Making Gay Okay: How Rationalizing Homosexual Behavior Is Changing Everything

by Robert Reilly - published by Ignatius Press, 2014

A Book Review by Father John McCloskey

Robert Reilly is a polymath — I will let you look up his astonishing talents and experiences in many diverse fields of life.

His new book from Ignatius Press, Making Gay Okay: How Rationalizing Homosexual Behavior Is Changing Everything, in my opinion, is simply the best one written up to now on this extremely contentious and crucial topic of our time. In it, Reilly explains systematically the ongoing vicious attack on the most important institution of any country in any era: the marriage of a man and a woman that is open to life through conjugal relations. Our survival as a nation depends upon the health of this institution.

One reason I consider this to be the best book on the subject is that it does not mention religion. This might sound like a strange commendation from a Catholic priest, but Reilly appeals to logic so it can be accessible to all.

Listen to the author in his chapter on "Sodomy and Science," for example, where he writes:

"There are two fundamental conceptions of science — one that is scientific, and one that is not. In the first, science properly deals with reality, mostly in its physical manifestations. It tries to understand things as they are — how they work and in terms of efficient causes. Science is not so much the mastery of nature as an alliance with it. To succeed, it must work with nature, not against it. The other notion of science — the unscientific one — is an endeavor not so much to understand what exists and how to bring it to fruition, but to gain power over it and fundamentally transform it. Man becomes the legitimate master through the exercise of his will by the exercise of his power over the instrument of science."

Chilling, is it not?

An example of this "science as power" mentality can be seen in this quote from President Clinton, of unhappy memory, who said (and I quote), "I want unlimited scientific discovery and I want unlimited applications, we want to live forever and we are getting there."

What makes this book superior to many other fine books on this crucial subject for the survival of humanity is its thoroughness in showing how the revolution happened historically and how it can be combated rationally in argument and discussion in society, the public square, and the courts. In other words, Reilly demonstrates how to discuss this topic reasonably, focusing on fact and not feelings about human sexuality, its meaning, and its truth.

A list of the chapters helps readers understand the importance of this book and its depth. Part one, "The Rationalization and How It Works," includes: "The Culture War," "Order in the Universe: Aristotle's Laws of Nature," "Rousseau's Inversion of Aristotle," "The Argument From Justice," "The Lesson From Biology" and "Inventing Morality." Part two, "Marching Through the Institutions," includes: "Sodomy and Science," "Same-Sex Parenting," "Sodomy and Education," "Sodomy and the Boy Scouts," "Sodomy and the Military" and "Sodomy and U.S. Foreign Policy." There is also an "Appendix on Disease and Mortality."

This book is a valuable tool. Master the arguments and facts in this crucial book, and you may actually change some minds in friendly conversation — and thereby play a role in saving our country from disappearing.

First appeared on National Catholic Register in April, 2014.