Before The Throne Of God

(Author's note:  Recently, a friend of mine asked me if we could talk about what I think about gays and lesbians in the church, but our conversation was interrupted and we never finished it.  I wrote this note to her to try and lay it out, and thought I'd post it here as a meditation on our call to love.)


Hey friend - we didn't get a chance to talk on the retreat (sorry, I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off), but I wanted to try to outline for you what I believe about homosexuality, the church and the Bible before I forget about it. When I quote Scripture here, I will give you specific references so you can go back and read the whole passage if you want (I hate quoting Scripture out of context) and decide for yourself if my interpretation makes sense. Also, if you don't have one already, I suggest getting a HarperCollins Study Bible or New Interpreter's Study Bible - both have excellent footnotes which give great insight on just about every topic.

First, before anything else, Jesus is very clear that love is - or should be - the overriding concern in every interaction a Christian has. When asked what Commandment is the most important, Jesus cites two - "love the Lord your God" and "love your neighbor as yourself" (Matt. 22:39-41). Jesus gives his disciples "a new commandment" in preparation for his departure from Earth, "that you love one another" (John 13:33-34). In the Matthew passage, he even goes so far as to say "all the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments". When I look at the church's treatment of gays and lesbians, I see a lot of fear and disgust, but very little love. "Love the sinner, hate the sin" has become a catchphrase for how to treat homosexuals, but it's very difficult to communicate the love and grace of Christ when we are so focused on proclaiming their sexuality - a very integral part of their personal identity - as something sinful and dirty and strange. The church has not earned the right to be heard by the gay community, and won't until we learn to love as Christ loves us before we ever open our mouths.

The issues I see with the Bible's teachings on homosexuality are twofold:
-First, homosexuality is not understood or practiced today as it was at the time the verses on it in the Bible were written. Then, we were talking about behavior that jeopardized the cultural standing and personal safety of not only the people directly involved, but also their families and even whole communities or populations because of the nature and virulence of communicable diseases. Homosexuality in the ancient world was also a practice that was usually forced on one party by another, and therefore homosexual acts were often acts of rape or incest against vulnerable populations such as servants, slaves or children. This might be a reason why Paul, in his condemnation of homosexuality, refers to "homosexual offenders" or criminals (1 Cor. 6:9). Today, we're talking about stable, long-term relationships between consenting adults which, if practiced safely, do not risk virulent contagion or significantly depress the number of infants being born. It might seem like semantics, but it's a very important distinction to make - in determining what the Biblical authors intended to say, you have to look through their cultural lenses. The homosexuality they're addressing is not "Queer Eye For The Straight Guy".
-Second, of the many many many many many many verses in the Bible, only a few address homosexuality specifically, and often the context is hazy. In some of them, such as Deut. 23:17 and 1 Kings 14:24, the author is condemning ritual sexual acts performed by prostitutes in the shrines of other gods; we don't know if the primary emphasis is on the homosexuality or the idolatry (which is addressed far more prolifically in both the Old and New Testaments). Sexual sins, particularly in Revelation, are often used as symbols for idol worship.

Long story short, my study of the Bible does not lead me to definitive evidence one way or the other on how the church needs to address modern homosexuality, or whether or not it is sinful. What I do see are repeated calls to love, compassion and mercy. Therefore, I think we need to welcome gays and lesbians into the church with open arms, without passing judgment. At the very worst, they are sinners - but so are we, condemned by the same Law and redeemed by the same Savior. If we are wrong (and we very well might be), we have as a body done them and continue to do them harm beyond reckoning. If I ever need to defend my actions before the throne of Heaven, I would much rather have to defend loving God's people too much than not loving them enough.