Challenges for the Church #3. Homosexuality

The week before Christmas I purchased Two Views On Homosexuality, The Bible And The Church (Zondervan, 2016), a book that brings together four authors who discuss the place of homosexuality in the church. The editor, Preston Sprinkle, notes that

This book is the first of its kind to be published by an evangelical Christian publisher. I don’t think a book like this would have been possible ten or even five years ago. Until recently, there was only one view of homosexuality within evangelicalism: the so-called non-affirming view. Conservatives may protest or simply disagree, but the fact is that there are a growing number of Bible-believing, gospel-preaching, card-carrying evangelicals who are either exploring the affirming view or who have embraced it and aren’t looking back… No longer is this a Christian versus non-Christian debate. The debate about homosexuality, the Bible, and the church is currently an inner-Christian discussion, even if some may think there is only one true Christian view. Christians can no longer hide behind what the Bible says; we now must do the hard work of figuring out what the Bible means.

It’s not simply that a “progressive” view has emerged within the Evangelical world. There have also been significant changes among “conservatives”. Until very recently the dominant approach within both society and church was that homosexual intercourse was abhorrent and that homosexual attraction was something chosen/cultivated by a person of morally degraded character. Gay, lesbian and bisexual people were regarded with suspicion, called to repent of their sin and to seek help to end their homoerotic feelings.

Few conservative leaders speak this way anymore. The deviancy model has been replaced with a brokenness approach, in which homosexual attraction is not the result of disordered character but a disordered creation. It is recognised that, for most people, sexual orientation is something that is discovered rather than chosen, and that it is fixed. Orientation is no longer a cause of blame, but a condition with which people live. Nonetheless for those who are LGB it remains a disordered condition that falls short of God’s intention for human sexuality. They should therefore seek to live a celibate life. The church, for its part, should stop shaming those with LGB orientation and welcome them as members of the people of God.

For a small but increasing number within Evangelicalism the brokenness model has proven inadequate. They challenge the assertion that Genesis roots sexuality in the complementarity of male and female, and point to the contrast between homosexual practice in the eras of the Bible and homosexual partnerships today to argue that to faithfully live the values of the biblical story means affirming committed LGB partnerships in the same way that we affirm those of heterosexual couples.

It seems the debate has progressed more quickly in US and European evangelical circles than it has in Australia, but I think there are signs the Australian churches are rapidly approaching some kind of tipping point on the issue. Change is often described using the diagram below. On any given issue that gains traction in society there are innovators and early adopters who start articulating an alternative approach. They are initially dismissed, but the point is reached in which the new approach starts to gain traction and people start to come on board until a new consensus is formed. Finally there are a group of people who never embrace the new consensus, but remain committed to the older approach. [**Added 4/1/17 There is of course nothing inevitable about this process. On any given issue it may be that the arguments of innovators and early adopters are not taken up, that the early majority turns out to be an early minority, or that a “late majority” never develops.**]

I suspect we are seeing the signs of a shift from the innovator and early adopter phase to the early majority phase. First, a small but growing number of prominent evangelicals are voicing support for the full inclusion of same-sex couples in the church. These include Tony Campolo, social activist Steve Chalke, ethicist David Gushee, philosopher Nicholas Woltersdorff, the former long-time editor-in-chief of Christianity Today David Neff, bible scholar James Brownson, and prominent evangelical commentator Jen Hatmaker. These voices are significant for they belong to leaders who have been widely respected within the mainstream of Evangelicalism.

Second, as LGB couples are now welcomed and accepted in our society, more and more Christians have family and friends who openly identify as LGB. Straight Christians interact with LGB couples who are generous, loving, kind and faithful and find it difficult to believe that this represents disorder. They face a clash between their experience of life and what they are taught is biblical truth. This is particularly the case for the younger generations. I have met many young adults who live with a sense of disillusionment and disappointment with the church’s attitude towards their LGB friends that is leading many of them to walk away from the church.

Within the church the shift from innovator/early adopter to early majority is usually accompanied by fierce debate. I like fierce debate, because it indicates that we care about the issue, but unfortunately we often allow care for the issue to negate our care for one another. Our debates become bruising, angry and graceless. Those who oppose the new approaches begin by declaring that the Bible is clear, that this is a matter of simple biblical authority, and that should we capitulate the very future of Christianity is jeopardized. On the other hand, those advocating change have a tendency to denounce those who oppose them as Pharisees whose legalism renders them unable to love. We fight as if it is a fight to the death but a decade later the church is still here, the sky hasn’t fallen in, the warring sides have made peace with one another, and we learn to respectfully disagree.

