Bridging the Gap invited me to do join their syncho-blog today as they’ve gathered over 60 Christ-followers, both gay and straight, to break open conversations on christianity and homosexuality.
The culture wars surrounding the topic of homosexuality have sucked up tremendous resources, have left devastated casualties in their wake, and continue to perpetuate polarization and enmity – most clearly seen in the divide between the Christian community and the gay community. The diversity and divisiveness surrounding gay issues is staggering. Even the above statement needs to be unpacked. The sense of polarization is not simply between the Christian community and the gay community as if both of those communities were completely monolithic and mutually exclusive. Rather, we see fractures within the Christian community and disagreements within the gay community. In the midst of this wasteland are gay Christians – a diverse group of people too – who often find very little safe harbour on either side of the divide.
Several years back I had a series of conversations with a friend of mine who I consider a serious and honest follower of Jesus struggling with his faith and sexual orientation. I’m pretty sure I responded with kindness and tolerance, but that’s just the problem. Tolerance is too low of a bar. I don’t think I had a clue of what conflicting emotions and hurt he was feeling. He needed more than my acceptance and tolerance. I often wish I could go back and offer him the love and embrace that I now know.
Even when we speak of tolerance, it seems like we’re reaching down, beneath us, to accommodate another person. And there are times for that. But I don’t think we in the church, realize just how far down we’ve already pushed the gay community. Christ calls the church to be a community known by our love. We are so far from that today.
My views on homosexuality have continued to evolve over the years. If anything my devotion to Christ has deepened, while my understanding of the human person has widened.
I limited myself to 10 thoughts for starters:
1. I couldn’t care less if there is or isn’t a gay gene
2. We are so much more than our sexual orientation. Sexuality ought not be the primary divider when it comes to faith in Christ.
3. Having said that, pushing homosexuality to the peripheries doesn’t seem to do it justice either. If it is the cause of your oppression, it’ll likely be fairly central to you.
4. I believe there are biblical default modes of life ie. a covenant relationship between a man and a woman, work, children, cultivating life, caring for creation, etc. But does veering off from any of this make you any less human? or sinful?
5. There are some very strong biblical passages warning against ‘unnatural’ behaviors that we need to honestly struggle with, along with the thousands of passages on caring for the poor.
6. Sexuality is not clear cut. For example how do you respond to individuals born intersexual (with both sexual organs)? Could these conflicting physical expressions also be a ‘natural’ expression of something much deeper for them, and many others?
7. Christians often feel righteous and reasonable when they say ‘hate the sin, not the sinner’. But how do you do that when that ’sin’ is so deeply a part of who that person is?
8. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with identification – I do however have a problem with over-identification – whether it’s about your sexuality or your christianity. Identifying with certain labels ought to help us, not reduce our humanity.
9. If we trust that God is sovereign, just, and loving – why does it seem like christians act like he’s not, when we interact with those who are gay?
10. If there is a cultural war between the church and the gay community, we lost the battle ages ago when we abandoned the culture for our traditions.
You can order the Bridging the Gap DVD series here. Check out a diverse array of thoughts from 60 other bloggers on the right column here Follow the twitter hashtag #btgblog
Six months ago when my back snapped and I was confined to bed, I read through the entire twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. Actually I listened to the audiobook, but still, I had to endure the endless teeniebopper descriptions of Edward Cullen’s great physique. (ie. ‘his body shone like diamonds in the sun’, enough to make just about any adult of any sexual-orientation gag).
I doubt many other 30 year old males, especially ministry leaders, or church planters have read through this.
Originally, I just wanted to see what the hype was all about. But, after getting past some of the cheesy writing, I actually liked it.
For parents wondering if they should let their kids read it, I think I’d even encourage my teenage daughter to read it if she was interested. They don’t “do-it” till they’re married in the forth book if you must know.
The whole series provokes lots of great questions for conversation. ie. Whether it is by a vampire or werewolf, why is it that there’s something deeply human about sacrifical love? Can there be something noble about repressing one’s innate desires? Or simply, what is natural?
So yes, I’m a 30 year old male, I’ve read the entire twilight saga, and I enjoyed it.
I haven’t seen the film yet, part of me just wants to leave the story to my imagination.
To follow up on the previous post on Christian platforms and networks… I was just re-introduced to this song Hurt, by Johnny Cash. I haven’t really listened to this song since I was an angst filled teenager when it was originally by the Nine Inch Nails. I loved the song because I felt it described my reality in raw form.
Hearing it now, I realize while it’s still a glimpse into reality, it’s moreso a reality without hope.
If I ever had the guts to slit my wrists back then, this song would definitely be on replay.
