Working out Truth and Love in the Context of the Church, Homosexuals, and Marriage (1st post)

Introduction

Welcome to the beginning of a blog. I’ve wanted to start a blog for some time now, for the purpose of discussing various issues related to Christianity (not only the subject of this first series of posts). However, the catalyst for creating the blog was an article written by Candace Chellew-Hodge for the website Religion Dispatches (RD). I had been thinking about the subject for a while and decided it was time to write down my thoughts, which were far too long to post as a comment on RD; hence, I am starting this blog. If you’re interested, please read her article first, and her website if you desire a more complete perspective, and then my response, which I will break up into a series of posts. In the comment thread, a couple people expressed interest in engaging rationally and building bridges to Christians on the other side of this issue. This is music to my ears, and I would love to start the bridge from the other side! I would be glad to read and carefully consider reasoned arguments and constructive critiques in order to sharpen my understanding. However, I give fair warning: I am only interested in rational dialogue and will delete any comments that are vitriolic or disrespectful of Candace or others.

Part I: Common Ground

Dear Candace (and fellow readers of Religion Dispatches),

I have just read your recent article on Religion Dispatches entitled “Bishop John Selby Spong Declares Victory: Is it Premature?”, along with the comment thread of that article and, since I was interested in your position, several sections of your website. I admire how patiently you respond to those who throw at you venemous words drained of all reason. Clearly, you are familiar with the love of Christ, and I hope to emulate you here in my own response, despite where we may disagree. As I write, I have Proverbs 3:3 before me at the top of my computer screen, “Don't let love and truth ever leave you. Tie them around your neck. Write them on the tablet of your heart.” Love and truth are difficult to balance, and I ask the Holy Spirit for the wisdom and power to do so.

But before I explain why I disagree with your and Spong’s line of reasoning, let me emphasize the many areas in which you and I do see eye to eye, as far as I can tell from your RD article and website.

- In the article, you note the paramount emphasis of Christianity on compassion and concern for neighbor. I agree.

- On your website, I get the sense (I don’t have actual quotes) that you affirm that sex is designated by God as holy and is only meant to be pursued within a covenant relationship exclusively between two people. I agree.

- You assert that the Bible does not explicitly condemn homosexual acts within a covenant relationship (and that it does not even mention committed homosexual relationships). You charge that opponents of homosexuality incorrectly interpret the Bible when they cite the six or seven “clobber passages” as broadly condemning homosexual acts in general; you maintain that these passages actually condemn (homo)sexual acts “that use or abuse or break covenant with another”. I agree with you on all of this, and I’m planning to write another post later explaining to the evangelical community why I, as an evangelical, believe this.

- With respect to the law, you argue that gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered individuals are entitled to the same rights as heterosexuals, including the right to form state-recognized relationships, the right to make important financial and medical decisions for their partners, the right to pay the same taxes as heterosexuals, the right to hold a job without discrimination, etc. Regardless of whether gay marriage is honored by God or not, I agree with you that the state should treat homosexual relationships exactly the same as heterosexual relationships. (I may hold one possible exception to this view when the relationship involves children, but I’m not completely sure about it yet. I will also address this issue in that future post, so I won’t discuss it here).

- Bishop Spong makes the point (and you second him) that things like truth, morality, and fundamental rights should not, and really cannot, be determined by a majority vote. God offers the only true standard, and he is right even if the entirety of humanity is on the other side. I fully agree with you.

- You joyfully proclaim that God reaches out with his grace to everyone, regardless of gender or sexual orientation! No one’s sexual orientation can preclude them from entering the kingdom of God, and no one should be denied full participation in the church because of the same. I could not agree with you more!

So then, if I agree with you on this much, what could we have left to disagree on? The first point is an issue of tactics: I take issue with a couple of the associations and implications you make in your article (though, possibly, you are merely reporting what Spong says and not making such claims yourself. If so, my disagreement is with Spong and not you, but this seems like an appropriate forum to address the issues anyway). But more substantially, I respectfully dissent from the opinion that the church should expand and alter its view of marriage to encompass same-sex marriage.

Continued in next post