Including LGBT in the Churches?

The question of gays and lesbians and their place in American society is again front-page news. As local ministers we believe it is critically important, perhaps even a matter of life and death for some, to make public our personal religious convictions which welcome and fully include men and women who are gay or lesbian.

We recognize that this view differs from the traditional position of many religious communities, even from some within our own congregations. Change, however, is woven into the journey of faith itself. The Bible is replete with stories of changing understandings and course corrections. These growing understandings move God's people from one place to another, both geographically and metaphorically. Abraham, Moses, David, Isaiah, Paul, and especially Jesus continue to deepen and alter our relationship with religious laws and teachings by building upon the previous generations' experiences.

This is to say that our religious understandings, while not frivolous, are also not static. The mysteries of the Eternal continue to be revealed to those who trust that Sacred Love yearns for our wholeness as well as our holiness.

We acknowledge the small handful of disparate Bible references to various kinds of activities which are often erroneously grouped under the category of “homosexual.” However, when we read these passages carefully in their context, clarify what is being prohibited or condemned, place these passages within the larger witness of Scripture and discern God's Spirit speaking through science and social discoveries, we find the case for exclusion of gays and lesbians to be no more defensible than the view taken from select Scriptures that women today should be silent in church. To the contrary, we find the gospel's radical inclusion challenging us to open our hearts and our doors to all of God's children.

This is a far cry from moral relativism. It is, rather, a humble trust in a Spirit who is among us even today helping us to interpret Scripture, include science, and inspire society to be shaped by love of God and love for neighbors near and far. The result, for us, is the inclusion of families and individuals who are gay and whose faith is sacred.

We acknowledge that our view can be seen as a kind of minority report within the larger religious community. The place of gay and lesbian persons continues to be a complex question. For decades, debates have ensued using Scripture, science and social norms to discern the place of gay and lesbian persons within the church and society in general. These religious debates occasionally produce helpful insights, but mostly result in more heat than light, which too often obscures our points in common.

We wish to acknowledge these points of commonality with those with whom we disagree: that clergy on all sides of this conversation believe there is right and wrong, and that all of us, no matter where we stand on this issue, work to embrace the right and eliminate the wrong.

We all seek to understand the heart of the Holy and to connect our limited understandings to how we live as individuals and as a people in community. We all seek to honor Scripture, to be open to sciences' findings, and to live within the social context of our day. We all desire to love our neighbors and to advocate for what we perceive to be the best for all. Taken as a whole, the religious community is not mean-spirited or petty, but rather sincere and compassionate.

Our purpose in stating publicly our personal position about gays and lesbians is to allow the public to know that this issue is not closed within the church, at least not for us. We speak out to offer a word of hope and love to the gay and lesbian community of Louisville and beyond. Finally, we speak to clarify to those who hear the church's majority view as a hateful word. We believe it is not intended to be. The core of who we are, even in our disagreements, is love.

JOSEPH PHELPS

Pastor

Highland Baptist Church

FAIRFAX F. FAIR

Pastor

Highland Presbyterian Church

JACK CONLEY

Pastor

St. Agnes Catholic Church

TIM MITCHELL

Rector

Episcopal Church of the Advent

JEAN HAWXHURST

Pastor

Fourth Avenue United Methodist Church Louisville

*Reprinted from the Courier-Journal


I found this op-ed piece very interesting, as well as Joe Phelps personal blog on dealing with the continued communication after it was published. I am going to reprint those here as well. I hope this starts a dialogue on our churches and communities in the coming years.

Daemon