The St. Louis Cardinals baseball team hosts an annual Christian Day, which is a post-game event featuring a public figure who speaks about the impact Christianity has had on his life. It’s held after the game so that people who do not wish to participate may leave once the game is over.
This year, the St. Louis Cardinals invited Lance Berkman — a former player for the team — to speak at the event. The LGBTQ organization St. Louis Pride has spoken out against the decision and demanded that the Cardinals cancel Berkman’s scheduled appearance. Despite the protest, the team has decided to stick with its decision.
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Citing an interview in which Berkman voiced his opposition to an ordinance that would allow transgender individuals to use bathrooms that correspond to the gender they identify with, St. Louis Pride has accused Lance Berkman of being homophobic. The St. Louis Cardinals issued a statement pointing out the variety of themed events the team hosts, such as Christian Day, Jewish Community Night, Catholic Family Night, Bosnian Heritage Night, and Fiesta Cardenales, just to name a few.
The team has also announced plans to implement the first-ever Pride Night later in the season for members of the LGBT community.
Something that gets lost on many social justice warriors is the fact that religions have a diverse array of beliefs that do not always correspond with the social cause of the day. Most of those who practice the Christian faith believe homosexuality is a sin. Faulting them for not believing in something their faith goes against is not tolerant in the least.
To demand that a speaker of Christian faith be disinvited from speaking at a Christian event based upon their beliefs is completely hypocritical of St. Louis Pride. Given that the LGBTQ community largely promotes diversity and acceptance, it’s troubling to see certain members attack other groups that are not in agreement with their way of life.
The transgender bathroom controversy is one on which the U.S. seems to be evenly split. There are citizens who believe that allowing transgender people to use bathrooms that do not match their biological gender puts women in danger. Others don’t mind who uses what bathroom.
Transgender is still a relatively new norm that has only recently become more socially acceptable in the United States. It’s unrealistic to expect everyone to be on board with the lifestyle as it directly relates to their own. Some would argue it’s impossible to identify whether or not someone was born a man or woman as they encounter transgender individuals in restrooms.
Except for extreme cases, people more than likely will have an inkling that someone appears to be cross-dressing. Expecting religious groups to be OK with that isn’t something I support.
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Religious freedom is one of the cornerstones of the American way of life. We are a melting pot of diversity, and that includes religious beliefs. I won’t fault Christians for being against the transgender way of life, because their holy book speaks directly against such things.
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It doesn’t mean I hate the LGBTQ community or fear them — it means I respect religious freedom.
Angelina Newsom is a U.S. Army veteran and an OpsLens contributor. She served 10 years in the military, including a deployment to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. She studies criminal justice and is still active within the military community. This OpsLens article is used by permission.
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