Mohale talks gender and religion

Reality TV star speaks about struggles of being gay, Christianity and ‘coming out’ to parents

MOHALE Motaung-Mhlongo has weighed in on the debate around homosexuality and Christianity.

The reality TV star who is married to Somizi Mhlongo-Motaung slammed hypocrites and called for serious conversations to be had in the church.

The Somizi and Mohale: The Union star recently chatted with gospel singer NJ Kunene about sexuality and faith on his Instagram Live series he created, Let’s Talk with Mohale.

Kunene said he did not want to hide his sexuality as a church leader because he believed it would affect his faith.

“You can be gay and be Christian,” said the singer.

Mhlongo-Motaung said he went to a Christian school and was a church leader, but at first found it “very difficult” to come to terms with his sexuality.

“We were being told, not by God or the Bible, but by people who were teaching that being gay is not acceptable and wrong.

“I started accepting all those words and living them in my life, saying I can’t be gay, being gay is a sin. Until I realised these people have been taking what the Bible is saying out of context,” he said

He said realising people had used the Bible “out of context” allowed him to get rid of the feelings that he was unclean or unworthy to go to church.

“For me, God teaches us to love. “God teaches us not to judge people. Their interpretation of what is said in the Bible, they have taken it upon themselves to decide God hates people who are homosexuals.

“There is nowhere God says that in the Bible. Because of what they have read in the Bible, they have taken it out of context to say they are not going to associate themselves with someone who is gay, and you that cannot be gay and Christian.”

Motaung-Mhlongo called out those who used scripture to claim homosexuality was a sin, saying they needed to use the same energy speaking about other “sins” in the Bible.

He specifically cited a scripture from the book of Leviticus which he said people used against gay people.

“If we are going to be vocal and talk about homosexuality being a sin, then we must be vocal about everything else considered a sin.”

He said attraction to the same gender needed to be normalised and recounted his own experience coming out to his parents.

“My dad was the welcoming one, the one who said it was OK. My mom had challenges accepting (it).

“I made her understand who

I am and nothing has changed about me. I am still the very same person she knows, it’s just that I had differences,” he explained, adding that she now accepts him.