I hope and pray that this time we might do it differently than we have in the past. First, we should all be able to agree that the “deviance” model that has historically governed Christian and societal responses to LGB oriented people was dishonouring to God and damaging to LGB people. In the name of Christ we treated LGB oriented people with disdain, rejected them, and left them dripping in a shame that fuelled self-hatred and high rates of suicide, drove them out of the church or forced them into fearful hiding, and created an environment in which violence against LGB people was justified. This is something for which we need to unreservedly apologise and repent.

Second, we need to create forums in which we can consider the issue. We need to take time to hear the arguments put by scholars on all sides of the debate, to listen with empathy to the experiences of LGB oriented Christians, and to consider what God is calling us to.

Third, as we explore this issue we should love one another. Loving one another means treating those who disagree with us in the way we would like to be treated by them. How do I want be treated by others? Instead of casting aspersions upon my commitment to God, to Scripture and to love, I want them to listen to me, to understand what I am saying and why, to listen not only to my arguments but to my feelings and concerns. I want them to consider that they may be wrong, to carefully weigh my arguments in light of Scripture. If this is how I want others to treat me I must be willing to do the same with them.

Fourth, we need to remember that there are people in our churches, our families, and our networks who are LGB oriented. Some of them will be out, others will not. How we speak and what we say can either wound them or bring hope and grace. Let us make sure it is the latter.

I don’t know whether we’ll reach tipping point this year or not, but it is surely coming. Maybe, just maybe, we can negotiate the difficult discussions ahead with honour and grace.

Scott,

A few other comments on this and it recognises some of the issues that are involved.
We need to be clear on what we say and believe
Since the Government introduced the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act in 2013, we have been listening to each other in order to discern our response as Baptists Together.

Our Baptist Union Council has met recently to engage in this discernment through a time of intense prayer, listening and discussion. Many of you will have contributed to that process through our ‘talkingtogether’ email address.

Council clearly discerned that we should offer to our Union, in humility, the statement that is set out below. This was sent out to all churches and ministers with an accompanying letter. An update was also given to the May 2016 Baptist Assembly.

Baptists Together and Registration of Buildings for Same-Sex Marriage

Biblical Marriage Re-affirmed

Council positively re-affirms and commends to our churches our Union’s historic Biblical understanding of marriage as a union between one man and one woman, and calls them to live in the light of it.

This is a response to the introduction of The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, and churches seeking clarification of the BUGB response to the matter of registering buildings for the solemnisation of same-sex marriage.

This understanding has shaped the rules for accredited Baptist ministers regarding sexuality and the ministry and our rules continue to remain unchanged.

Baptist Ecclesiology

The Declaration of Principle, which is the basis of our Union, states:
‘That our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, is the sole and absolute authority in all matters pertaining to faith and practice, as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, and that each church has liberty, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to interpret and administer His Laws.’

This way of being church stresses our unity as disciples of our ‘Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,’ and acknowledges the potential for some diversity in pastoral and missional practice. As disciples covenanting together in humility we seek God’s help to live with the tension of our independence and interdependence as Baptist churches.

Called to Mission

The Declaration of Principle also states:
‘That it is the duty of every disciple to bear personal witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to take part in the evangelisation of the world.’

Therefore, as a gospel people we renew our commitment to engaging in sharing the Good News with all people and encourage our churches to reach out to every part of their communities with imagination and compassion.

Walking together in Unity

Reflecting on the issue of churches registering their buildings for same sex marriage, Council recognises areas of genuine and deep disagreement. We believe that these are dimensions of the tension of living with unity and diversity. We continue to seek God’s grace as we ‘walk together and watch over one another’ under the authority of Christ.

In the light of this, recognising the costs involved and after careful and prayerful reflection and listening, we humbly urge churches who are considering conducting same-sex marriages to refrain from doing so out of mutual respect. At the same time, we also humbly urge all churches to remain committed to our Union out of mutual respect; trusting that the one who unites us is stronger than what divides us.

