When gay singer George Michael recently put off his tour because of a bad case of pneumonia that landed him in the intensive care unit at the hospital and drew family and long-time partner Fadi Fawaz to his sick bed, members of the group, “Christians for a Moral America,” reportedly prayed for Michael to die as God’s judgment on his “satanic lifestyle” (The Huffington Post).

The latest reports suggest that Michael is “steadily recovering,” and contrary to rumors circulated by the above-mentioned group that Michael has AIDS, Michael has “no other underlying condition” besides pneumonia.  Which I guess means God isn’t answering their prayers quite as they would have liked.  Maybe if they put their petitions to a beat, something edgy, with a sprinkle of the “religious” in its lyrics, something like “Faith,” or “Like Jesus To A Child,” they’ll do better at persuading God to strike George dead with AIDS.  Or, if not AIDS, maybe a thunderbolt?

I suspect this is just another example of how we Christians are obsessed with sexual sin over all else. I wonder what would happen if we used our voices just as loudly to decry the evils of war or economic injustice or human degradation, and did so with a view to fanning the flames of God’s new life as it springs forth. New life in war-torn streets and for families who have lost their homes to foreclosure. Rebirth in places where oppression has crushed the human spirit. Recovery for people who find themselves on dead-end roads. Hope and healing for the sick regardless of their circumstances, no matter how they ended up there, because we worship a God who is God not of the dead but of the living (Matthew 22:32).