What's interesting, among those formerly conservative Christians who now call themselves "moderate" is how reluctant they are to bring up homosexuality in a discussion. These types will debate nearly anything but they don't want to go anywhere near homosexuality.
My best guess as to why this does not happen is because they know where they would land if they actually thought it through. So, then, why is this so much more difficult to let go of than the myriad of other issues they have come through? (i.e., gender roles, the role of women in ministry, Biblical innerancy, creationism, Republicanism, anti-environmentalism, etc.)
So anyway, I'm sort of in a period of waiting at the moment. My posting has become, and will continue to be, more sporadic as there is just nothing to say at this point.
2 comments:
JX, you are probably right but I also happen to think it's such a charged issue at the moment, I can't blame them for not wanting to touch it.
One thing that I have learned is that our sexuality is very much a part of our identity, so it's not something we can really ignore for too long. How we use what has been given to us is more important than the gift itself ... and that goes for all of its expressions.
Both the Rev Boy and I find ourselves in the Land Episcopal after heading out. As the media is more than happy to point out, there are conservatives within the Episcopal church that have been aligning themselves with like-minded "exclusionists" within the Anglican Communion.
Now, one of the things that the Anglican Communion is to be doing is "listening" to others' points of views on the topic of homosexuality. For those on the "welcoming and inclusive" side of the debate, that has consisted of hearing a singular interpretation of scripture. Kind of like, "segregation now; segregation forever."
Of course we have to share our understanding of scripture to others. However, what likely makes those who would rather not discuss such issues, whether for the "icky" or "the Bible says" factors, the most uncomfortable are our stories, as they require the listener to reconcile what they know to be true about us with what they believe about scripture. If those stories are about people one does not know, they are easy to dismiss. But when they are about people you know and love, they become a different thing altogether. Subsequently, in the Anglican Communion "listening process", few stories have gotten to be told, and even fewer heard.
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