Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men... -- Luke 2:14

Clarke Thomas is a Post-Gazette senior editor (clt77@verizon.net).

Yes, but unfortunately, for many religious people that biblical highlight doesn't extend to an important segment of our fellow human beings -- gays and lesbians. Or their families. Unless, of course, they are willing to deny or to "convert" from their God-given sexual being.

Many such church persons depend upon a few biblical passages, such as Leviticus 18:22, while ignoring later mandates in that book, such as 19:27, which forbids trimming of the beard and hair. Or they cite Paul's admonitions in Romans 1: 26-27 and 1st Corinthians 6:9, the latter a passage which incidentally also condemns adulterers, as does Exodus 20:14. (One gay I recently interviewed wondered why there are so many sermons against homosexuality but not against divorce, specifically banned by Christ [Matthew 5:32], who, notably, never mentioned homosexuality.)

The issue is tearing apart some religious denominations and individual congregations. But, fortunately, there is a supportive movement developing in both Christianity and Judaism. For instance, the GLBT (gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgender) community has established its own congregations. Notable is the Metropolitan Community Church, a denomination launched in 1968, with its Pittsburgh congregation formed in 1975. In the Jewish community, Bet Tikvah serves the same function.

GLBT Catholics who feel left out have formed the Dignity congregation. Likewise, GLBT Episcopalians have the Integrity congregation and for ex-Jehovah's Witnesses there is A Common Bond. Note: In a counter-movement, the Catholic Church has organized the Courage congregation for those renouncing their gayness.

Equally significant, a number of congregations have declared themselves open to GLBT persons who wish to be part of a regular fellowship. They include such Presbyterian churches as East Liberty, Sixth in Squirrel Hill and Community House on the North Side; United Methodist -- First in Shadyside and Calvary on the North Side; Episcopal -- Calvary in Shadyside, Redeemer in Squirrel Hill and St. Brendan's in Franklin Park; Lutheran -- St. Andrew's in Shadyside; Friends (Quaker) -- Pittsburgh Friends Meeting House in Oakland; Unitarian Universalist -- First in Shadyside, East Suburban in Murrysville; United Church of Christ -- Allegheny Open Arms on the North Side; and, finally, the Community of Reconciliation in Oakland, a church affiliated with five mainline denominations.

Something else of importance is happening in our society -- the growing evidence of the family factor within the gay population. In the end, this may have as much influence in shaping public opinion as the battles over gay marriage.

As a heterosexual family man happily married for 54 years, I find the GLBT family situation particularly intriguing. I refer to a U.S. Census statistic that, as of 2000, 34 percent of lesbian couples and 22 percent of gay male couples are raising at least one child under 18 in their home, a significant increase over the 1990 census. Add in gay/straight couples who remain married for the sake of their children, and the figure looms even larger.

The trend has had its impact on programming at Persad Center Inc., Pittsburgh's primary counseling and well-being agency for the GLBT community. "Gays definitely are having families," an official there informed me. Two-thirds of the families headed by gays have children, the result either of adoptions, artificial insemination or as single parents following a divorce. "That wasn't true 20 years ago," the spokesperson told me.

Therefore, Persad has rearranged its programming to cater also to this group, including straight spouses of GLBT persons. For instance, Persad now holds an annual family diversity festival, the next one scheduled for Feb. 11.

Another example of responding to the family phenomenon is the Pittsburgh chapter of PFLAG, (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). This organization, too, includes a support group for straight spouses, persons facing a new environment when their married partners "out" themselves as gay. .....

Not the least of the motivations for their programming is the problem of youth suicide. A report on the subject for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services declared: "A majority of suicide attempts by homosexuals occur during their youth, and gay youth are two or three times more likely to attempt suicide than other young people ... Gay youth face problems in accepting themselves due to the internalization of a negative self image and the lack of accurate information about homosexuality during adolescence..."

Through Persad and PFLAG, help and support is made available for persons wounded by the attitudes of their own straight families or of their churches or of society in general. Certainly, clergy persons and other counselors approached by persons with gay problems should consider them as a referral resource: Persad (412 441-9786); PFLAG (412-833-4556).

The growing gay family phenomenon should prompt churches and church people in this season of goodwill compassionately to re-examine their attitudes toward the GLBT population. For maybe God's hand is at work here -- in the vein of another revered verse in Scripture:

God setteth the solitary in families. -- Psalm 68:6

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Correction/Clarification: (Published Dec. 7, 2006) In this opinion column as originally published Dec. 6, 2006, the name of the Jewish congregation Bet Tikvah was misspelled.