Daring

Sermon podcast from this past Sunday at St. Paul's UCC in Downers Grove, IL. Matthew 10:24-39. Blessings on Pride Sunday

"Daring" podcast

Powers

Today's sermon at St. Paul's UCC in Downers Grove celebrates equality -- with encouragement for moving ahead together. 
"Powers" podcast

Removing the wedge

I'm celebrating with Justin Lee of the Gay Christian Network and the Synchroblog for Sanity today.  Bloggers from all over the world are writing about bringing understanding, compassion, and sanity to the ongoing conversation about Christianity and LGBT.

I serve at the pastor of an Open and Affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ. In public and in practice, we say that we celebrate every person as a child of God created in God’s image. And we welcome people of every age, economic status, ethnic origin, gender, marital status, mental and physical ability, political affiliation, and sexual orientation. 

And I recognize that not every person in the pews and not every person in all of Christ’s church agree. Faithful and intelligent Bible scholars don’t always agree on things. They don’t agree on Biblical interpretation. Concerning wedge issues like homosexuality, folks share passionate rhetoric and experiences on both sides. It seems that it is not only difficult, but also seemingly impossible to have a conversation about LGBT inclusion without emotions flaring. Among Christians there are vastly different opinions about the subject. No matter what the side, those speaking are sure that their interpretation is the correct one.

And this post isn’t going to settle any debate.

Instead, I’d like to suggest that although the church is very skilled in the emotional debates and the all-too-often caustic language relating to LGBT folk, the church has also marginalized and missed out on the opportunity to minister to some wonderful people.

Things must change. The wedge that drives people to hateful and caustic words and actions has to be removed. Instead, the church needs to reach out and invite LGBT folks to participate fully in congregational life. The church needs to remember that the rule of love trumps any conviction on any issue relating to anything LGBT. The church needs to be ready to welcome all of God’s people exactly as they are- with no agenda other than welcome, inclusion, and love.

Let’s all give each other a break and be God’s loving presence to all people. I think that’s what all faith communities should be.

An Article About That Subject

Interlinc's come out with their most recent edition of their music magazine (YLO 74: The Naked Truth) and its full of articles about sex. Of course, it's full of record reviews and song Bible studies and devotions, too. I've got a few things published in this edition. The one I'm most stoked about, however, is the article I thought might not make it through the 'vetting process.'
Interlinc's a great youth ministry organization -- and they're also one that leans more to the conservative side. So publishing this article (granted, alonside several articles that present the issue from a much more conservative viewpoint) is a big thing. It definitely acknowledges the need for conversation on the wedge issue of homosexuality.

From the Interlinc blog:

You probably won’t agree with all or even many of these viewpoints or opinions… but that’s okay, we don’t either. But we simply thought that as you help your kids deal with a sexual culture spiraling out of control, having a big list of resources (from ministries, news, research and others) would be a good idea. We want you to be aware and we want you to be prepared (as much as we could find).

Here's the article I wrote -- it's on page 18:

An Article About That Subject

By Kirk Moore

Union Congregational Church

Somonauk, Illinois

kirk@revkirk.com

Faithful and intelligent Bible scholars don’t always agree on Biblical interpretation. Concerning wedge issues like homosexuality, folks share passionate rhetoric and experiences on both sides. It seems that it is not only difficult, but also seemingly impossible to have a conversation about homosexuality without emotions flaring. Among Christians there are vastly different opinions about the subject. No matter what the side, those speaking are sure that their interpretation is the correct one.

And this article and this magazine aren’t going to settle any debate on the issue.

Instead, I’d like to suggest that although the church is very skilled in the emotional debates and the all-too-often caustic language about homosexuality, we have also marginalized and missed out on the opportunity to minister to some wonderful people.

We need to change. We need to reach out and invite young people who identify themselves as homosexual into our youth groups. We need to remember that the rule of love trumps any conviction on the issue of homosexuality. We need to remember that God is the one who changes hearts and minds. We need to remember that God’s time in changing hearts and minds is rarely synced with ours. And we need to be ready to welcome those youth into our youth groups exactly as they are.

Some I’ve talked to worry that welcoming – with no agenda other than love – homosexual youth is impossible with existing church policies. We need to change that, or at least start talking with church leaders about the policies.

Others I’ve talked to are worried that welcoming – with no agenda other than love – those youth opens the door to, among other things, same-sex couples in youth group. My usual response to fears like this one is, “Open, frank, and age-appropriate talk about sexual issues is something I think belongs in youth ministry, but I don’t want any students who are in relationships with each other to be displaying their romance to the rest of the group. Girls are pink; boys are blue. No purple, okay? And for that matter let’s not have any hot pink or dark blue, either.”

To welcome with love as the only agenda will be easier for some than others. The desire to bring in an agenda on any side of the issue will be strong. Please remember, however, that in youth ministry we aren’t ministering to issues or settling debates. We are sharing God’s love with God’s precious children. No matter whom we have in youth group, we must remember to treat God’s children with the love that we experience in Jesus.

I think that’s the way we should minister to all youth.

Incurring the wrath of everyone

I read Dr. Albert Mohler's blog entry "Is your Baby Gay?" yesterday. I also read a related entry he posted called "Recovering Civility . . . and Refusing to Deny the Obvious." In both entries, I see Dr. Mohler trying to address the unwarranted hate that has been targeted at homosexual groups by conservative Christian groups. And as a result of Dr. Mohler opening up a can of . . . bumblebees, (Thanks, Penn and Teller) he's the one on everyone's list.

In the Baby article, he says two particular things that have riled up people on both sides of the issue of sexual orientation.

"There is, as of now, no incontrovertible or widely accepted proof that any biological basis for sexual orientation exists. Nevertheless, the direction of the research points in this direction. Research into the sexual orientation of sheep and other animals, as well as human studies, points to some level of biological causation for sexual orientation in at least some individuals."

and

"The biblical condemnation of all homosexual behaviors would not be compromised or mitigated in the least by such a discovery. The discovery of a biological factor would not change the Bible's moral verdict on homosexual behavior."

and

"If a biological basis is found, and if a prenatal test is then developed, and if a successful treatment to reverse the sexual orientation to heterosexual is ever developed, we would support its use as we should unapologetically support the use of any appropriate means to avoid sexual temptation and the inevitable effects of sin."

To Dr. Mohler's credit, he's said that he "wrote the article intending to start a conversation,"

I think the conversation is an excellent step that moves the issue from one where hate and attacks abound to one where healthy conversation brings us closer to understanding each other.

Here are my two cents:

• I am convinced that sexual orientation is genetic.
• God does not make mistakes
• I'm appalled by the idea that Dr. Mohler would support the use of "sexual orientation reversal" in the womb if such a treatment was ever developed.
• I am convinced that the where the Bible is interpreted to talk about homosexuality, it has everything to do with pagan religious practices and nothing to do with sexual orientation.

Volumes of medical and biblical research say the same.

But lets please keep a civil and respectful conversation going --