It’s intriguing that Johnny Cash chose to cover this song not long before he died. After living a life that many others might envy, he lays it all on the line here and calls it an ‘empire of dirt’ (Supposedy he re-embraced his Christian faith later in life). The accompanying visuals in this are fantastic as well.
I wonder how many of us will look back at the end of our days wondering ‘what have we become’? Even if we’ve impacted a million lives, who are we when we’re completely alone at our final gasps? What’s the kingdom, without the King?
Lyrics below.
I hurt myself today to see if I still feel I focus on the pain the only thing that’s real the needle tears a hole the old familiar sting try to kill it all away but I remember everything what have I become? my sweetest friend everyone I know goes away in the end and you could have it all my empire of dirt
I will let you down I will make you hurt
I wear this crown of thorns upon my liar’s chair full of broken thoughts I cannot repair beneath the stains of time the feelings disappear you are someone else I am still right here
what have I become? my sweetest friend everyone I know goes away in the end and you could have it all my empire of dirt
I will let you down I will make you hurt
if I could start again a million miles away I would keep myself I would find a way
Most of us know that we can’t do anything truly visionary on our own. And if we can, our visions are likely too small. The internet (which is only about 4000 days old) has accelerated our capacity to network with one another.
The internet allows grassroots tribes to come out from nowhere, upending established institutions. You’ve seen this with the Obama comapaign, and you can see it in the rise of new church networks and associations as denominations decline.
Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve been sensing a rapid land grab for the church network of the future. “Church networks” brings up over 3 million hits on google. Rick Warren says he wants to create the ‘network of networks’, as with many other visionary leaders.
In techie terms it’s the platform. Microsoft Windows is a computing platform, google is an online platform, you could say facebook is a social networking platform. The biggest and broadest rules them all.
There are many advantages to a common platform or network. The economies of scale, standardized best practices, and phenomenal impact. Imagine if David Yonggi Cho of the 830,000 person Yoido full gospel church in Soul Korea asked every person to pick up one piece of trash each that day?
What’s astounding is that at the very foundation of these massive Christian networks, is just one man.
Sometimes I find it hard to tell if our networks are simply reflecting Christ’s heart for unity… or if they’re pyramid schemes of influence?
I stopped going to Christian bookstores maybe six-seven years ago.
At first it was just completely revulsion as I saw my own spiritual lust in others concentrated in a single space… once I somewhat repented over that, it was sheerly the benefits of online pricing and convenience that kept me away.
I guess that makes me part of the problem, but maybe someone should have seen this coming a long time ago. Maybe those of us who knew better should have expressed the need for changes earlier, rather than abandoning these faith-focused stores and moving on to the next best deal.
Although I think there will always be a place for what we know as Christian book stores, changes are obviously needed.
Some completely unresearched suggestions
Close immediately, and offer what’s liquidated as seed money for new kingdom advancing adventures.
Revamp into a less religious third space. People are desperate these days for a space to reflect and connect. Create cafes, artist spaces, community led workshops, etc.
Partner up with larger secular corporations without compromising your values. Sell-out in the best sense of the phrase and serve these larger institutions with your expertise and Christ-shaped attitudes.
The silver lining is the reality that things come and go. Jesus both grows and prunes his church, but He still prevails. Just because something ended, closed, or failed, doesn’t mean it didn’t serve it’s purpose honorably in its time. Sometimes it takes a bit of death to bring a bit of life.
Check out salem store house if you’re in Ottawa that has dedicated space to a cafe with free coffee and tea or booksforchrist.com as an alternative to amazon and chapters.
“I go to Bible study on Wednesday mornings – I even teach sometimes – but I’ll still get up on stage and be much scarier than Marilyn Manson.
It doesn’t mean that, as a Christian, you can’t be a rocker or an entertainer. It’s your lifestyle. I never use bad language. That’s not gentlemanly. Alice might slit your throat but he’d never use the F word.” — Alice Cooper
Besides ads for various ’solar’ panels, the two ads that google’s been serving up on my site recently are
“Christian Leadership B.S.”
and
“Meet Christian Girls Free”
Some insights from this.
Picking out key words, is not the same as context.
Google can brilliantly identify over 63 billion web pages, but still can identify the pulse of who I am, what I value, and what I write about.
If red flags don’t go up when you advertise your Christian Leadership organization as B.S., do you really have a chance at helping others lead and engage culture in our context?
Maybe Christian Leadership is B.S.
How much are Christian girls supposed to cost?
And if you’re offering them for free, do we really want them?
Besides God, no one will ever fully know the extent of who you are. And every day you and I make decisions based on snippets of reality.
What does it mean to engage others as fully human In a world of soundbites and snapshots, where context is a moving target?
