A most basic command of Holy Scripture is that we are called
to love our neighbor. The church is the
people of God who exist, in part, to be a hospital for sinners. There are certain subjects and issues that sometimes
capture the church’s attention and may cause believers to lose sight of grace,
love, and basic biblical commands. There
is a particular subject that continually gets identified (in my church circles)
as an “issue.” It is the “issue” of
homosexuality.
First of all, I have “issues” with
this being labeled as an “issue.” We are
talking about people. As long as we
continue to frame our discussions in this realm of an issue, we are going to
inevitably end up taking at least some of the human element out of the
conversation. It is much easier to
lambast an issue than it is a person. It must be constantly and deliberately
borne in mind that gay individuals are people who have been created in the
image and likeness of God. They are not
bowling balls. They aren’t Buicks. They are people. And based on that fact alone, they ought to
be treated with all the respect due to any person.
Second, using the term
“homosexuality” betrays the reality that we have not done our due diligence in
listening well to gay persons. In my
humble experience, homosexuality is a word that immediately puts up unnecessary
roadblocks with LGBT folks. Continually
using the term homosexuality typically communicates that certain individuals
are in the category of a mental disease that needs to be cured. What is more, when certain church folks start
tossing around the term, not far behind is the handful of biblical references
that are supposed to make gay persons feel guilty enough to either: become heterosexual on the spot; or, live an
eternally celibate existence without ever talking about their dirty little
secret again. Even if all this is
communicated with an altruistic sense of love by the church person (which seems
pretty rare), it isn’t likely that anything good is going to come of the
conversation.
Here is my most basic concern: the church ought to be a safe place. Whatever your understanding is concerning gay
persons, I would hope beyond hope that you can sign-off on the sheer necessity
of the church being the one place on planet earth (or in God’s kingdom!) that
people who are wrestling with Scripture when it comes to sexuality and gender
can come with their questions and find help and resolution with what is going
on deep in their souls.
Whenever we church leaders make our
pious pronouncements and babble on about how we are upholding the authority of
Holy Scripture, it sounds to me like we are saying things that help make us feel better about ourselves instead
of saying something that will help the other
through their time of need.
Here is a ridiculously simple
observation: gay people are not going to
magically disappear. Yet, it seems like
there are some churches that want to blink and just expect that there will be
no more gays around. Here is another
simple observation: gay individuals have
eternal souls just like anyone else, and they are looking for redemption and
hope just like anyone else. The question
of the hour, then, is: Will the church show pastoral care and
sensitivity for all people, or will the church be a country club with a
chaplain caring only for “acceptable” members?
We are all sinners in need of God’s
grace in Christ; we all belong to the same human family. It is high time we begin focusing on our
commonality so that we might shepherd one another toward Jesus, the Great
Shepherd. He is our Savior. Let us come to him together.
Thanks for your thoughts here Tim. Your heart to share the gospel, and reflect the grace and love of Christ that we have been so richly blessed with is evident. I hope to share this same pastoral sensitivity and honest in my work also.
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