So I told you about Christians Gone Bad. Well, our pastor had a bit to say about Christianity and homosexuality last Sunday. That I can recall, it’s the first time he’s done so in the nearly four years we’ve attended Good Shepherd. I do believe it’s one of my favorite messages ever, embodying what I love most about our church—a genuine, sincere, and practiced emphasis on love and service, at the expense of divisive (and frankly, ultimately irrelevant) issues.
I have no moral and/or religious dilemma about homosexuality. I am at peace with my belief that God does not look unfavorably upon gay people for their gayness, and have been for decades. I simply can’t resolve such a characteristic with who I know Jesus to be.
David hit that in terms of highlighting the words and deeds of Jesus, but he went further. Know how many times Jesus denounced those outside the church? Zero. Know how many times the Bible directs Christians to denounce those outside the church? Zero. Is homosexuality sinful? Not our call, boys and girls. But, if we are conflicted about it, we should “err” on the side of inclusion and love.
(I’ll add this myself: know how many times Jesus mentioned homosexuality? Zero.)
Christians in general have earned a widespread perception (to the tune of 91%) that we are anti-gay. We can talk about extremists’ and/or vocal minorities’ roles in generating that, and maybe even get a modicum of traction with such a claim.
However, the bottom line is that if we did a better job emulating Christ, that never would have happened.
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So true, Bo. Unfortunately, too many people who are quick to tell everyone that they are christians are also quick to judge. Anyone who’s read the Bible knows WE are not to judge. I believe that is at the cusp of the 91% you mention, and that’s a shame.
Here’s my take…
I may or may not believe that homosexuality is a sin. Even if I do though, all sins are equal before the eyes of God. One’s homosexuality is no greater of a sin than any of my sins. It’s that simple.
I don’t agree with the other comment that we aren’t to judge though. I think it is our right to condemn sins. That doesn’t mean that we are judging a person’s salvation and we should not as THAT is not our call. But we can call sin what it is.
But what do I know…I’m just a part of a fallen creation.
You would have thought that “judge not, lest ye be judged” and “let he who is without sin cast the first stone” would have covered it for most, but those with an extremist viewpoint tend to cherry-pick their Scriptures, anyway. The one thing to remember is we’re all God’s children, and Christ gave us great instructions and examples of how we’re to treat His children.
Here’s what I know…there has not been a single person brought to salvation by Fred Phelps’ group screaming “God hates fags!” Not one. I’d bet good money on it.
Thanks, all. It’s a sticky topic, and I applaud my pastor for doing such a wonderful job with it.
Jan, Brian: Amazing how much we can learn from just what Jesus said (and didn’t say), isn’t it? The bit about Jesus never condemning anyone outside the church is highly illustrative, I think. Jesus got onto folks from time to time, but it was always folks in the church screwing up.
Scott, you got it. I don’t believe it is sin, but if someone does, then well, it’s just another one. As David said in the sermon, anyone’s welcome to come to his office and he’ll point out a few of their sins for them. 🙂
Marianne, point definitely taken. And as Phelps obviously craves the perceived legitimacy conveyed by the word “church,” thank you for not using it.
Another fine blog entry, Bo. As you know (I think), I attend the Episcopal Church. And I’m sure you know the dissention that body has experienced over the last few years following the election of Bishop Robinson in NH.
I’ve gone from one end of the spectrum to the other over the years, beginning way back when I was a teen and this was the “hot” topic in the church I attended at that time.
I no longer even think about the homosexuality issue really. Sin? Maybe. But as Scott says in his comment, all sin is equal in God’s eyes. I sin. You sin. We all sin and fall short of the glory of God. But as Paul told the Romans: “…all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Thank God for that.
Did your pastor address the marriage/civil union issue? Probably not in this sermon. One’s homosexuality doesn’t matter to me, but I have struggled with the marriage controversy. I think I have come to a personal conviction on that too, again having been all over the map on it previously. I support the Boortz doctrine, which puts me at odds with alot of folks, particularly those I work with (when the topic has come up). Oh well, they’ll get over it. 🙂
Thanks for your kind words, Terri. It was mostly my pastor, and I’m certain he would say it was mostly God.
You are correct that he didn’t discuss gay marriage in this sermon. I know that Neal Boortz refuses to condemn gay marriage, though I don’t know any more about his position than that.
The simple version of my position is that I don’t believe government should have anything to do with marriage, but as long as there are government-generated advantages to it, it should extend to gay couples as well. Like you, I find this puts me at odds with many reasonable people.
I started to mention something in this post that missed the cut because I thought it worked better without it, but I’ll bring it up now (and may still post about it sometime later). My bud Charles opined over a beer a month or so ago that our larger problem is that we’re obsessed with sexuality in general. He and I didn’t really unpack it right then, but I’ve been chewing on it, and I think there’s a lot of merit to such a claim.
In my view, societally we’ve got to get past a point where we think a person’s sexuality defines him/her, or is even one of the most interesting things about him/her. For example, I strongly question whether, absent the attacks and prejudices, there’d be any such thing as a significant gay “movement.” I think such a thing is largely reactive.
I’d guess I know, and have known, a reasonable cross-section of gay people, and to the extent that any of them agitate to do anything, it’s to live their lives in peace. I don’t think they’re any more interested in identifying as gay, per se, than you and I are in identifying as straight. Once we (collectively) get over “oh yeah, the gay guy” or “the lesbian I work with”…you know?
Nice post, I myself don’t partake of the church thing. Have no problem with the philosophy of the J-man, in fact I fully support it. Sounds like you have indeed found a gem in the rough with your church tho Bo 🙂 Congrats!
Thanks for your kind words, Buzzregog. It’s a marvelous church indeed. Delighted to be there. 🙂
Agreed 100%. Jesus befriended everyone, regardless of what they said or did. He calls upon us to do the same. I can’t stand judgmental Christians. As a Christian, I believe we do the embracing, and let the Holy God do the judging.
Naomi, that sounds exactly right. Our PR problem is mostly self-inflicted, but we can repair it as well. I’m doing what I can to pull it that way. It’s a big ship to steer, you know.
And great to see you here! Everyone, this is immensely talented and soon to be world-famous songwriter, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist Naomi Carmack. Say hello.