrage from that crowd,\u201d Naman said. But on the other hand, \u201cWhen our faith is attacked like that \u2014 we are ridiculed for taking a stand against it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Although Naman thought he was alone in walking out of the event, when he got to the lobby, he realized that others had joined him. Among them was 17-year-old Haley Mulder.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u201cI never felt more hurt, felt persecuted,\u201d Mulder told Hallowell. \u201cFor me, my faith is what I want to be defined by. For someone to say it was B.S. is really hurtful. I felt put down and bullied.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Why Savage would be chosen as the keynote speaker is questionable. On the one hand, his anti-bullying program\u2019s website declares: \u201cEveryone deserves to be respected for who they are. I pledge to spread this message to my friends, family and neighbors. I&#8217;ll speak up against hate and intolerance whenever I see it, at school and at work. I&#8217;ll provide hope for lesbian, gay, bi, trans and other bullied teens by letting them know that \u2018It Gets Better.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>However, this is the same Dan Savage who in 2000 gained notoriety by posing as a supporter of conservative Republican presidential hopeful Gary Bauer during his primary campaign and bragged to the news media of trying to give Bauer a cold by sneezing and licking items which Bauer might come in contact with.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_11334\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11334\" style=\"width: 480px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/tumblr_m39dloQi4f1qij8k6-e1337352234582.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11334\" title=\"tumblr_m39dloQi4f1qij8k6\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/140\/2012\/05\/tumblr_m39dloQi4f1qij8k6-e1337352234582.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"299\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11334\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Savage promoting his anti-Santorum website<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Currently Savage maintains an attack website deceptively called <a href=\"http:\/\/www.santorum.com\/\">www.santorum.com<\/a> in which he defines Santorum in the filthy, shock language and posts sophomoric graphics that depict the former presidential candidate as bodily waste. Such a lack of judgment would seem sufficient to disqualify him from being put in front of a convention of high schoolers \u2013 and prompts concern about the wisdom of the sponsors of National High School Journalism Convention.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey used to arrest middle-aged perverts who get their jollies from talking dirty to children,\u201d writes Matt Barber. \u201cToday, they get a television show, a nationally syndicated column, a lecture circuit and multiple visits to the Obama White House.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe irony is palpable.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The report is difficult to believe: A paid \u201canti-bullying\u201d expert is caught on video ranting at a national convention of high schoolers and is recorded bullying the Christian kids who were offended by his obscenities. They quietly follow his advice to homosexual youth in his \u201cIt Gets Better Project\u201d\u2013 to passively walk away from bullies,&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":270,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32,119,970,1120],"tags":[2046,159,2045,51],"class_list":["post-11331","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christian","category-education","category-homosexual-marriage","category-persecuted-christians","tag-bullying","tag-christianity","tag-dan-savage","tag-homosexual"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Why would &quot;anti-bullying&quot; youth convention speaker mock the Bible, Christian teens?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/2012\/05\/why-would-anti-bullying-youth-convention-speaker-mock-the-bible-christian-teens\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why would &quot;anti-bullying&quot; youth convention speaker mock the Bible, Christian teens?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The report is difficult to believe: A paid \u201canti-bullying\u201d expert is caught on video ranting at a national convention of high schoolers and is recorded bullying the Christian kids who were offended by his obscenities. 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