Yet another view:

A Further Reflection on the Baptist Union Statement on Same Sex Marriage
April 12, 2016

Whatever we make of the Baptist Union’s Council statement on same sex relationships last month it will not be the last word. Those Baptists who feel they are unable to affirm any kind of same sex relationship and who see this as a victory for a perceived ‘majority’, will find that the statement will not be the last word. In fact it may well be that the statement will galvanise those who seek to affirm same sex marriage to be more open in their conviction, and will also lead others, not affirming themselves, to more vocal as well, in arguing that an affirming position be acceptable within the Union. That is, rather than drawing a line in the sand, the statement has ignited a bigger conversation.

Those who affirm same sex marriage amongst BUGB Baptists are more numerous than the conservatives realise; not a majority within the Union, but then I challenge the view that the conservatives hold the majority either. (I’m not convinced that speaking in terms of ‘majority’ is helpful, because it smacks of democracy rather than communal discernment). I suggest that many sit in the middle between the two extremes, and find themselves pulled by both Bible and culture, but are driven most, by wanting to find pastoral solutions. If I’m right then the view of the Baptist Union, if the Union is to hold together, must be one of reconciled diversity on this issue. The question that must drive the Steering Group and the Council and all those who care about the future of the Union, must be, (as Angus Ritchie’s suggests with regard to the Church of England):

can we find a way of living together in one Body that preserves the integrity of opponents as well as supporters of change?

This is what we have done on the issue of women in ministry, we generally tolerate a diversity. We do not (openly) seek to unChristian those who hold a different view from our own – and this is not always easy.

We need to find ways not to unChristian one another of the issue of gay and lesbian relationships. To quote Ritchie again:

This requires traditionalists to accept they are not the only orthodox Christians, and those of an affirming view to accept that traditionalism is not always based on homophobia.

What is needed are those on both sides to say, in view of the tie that binds us, can we for the sake of unity and mission, seek to listen to one another, hard and painful though that may be, to see if that tie is strong enough to enable us to continue to walk together. My hope is that the Steering Group might, behind the scenes, seek to make that happen.

The Council’s statement attempted to ‘humbly urge’ those who affirm same sex marriage not to press ahead, in all reality, this will carry little weight. The seeming imbalance of the ‘mutual respect’ asked of those churches who have registered or are seeking to register, challenges any moral authority they might otherwise see the statement as having.

It is my own view that neither those who are against or those who affirm hold the monopoly on truth on this question. In fact much of the arguments for or against I find wanting. As on many other issues, it remains contested, and it remains contested, also amongst those who identify as gay or lesbian.

This will continue to not be an easy time for the Union, especially those who hold office at a national level. For them we must pray especially. Whilst I don’t think they can or will (at least not quickly) retract the statement, I hope that the Steering Group and the Council (when it next meets), will recognise they will have to come back to this issue, that we have not reached a settled place. A more theological conversation is now all the more pressing and the willingness of all sides to participate is essential if we are to avoid the fragmentation of our Union. This is the story of all other church traditions, Baptists are no different.

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Posted at 10:27 PM in baptist stuff | Permalink | Comments (6)

Comments
Andrew Kleissner
I was interested to read your comment that “those who affirm same sex marriage amongst BUGB Baptists are more numerous than the conservatives realise” as I think a lot of assumptions are often made. The church I presently serve is both Baptist and URC; and you may be amused to know that, some years ago, I wrote almost identical letters on this matter to both the “Baptist Times” (still then in printed form) and the other to “Reform”. However the one I wrote to the “BT” said, “Don’t assume that everyone in our denomination is against same-sex relationships” while the one to “Reform” stated the exact opposite, as these had been the impressions being given by the two publications. I’m pleased to say that both letters were published!

Posted by: Andrew Kleissner | April 13, 2016 at 04:47 PM

Mrs Mills
As a parent of an adult child who lives with a same sex partner; a Christian of many years and a Baptist Deacon, I have an enormous struggle with the whole issue of same sex marriage. My previously held views have been thoroughly shaken and I’m currently in a state of feeling bewildered about what I should believe. I have felt completely unable to be open with many of my Christian friends for fear of being judged and have therefore struggled to share this very heavy burden.However, I have been blessed by wise counsel from a few trusted friends including my Minister. At the present time I would just like to urge us all to lovingly consider how we can best reach out to those in same sex relationships with the love of Christ.

Posted by: Mrs Mills | April 13, 2016 at 08:26 PM

The other issue is that most people in this debate only come from agendas not open discussion