Interceding with Abraham

"The gay life is a sad life." My dear friend George told me this before he died of AIDs. These words came back to me this past Sunday when I found myself stuck in the middle of the Gay Pride Parade in lower Manhattan. This was the mother of all such parades after last week's Supreme Court decision. The gaiety was on show, none of the sadness. By contrast, the mass readings for Monday and Tuesday narrate God's destruction, by fire and brimstone, of Sodom and Gomorrah. There is no doubt about God's wrath and judgment against the sin there. Abraham does not disagree. But he intercedes and pleads, cleverly, insistently, boldly: "If there are 50 good men, will you spare the city?" It is striking that Abraham is not judgmental, righteous or even removed from the folks in Sodom; rather, he pleads and bargains for them. He loves them; cares about them; and wants them to be saved. Clearly, God is directing us to pray for our brothers and sisters who suffer this condition. May we humble ourselves and come to Him together, with all our particular disorders, and seek His Mercy!