Since the 16th century, human history has provided us re-enactments of the legend of Faust. This is a tragic production because the protagonist through his ambition is led to sell his soul to Mephistopheles.
Over the centuries, association with the word Faust or the adjective Faustian describes an unsavory and self-destructive arrangement.
California Republican state Sen. Roy Ashburn is the latest to fall victim to this dreadful and cyclic phenomenon.
It is hard to imagine the pain that leads one to live the life, until last week, Ashburn had managed to keep out of the public domain. All things being equal, his private life is nobody's business.
But things are not equal and Ashburn's public acknowledgment this week that he is gay gives him the tragic distinction of being added to the cocktail party punch line of public officials guilty of the vilest hypocrisy.
This movie is hardly new. We have repeatedly witnessed others, such as former Idaho Republican Sen. Larry Craig, former Florida Republican Rep. Mark Foley, along with conservative evangelical pastor Ted Haggard, cruelly using their influence by day to dehumanize the same folk that they become by night.
In doing so, they wrap themselves in a cocoon of self-hatred, eagerly feeding on the nutrients of ambition as a way to not confront their own reality.
Ashburn's DUI arrest after leaving a gay nightclub left him with little alternative but to address the rumors that had recently been circulating. Ashburn, who has consistently voted against gay rights measures during his 14 years in statewide office, told KERN radio in Bakersfield, the area he represents, that he is indeed gay.
"The best way to handle that is to be truthful and to say to my constituents and all who care that I am gay," he said. "But I don't think it's something that has affected, nor will it affect, how I do my job."
What Ashburn expects from his constituents is more than he was willing to grant his gay and lesbian brothers and sisters.
The dishonesty first to himself and then to his constituents was one of the great Faustian bargains because the price of Ashburn's ambition was to bury who he was at his core hoping that it would never rise to the surface. But part of that bargain was also to inflict his self-induced pain on others.
In addition to his hosting a rally in 2005 in favor of "traditional marriage," Ashburn has voted against a number of gay rights measures, including efforts to expand anti-discrimination laws and recognize out-of-state gay marriages.
Last year, he opposed a bill to establish a day of recognition to honor slain gay rights activist Harvey Milk.
Ashburn responded on the radio show to the apparent hypocrisy of his anti-gay votes: "My votes reflect the wishes of the people in my district. I have always felt that my faith and allegiance was to the people there, in the district, my constituents. And so as each of these individual measures came before the Legislature I cast 'no' votes, usually 'no' votes, because the measures were "... almost always acknowledging rights or assigning identification to homosexual persons."
Well that severely ratchets down the expectation that one should have of their elected officials. What if Ashburn's constituents supported legalizing heroin use by minors? How would Ashburn vote then?
I can think of no greater testimony for mediocrity and ambition than to simply cast votes that reflect the wishes of the people in one's district. Where do leadership and difficult votes fall into the equation?
Doesn't Ashburn's statement suggest an arthritic monkey, if properly trained, could perform the same duties?
Ashburn, through his votes, publicly maintained his conservative family values persona. At the same time, he would engage in reckless behavior until his deception had been revealed and the truth was no longer optional.
Because of term limits, Ashburn leaves office at the end of the year. Time will tell if he will choose the path of redemption or stays on the one that has him headed toward perdition.
It is not simply about Ashburn or others like him. Their double lives have led to votes against AIDS research, same-gender marriage and gay adoption, causing harm to countless numbers.
Ultimately, it has been a losing battle against oneself. Something they, like Faust, never figured out until it was too late.
Byron Williams is an Oakland pastor and syndicated columnist and blog-talk radio host. He is the author of "Strip Mall Patriotism: Moral Reflections of the Iraq War." E-mail him byron@byronspeaks.com or visit his Web site: byronspeaks.com
Follow Byron Williams on Twitter: www.twitter.com/byronspeaks
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