Now I'll clear the misconceptions now and tell you that being pansexual does not mean I'm in love with Pan. I like much sexier fauns like James McAvoy as Mr Tumnus, not ugly ones like Pan. Don't laugh. I'm not being (entirely) tongue-in-cheek with this one. Mermaids, fauns and centaurs have very attractive top halves and I have identified as bisexual since my teens.
I'm a deviant. There, I said it. And before you get on your high horse and condemn me – are you not a deviant too? Ever looked at someone with lust? Looked at porn? Read semi-erotic fiction? Then Jesus would get all Matthew 5 verse 28 in your face. That goes for all hetero, bi, homo, pan and whatever else–sexuals. Asexuals are in the clear and if you are asexual I commend you, you've got it easier than the rest of us. The rest of us burn with lust, so let's just admit our sexual deviancy and get on with it.
Against lust not against homosexuality
Christians are getting a bad rap, and maybe we deserve it. If we get on our high-horse and pretend that heterosexual lust is so much better than homosexual lust we're sending the wrong message. If we turn a blind eye to people in the church cohabiting before marriage and say snarky things about homosexuals outside the church we're hypocrites. Jesus came to free us from worldly lusts be it lusts for men, women or sexy twinkly vampires (and hunky shirtless man-wolves – Bella soooo made the wrong choice there).
Jesus even came to save us from non-sexual lusts like for money and notoriety. We are the problem. Not homosexuals, bisexuals (in which I'd still identify if it goes by attraction only) or pansexuals – but humankind. So shame on you who say "thank God I'm not a homosexual" – you Pharisee! We need to be preaching the truth to say "I lust after what I should not therefore I have compassion for those who do the same".
The struggle is that dichotomy between preaching love and righteousness. Some think love must mean you have to forget sin exists because certain people get their panties in a knot if you say they're a sinner. Others think righteousness means you have to pick out a specific sin (one that you yourself don't do) and make a particular example out of it.
You made you a sinner, not God
Almost all of us (except those pansexual few) struggle with lust. Homosexuals may claim it's easy for me – a former bisexual and pansexual – at least I like men so it's easier to live happily with my super hawt husband… but that doesn't mean I live a lust-free life. It's not easy for anyone that is full of lust. There are some very attractive people (and cartoon characters) out there and a fleeting thought of "If I weren't married" is not fair to my husband or to God.
But even if you're not as lucky as me having an indiscriminate taste in almost everybody there is something no one should ever do. Do not justify your lust and attraction to say "God made me this way" or "God wants me to be gay because he gave me those feelings." No. Those feelings are lusts. We all get them and they're burning lusts that are set to destroy you if you don't fight them. God wants us to be followers after Him first. Saying "God wants me to be gay/bi/pan-sexual" is like a heterosexual saying "God wants me to 'try before I buy' (have sex before marriage)" just because they want to gratify themselves now.
Have a little humility
Real Christians are not the ones with a happy little heterosexual marriage who rub it in the faces of those with a sexual deviancy. The real ones are the people who recognise it in themselves: misplaced lust, wickedness or sexual deviancy and call out "oh wretched man that I am!". We try our best to be pure but humility is greater than being the perfect (and potentially Pharisaical) Christian. So in humility, if you're a fellow human struggling to be sexually pure – I get it. I am out of the closet as a pansexual but to be a practising Christian I must be a non-practising pansexual.
I'm not boasting. I'm a wretched, lust-ridden sinner. I urge my brothers and sisters in Australia to have compassion and get off your heterosexual high-horse. Sexual purity is hard and Paul said it would be better if we forget about marriage altogether and focused on God. None of us get it right but God gives us a chance to repent and try again. The Christian life is about the fight, and fighting against our lusts and that takes priority over judging others.
Bridget Brenton has been researching apologetics, philosophy and the paranormal for years. You can check her apologetic effort out at www.101arguments.com.
Bridget Brenton's previous articles may be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/bridget-brenton.html