I HAVE SPENT my last five columns - and a good deal of my career - defending homosexuality against various moral attacks. Yet sometimes I spend so much time explaining why homosexuality is "not bad" that I neglect to consider why it's positively good. Can I offer any reasons for thinking of homosexuality as, not merely tolerable, but morally beneficial?
Off the top of my head, here are five:
First, homosexuality can be a source of pleasure, and pleasure is a good thing. Too often we act as if pleasure needs to be "justified" by some extrinsic reason, and we feel guilty when we pursue it for its own sake. (How often has someone told you that he or she had a massage, only to add quickly, "I have a bad back"?) This is not to say that pleasure is the only, or most important, human good. Nor is it to deny that long-term pleasure sometimes requires short-term sacrifice. But any moral system that doesn't value pleasure is defective for that reason.
Second, homosexuality can be an avenue of interpersonal communication, and this too is good. Few would deny the moral value of human interaction, including sexual interaction. Yet many of our opponents argue that we ought to forsake sexual intimacy in favor of celibacy. Forced celibacy robs people of an important form of human connection.
Third, homosexuality can be a source of emotional growth. Romantic and sexual relationships force us to "get outside of ourselves" in a powerful way. They foster sensitivity, patience, humility, generosity - a whole host of moral virtues. When Jack Nicholson tells Helen Hunt in As Good As It Gets "You make me want to be a better man," the line is moving because it strikes a deep and familiar chord. This is as true for homosexual people as it is for heterosexual people.
Fourth, and related, homosexual relationships promote personal and social stability. This is why people in relationships frequently live longer, report greater personal satisfaction, and are physically and psychologically healthier than their single counterparts. This is not to say that coupling is right for everyone: some people are happier alone, and we do them no service by pressuring them to pair off. But most people at some point want to find "a special someone." Doing so is good for them, and what's good for them is good for the community, which benefits from the presence of happy, stable, satisfied individuals. This is a worthy moral goal if anything is.
Some might object that I'm equivocating on the term "relationships" here. For our critics do not object to our offering each other emotional support, or setting up house together, or having deep conversations, or shopping at IKEA. What they object to is homosexual sex. These other activities might be morally unobjectionable, the critics concede, but they are entirely separable from the relationship's sexual aspect.
Nonsense. There is no reason to assume - and there are good reasons to doubt - that one can remove the sexual aspect of relationships and have all others remain the same. Sex is a powerful way of building, celebrating, and replenishing intimacy in a relationship. To assume that one can subtract sex without affecting the rest of the equation is to take the kind of reductionistic view of sex that critics often falsely attribute to us.
All of the reasons I've mentioned thus far apply equally well to homosexuality and heterosexuality. (The fourth applies mainly to relationships, whereas the others could apply even to "casual sex".) But someone might wonder whether there are any benefits unique to homosexuality (apart from doubling one's wardrobe).
And so, let me suggest a fifth reason: insofar as homosexuality challenges deep-seated and irrational prejudices, embracing your homosexuality can be a powerful act of moral courage. It forces you to think for yourself, rather than simply parrot what others have claimed. Moreover, it invites you to transcend rigid gender expectations.
When I came out to my grandmother, one of her first responses was, "But who's going to cook and clean for you?" Her marriage was premised on such strict gender roles it was difficult for her to conceive of alternatives.
It was then that I realized that the gay community has a great gift to give the straight community: a lesson about egalitarian relationships, where tasks are divided according to ability and interest rather than gender. Insofar as being gay within a heterosexist culture sharpens our focus on such inequalities and pressures us to confront them, it is not merely a challenge but a blessing.