This Is Not About Marriage An Open Letter on the Erasure of LGBTQ+ People

By Rev. Paula Josephine Sadler

Addressed directly to:

• Oklahoma State Senator David Bullard

• U.S. Representative Brian Babin (TX)

• Mat Staver, Founder and Chair, Liberty Counsel

• Family Research Council

• And the political organizations, donors, and faith-based networks you represent

This letter is also issued publicly to the American people, people of faith, and the global community.

Let me be very clear.

“This is not about marriage. This is not about religion. This is not about protecting children.”

This is about power — and the deliberate attempt to erase LGBTQ+ people from public life.

When lawmakers openly say that the time is “ripe” to overturn nationwide marriage equality, they are not making a narrow legal argument. They are signaling something much bigger and much more dangerous: a coordinated effort to roll back civil rights by targeting the most politically vulnerable communities first.

If same-sex marriage can be overturned, the legal logic used to justify that decision does not stop there. Interracial marriage. Marriage involving people with disabilities. Marriage rights for anyone deemed “undesirable.” We have seen this playbook before in American history.

This is not hysteria. This is not exaggeration.

“This is not a slippery slope argument. It is a documented one.”

When Senator David Bullard and Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel argue publicly for dismantling marriage equality, they are not defending tradition. They are advocating for exclusion under the cover of morality.

And when Representative Brian Babin, speaking at an event hosted by the Family Research Council, thanks God for “sending” political leadership to protect America from “homosexuality” and “perversion,” the intent becomes unmistakable.

This is no longer religious belief. This is the weaponization of faith.

“They want to overturn gay marriage because they want to eradicate LGBTQ+ people. It is not just about marriage. It is about erasure.”

These individuals do not speak for all Christians. They do not speak for all people of faith. And they do not speak for a moral majority.

This is not about values.It is about control.

The same movement now seeks to force detransition laws, extending government control over transgender bodies up to age 26 — denying medically necessary care, criminalizing doctors, and overriding families.

“They do not understand transgender people. No matter what they do, we will exist.”

Here is a truth that lawmakers pushing these bills refuse to accept:

Transgender people have existed across cultures and centuries. They existed before your laws. They will exist after them.

“No matter what laws you pass, transgender people will still transition. With or without the government’s help. Even in the face of criminalization.”

If care is banned, transgender people will still find hormones. If doctors are criminalized, transgender people will still seek treatment. If clothing, hair, names, or pronouns are policed, transgender people will still live as themselves.

“They will grow their hair. They will dress how they want. They will wear women’s clothes. They will be themselves.”

They will work. They will make money. They will build lives. They will have the surgeries they need. And they will fight for their rights.

Because identity is not granted by the state.

What will remain is the harm.

“A generation will remember what is being done right now. They will remember the laws. They will remember the cruelty. And they will remember who caused it.”

They will remember the trauma. They will remember the suicides. They will remember the fear.

And history will be very clear about this moment.

God does not command Christians to attack LGBTQ+ people. God does not command Christians to strip medical care from transgender people. God does not command Christians to criminalize families, doctors, or children. God does not command hatred.

“God does not command Christians to call LGBTQ+ people sinners, abominations, or blasphemers.”

What God does command is unmistakable:

“Love your neighbor as yourself.”—Matthew 22:39

And the Golden Rule — shared across Christianity and nearly every spiritual tradition on Earth — could not be clearer:

Treat others as you would want to be treated.

Calling LGBTQ+ people threats to society is not Christian. It is not moral. It is not righteous.

“It is blasphemy disguised as faith.”

Jesus never commanded his followers to legislate cruelty. He never demanded purity tests. He never told his disciples to deny healthcare, dignity, or family.

He did warn against those who burden others while claiming holiness.

“If your faith requires harming others to survive, then it is not faith — it is fear.”

And if your politics require erasing entire communities to win elections, then the problem is not LGBTQ+ people.

The problem is you.

We are not going back. We are not disappearing. And we are not forgetting.

History is watching. The world is watching. And the harm being done today will be remembered tomorrow.

Rev. Paula Josephine Sadler

Transgender woman • Spiritual leader • Advocate for human dignity

Did Jesus ever teach Christians to eradicate, kill, or persecute groups of people?

No. Absolutely not. Not once. Not ever.

There is nothing in the teachings of Jesus—especially in the New Testament, which Christians claim to follow—that commands, permits, or excuses:

• Killing sinners

• Eradicating groups of people

• Using the state to punish “immorality”

• Stripping healthcare or civil rights

• Targeting LGBTQ+ people (a category that didn’t even exist in biblical language)

In fact, Jesus explicitly taught the opposite.

What did Jesus say about sinners?

Jesus never called for punishment, exile, or death of sinners.

Instead:

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”—Bible, Luke 5:32

Jesus ate with sinners, defended them, touched them, healed them, and protected them from religious mobs.

The most famous example:

“Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone.”—John 8:7

That story is critical.

A crowd—religious leaders—wanted to execute a woman they considered sinful. Jesus stopped the execution.

If Jesus were alive today, he would be standing between lawmakers and the people they want to harm, not cheering them on.

What did Jesus say about evil?

Jesus never taught that humans should eradicate “evil people.”

