Amen, Elliott. As a gay man who grew up in a working class Evangelical family, I agree with you very much.

I agree with you also in my capacity as a writer who covers LGBTQ issues in the Catholic Church pretty extensively.

First, characterizing us as sinners because we choose to form loving, intimate, sexual relationships with people we are oriented to be attracted to is deeply damaging to us and toxic to society.

We're not worried about all people being sinners particularly, we're worried that they're calling us sinners because we choose to love rather than be celibate.

Love is not a sin, and any religion that calls it a sin has got something terribly wrong.

Second, it's no secret that churches use the center categorization to deny LGBTQ people respect and equal opportunity.

Just yesterday, for example, a group of hundreds of Catholic clergy, religious, and lay employees in Germany came out publicly as LGBTQ, a daring act of rebellion on their part because they know coming on could end their Church careers.

They know the Church categorizing them as disordered sinners is not some minor theological matter, but a profoundly dangerous, discriminatory practice.

"Hate the sin, love the sinner," is a toxic catch phrase that does nothing more then make people feel comfortable about bigotry and discrimination.