Oh, Biblebelt Knoxville.

The other day on The J Show we told of the recent news story that has caused quite a religious stir across the nation. We discussed, of course, the Elton John incident. In case some of you don't know, during a web-exclusive interview with Parade Magazine John expressed his views on several topics, and while discussing religion he said the following quote:

"I think Jesus was a compassionate, super-intelligent gay man who understood human problems. On the cross, he forgave the people who crucified him. Jesus wanted us to be loving and forgiving. I don't know what makes people so cruel. Try being a gay woman in the Middle East -- you're as good as dead."

Take that as you will, but I can assure you that this story was purely for news, and none of us at the station were taking any sides on the matter (if not solely for legal reasons).

Then we had a caller; he was absolutely disgusted with John and his words and upon hearing the news, he immediately spat "That Mother F***er!" This was followed by several quotes from The Bible like "...thou shall not lay with another man," and strong, disconcerted statements about how he hates the singer and would kill him if he could.

I'm sorry, but ssskkkkkkkkkkuuuuuuuuuurrrrr, hit the breaks.

what?

When J said, "Don't you think that is a little hypocritical?" do you know what his answer was?

"I don't care."

And that ladies and gentlemen, is why I have a problem with the South. That is why southerners have such a bad rep, and that is why being referred to as "the Biblebelt" region isn't necessarily a good thing.

I feel that hypocrisy and Christianity are almost synonymous in the South, which is so sad.

You spend so much time preaching about how people should or should not be. Don't drink, don't smoke, don't be gay.

And you just completely ignore the fact that you yourself are judging and expressing hatred, which are also sins. And according to The Bible of which you swear upon, all sins are equal.  

So what makes you better than them?

I hope that I am not giving any false impressions of myself because I am a Christian and I am not afraid to admit it.

However, I have an open mind, and I am very proud of it. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but throughout my life I have come to the conclusion that people will discover Christianity on their own time. We can't force a Bible into their hands and tell them that they're going to Hell if they don't believe. Doing this in NO way gives them any true desire to learn. If anything, this only perpetuates fear and they will believe for all of the wrong reasons.

So in my own personal opinion, be kind, don't judge, and have compassion toward others no matter how different their lifestyle may be. The natural light and kindness that you emit will become their influence.

Thoughts?