As first reported on Right Wing Watch, Daniel Avila, the “marriage guy” of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, had argued that Satan was responsible for homosexuality. Avila later apologized and resigned for his comments, but he has at least one outspoken defender in the Religious Right: Renew America columnist Michael Bresciani. In earlier columns, Bresciani claimed that “the entire gay and lesbian community is guided by a powerful demon spirit who is subordinate to Satan” and that gay rights are prompting “the rise of the antichrist and the final judgments of God against a rebellious and totally reprobate generation.” Today, Bresciani wrote in defense of Avila, contending that gays and lesbians are part of a demonic hierarchy:
The demoniac of Gadara (Lk 8: 26f) was said to have, not one devil, but an entire legion of devils. That is about 6,000 devils in that one man alone. What makes us think that there are not enough devils for everyone in our world who steps into Satan’s kingdom? One third of the angels departed from the presence of God when Satan left. That could be a number we could not fully imagine. Satan needs every one of them to fulfill his temporary job description, which is, ‘god of this world.’ (2 Cor 4: 4)
There is little doubt that his kingdom is a powerful hierarchy made of ruling angels, demonic spirits and lesser spiritual minions. Their task is to encourage and engage all who want to live outside of the will of the Living God. Why would the perversions of man including the homosexual lifestyle be left out of his hierarchy? Even without a sound biblical theology this is just dumb.
In fact, the Bible clearly indicates that rather than being a bunch of idiot spirits that are sent to inhabit and haunt old houses, demons are sent to seduce, deceive, possess and eventually destroy the unsuspecting souls of men and women.
Only two conclusions can be reached. One is that Mr. Daniel Avila who resigned his position as an on staff advisor in the subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage, a part of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, quit for nothing. He had hit the nail squarely on the head but took to running under the pressure of public opinion. A little less Catholic dogma and a whole lot more of scriptural grounding might have saved his job, or at the least gotten him fired with his dignity intact, in God’s eyes.
The other conclusion is that Satan is doing a good job within the gay community. Since Jesus exclaimed that in heaven no one would continue to be married (Mt 22: 30) but they would be as the angels of God, what would make anyone believe that there are unions in hell? There are no men trapped in the body of a woman or women trapped in the body of a man in hell. All there is; is people trapped in the flames of eternal hell fire.
