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oh, and my gay evolutionary theory

i have a theory i’ve been thinking about and wanna share with y’all. it’s, for lack of a better term, a gay evolutionary theory.

so there have been gay people since forever, and societies have dealt with it in different ways. two-spirits, the ways of academics/politicians/leaders, a luxury for the wealthy, a radical lifestyle, something to fear/burn/punish.

the major religions of the world primarily developed at a time when it felt like there was a need to procreate – populate this massive uninhabited world! agrarian lifestyles needed large families to survive and succeed. colonization and empire followed (my babies deserve to rule this planet more than your babies). still with me (on this oversimplified history)?

fast forward a gabillion generations. now our world is overpopulated in a manner of speaking. we may not have too many people for the space of the planet, but the way we live is overtaxing parts of the planet and throwing the world – physically, spiritually and economically – into imbalance.

so now there’s this surge of normalizing same sex relationships – domestic partnerships and gay marriage are part of the mainstream political conversation, and legislation is making it official that gay love can be formally recognized.

part of this is just civil rights – the right of all people to exist as they are and be treated with justice.

but my theory is that part of this shift is an evolutionary call from the planet. in terms of population, same sex relationships don’t result in accidental children; the choice to parent has to be planned, intentional. now, at a moment when population is a controversial and confusing problem, a solution is emerging. the experiment where heterosexual couples are only allowed to have one child has failed, with mass murders and abandonment of female children, and hyper-focus on only children who bear the full pressure of a family to succeed and maintain the familial line. nyet. and we don’t want a world where plagues and massive natural disasters tragically decrease the population. nyet!

so imagine a world in which the 20-40% of people who are born with a preference for people of the same sex are fully legitimized as people with equal rights – to love, to live, to work, to raise children. one result would be that the family planning process would be much more intentional, economically sound – and the children brought into those circumstances are more likely to have two loving, present parents. population growth is balanced, and the quality of life increases.

this isn’t a massive argument for gay marriage, or for marriage at all. i have stated before that i am an advocate of secular domestic partnerships for all, with marriage as a process of religion and faith that domestic partners can choose to also participate in. what the state in my dream world would recognize is that people are choosing to be in a familial relationship with each other in terms of property, children and taxes. what the church would recognize is that people are choosing to be together in the eyes of their god.

what this IS an argument for is our existence. since the beginning of creation, living matter has evolved and specified and grown for the sake of survival. this generation we’re in is on the precipice of either great collapse and failure, or great joy and living beyond survival. if our choices for who we love were not based on the aspect of procreation, but rather on the aspect of true attraction, of life goals, of commitment? imagine the world that could come into existence! in fact, this is the world that is already coming into existence – not on radical edges of society, but in every small town, in every city, in every country around the world.

if we free ourselves from external and internalized homophobia, and look for the miracle, the purpose of our existence, then this theory presents the possibility of a greater call than identity…than even love. perhaps our love is now able to become a normalized aspect of humanity because it is what is most needed by the planet and the species.

so. it’s a theory, and only time will tell. but consider it. consider as you come out of closets, as you realize not all lives are driven by a biological clock that demands that we procreate, as the laws change to recognize love that has been repressed and silenced for too long.

maybe it is a greater calling – maybe it is evolution.