You’re right. Everyone has the right to believe as they choose, as long as they are respectful to everyone. If everyone would respect everyone else’s views, whether or not they agreed with them, the world would be a better place.

No one should be persecuted for any reason. Unfortunately, the people who are bigots and persecute each other are the ones all over the news, rather than those who respectfully disagree.

I disagree with your views about the LGBTQ+ community, which is one of the reasons I left Christianity, and I’ll continue to wear my pride t shirt, but no one should be forced to do something they disagree with, for religious or any other reasons. The football players who took a knee to support BLM, those who do not believe in reciting the pledge of allegiance, and people like you who decline to wear rainbows, as long as you do so respectfully, do have the right to act according to your belief system. I think issues like these are touchy, because of so many who do this kind of thing disrespectfully. Self professed Christians who persecute others for anything that is different from them, unfortunately, give all Christians a bad name. So many have been the objects of their hatred and vitriol, they are defensive, as you are, bracing for a response.

One thing, though. I’m not sure where your comment about the LGBTQ+ communities becoming a cult comes from. Like you, I think they just want to be able to live their lives without persecution. They, like everyone, want to be treated with equality and dignity. If everyone would do that, maybe they wouldn’t feel the need to defend themselves or take exception to those who don’t want to wear their patches. Based on your criteria of suggesting they are a cult, Christians could also be considered as such based on many of their actions.