A former Navy chaplain cited a Bible verse in response to Newt Gingrich's stance on same-sex marriage, interpreting the scripture to say that "homosexual acts are worthy of death" and concluding that "when the Bible condemns [Gingrich's] endorsement of homosexual sin, then he has become one of the sinners condemned."
Gingrich spoke about the issue of same-sex marriage during an interview with The Huffington Post in December. Although he defended his belief that marriage is between a man and a woman, the former House Speaker said the GOP needs to progress with the times.
"It is in every family. It is in every community," he told HuffPost. "The momentum is clearly now in the direction in finding some way to ... accommodate and deal with reality. And the reality is going to be that in a number of American states -- and it will be more after 2014 -- gay relationships will be legal, period."
On Thursday, Right Wing Watch posted a video response to Gingrich's same-sex marriage comments made by Navy chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt, according to Raw Story. In the video, the chaplain says Gingrich is wholly misguided in pandering to the left and "homosexual sin."
The chaplain cites a Bible passage from Romans, Chapter 1, which reads "the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another ... that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.”
“It’s not like Newt is personally engaging in homosexual activity, but the Bible condemns him now because he takes pleasure in those that do that sort of thing,” Klingenschmitt explained. “When the Bible condemns his endorsement of homosexual sin then he has become one of the sinners condemned by Romans, Chapter 1.”
Klingenschmitt continued to say Gingrich is tempted by "demonic voices" that tell him "Okay, it's not really a sin. We ought to endorse this" simply to get more votes in a possible 2016 presidential run.
The chaplain, who belongs to an evangelical sect of the Episcopal Church and was disgraced in 2006 for disobeying an order, is not the only one to speak out against Gingrich's evolved view on same-sex marriage. Frank Schubert, National Political Director for the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), called the politician's comments both "stupid" and "ridiculous."
Gingrich was previously vocal against same-sex marriage. He went so far as to compare it to paganism, saying, "The effort to create alternatives to marriage between a man and a woman are perfectly natural pagan behaviors, but they are a fundamental violation of our civilization." While running for the GOP presidential nomination, he also vowed to enforce the Defense of Marriage Act.
Watch Gordon Klingenschmitt's video below. He discusses Newt Gingrich around the 5-minute mark.
UPDATE: Gordon Klingenschmitt wrote HuffPost to clarify that he never said he believes Newt Gingrich to be worthy of death. According to the video, however, he did state that the Bible holds "homosexual acts are worthy of death" and that the Bible also equally condemns those who "take pleasure in those who do that sort of thing."
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