Instead, he said:

“Love your enemies.”—Matthew 5:44

“Do not resist an evildoer with violence.”—Matthew 5:39

“Put your sword back into its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.”—Matthew 26:52

When one of his own disciples used violence in Jesus’ defense, Jesus rebuked him.

That alone destroys the idea that Jesus supports violence in God’s name.

Did Jesus ever teach the state to enforce morality?

No.

Jesus never advocated religious law enforced by government.

In fact, when asked about political power, he said:

“My kingdom is not of this world.”—John 18:36

Jesus rejected theocratic rule, rejected coercion, and rejected the use of power to force righteousness.

Christian nationalism is anti-Christ in the literal sense: it opposes Christ’s teachings.

What did Jesus say about judgment?

Jesus was blunt:

“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged.”—Matthew 7:1

“You see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own.”—Matthew 7:3

Jesus repeatedly warned that those who believe they are morally superior are the ones most at risk spiritually.

Who did Jesus actually condemn?

This is the part people don’t like.

Jesus reserved his harshest words not for “sinners,” but for:

• Religious leaders

• Moral enforcers

• Hypocrites

• Those who used God to control others

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites.”—Matthew 23 (entire chapter)

He called them:

• Whitewashed tombs

• Blind guides

• Children of violence

• Those who burden others while claiming holiness

That chapter alone reads like an indictment of modern anti-LGBTQ religious politics.

Bottom line

There is NO biblical basis in the teachings of Jesus for:

• Killing LGBTQ+ people

• Erasing them

• Criminalizing their healthcare

• Forcing conformity

• Legislating hatred

• Calling harm “God’s will”

Anyone claiming Jesus supports that is lying about Jesus.

What they are following is:

• Power

• Fear

• Control

• Selective readings of ancient law that Christians themselves claim Jesus fulfilled and superseded

Jesus’ entire message can be summed up in two commands:

Love GodLove your neighbor

And he explicitly said:

“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”—John 13:35

Not if you control. Not if you punish. Not if you erase.

If it harms people, it is not of Christ.

EMPOWERMENT CARD

WHAT JESUS ACTUALLY SAID

& YOUR RELIGIOUS AND CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS

For LGBTQ+ & Transgender People

WHEN SOMEONE CLAIMS GOD WANTS YOU ERADICATED, REMOVED, OR PUNISHED

Here is what Jesus actually said:

“Love your neighbor as yourself.”— Matthew 22:39

“Judge not, so that you may not be judged.”— Matthew 7:1

“Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone.”— John 8:7

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”— Luke 5:32

“Love your enemies.”— Matthew 5:44

“Put your sword back into its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.”— Matthew 26:52

“My kingdom is not of this world.”— John 18:36

Jesus never commanded:

• Killing sinners

• Erasing people

• Criminalizing identity

• Using government to enforce religion

Jesus STOPPED executions.Jesus DEFENDED the targeted.Jesus CONDEMNED religious bullies.

WHEN SOMEONE CALLS YOU A “SIN” OR “ABOMINATION”

You may calmly say:

“Jesus never told his followers to harm or erase people.He told them to love, not judge.”

“If your faith requires hurting me, it is not following Jesus.”

“Jesus stood between mobs and the people they wanted to punish.”

“There is no place in the teachings of Jesus for violence against LGBTQ+ people.”

YOUR RELIGIOUS RIGHTS

UNDER UNIVERSAL RAINBOW FAITH (URF)

Universal Rainbow Faith is a legally recognized religious organization.

Under URF:

• Your gender identity is sacred

• Your sexual orientation is sacred

• Your body autonomy is a religious right

• Gender-affirming care is sacred and protected

• Names, pronouns, dress, and expression are religious expression

• Transition is recognized as a spiritual journey

• No one has religious authority to shame or erase you

URF teaches:

“Divine creation includes gender diversity.”“Transgender and non-binary people are not errors — they are sacred expressions of life.”

Attempts to deny your identity, healthcare, or dignity violate your religious freedom.

YOUR RIGHTS UNDER THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION

🇺🇸 First Amendment

• Freedom of religion and freedom from religion

• No one can impose Christianity on you

🇺🇸 Fourteenth Amendment

• Equal protection under the law

• No group may be targeted for erasure

🇺🇸 Freedom of Expression

• You have the right to live, dress, speak, and identify as yourself

🇺🇸 Separation of Church and State

• The United States is not a Christian nation

• The government cannot enforce religious doctrine

WHAT THE FOUNDING FATHERS DID NOT SAY

They never said:

• Kill LGBTQ+ people

• Eradicate transgender people

• Harm immigrants

• Punish non-Christians

• Enforce Christianity

Many fled religious persecution themselves — which is why protections exist.

IF YOU ARE CONFRONTED IN PUBLIC OR PRIVATE

You may say:

“I am protected by the U.S. Constitution.”

“I am protected by my religious faith.”

“Your religion does not give you authority over my body or identity.”

“Jesus did not teach violence. Please leave me alone.”

If harassment continues:Walk away. Document. Seek help.Threats or violence are crimes.

FINAL TRUTH

You are not a mistake. You are not an abomination. You are not outside of God. You are not outside the law.

You are protected.You are sacred. You belong.