While I don’t really care that much about homosexuality as it doesn’t pertain to me, the debate right now is gigantic. It’s almost frustrating because the bible is so obviously against homosexuality that people who quote it, get arrested for hate crimes. The debate I don’t think is so much theological as it is social/political. You have liberals and conservatives. It just doesn’t make sense to me why someone would want to be a minister of Christ and spend all of their time trying to make the gospel easy or socially acceptable. I’ll let you in on a secret… he dies in the end for all the stuff he says. Well they’ve disbelieved in the resurrection for all these years, it was only a matter of time till they started disbelieving the crucifixion. However here is an interesting quote I found from Anglican Abp Desmond Tutu:
“The Jesus I worship is not likely to collaborate with those who vilify and persecute an already oppressed minority […]. I could not myself keep quiet whilst people were being penalized for something about which they could do nothing, their sexuality. For it is so improbable that any sane, normal person would deliberately choose a lifestyle exposing him or her to so much vilification, opprobrium and physical abuse, even death. To discriminate against our sisters and brothers who are lesbian or gay on grounds of their sexual orientation for me is as totally unacceptable and unjust as Apartheid ever was”
I have a strange view in that I believe the bible is clearly against homosexuality, but it is also clearly against free speech and equality for women, and for slavery. So there’s the problem really. How much was written in the culture of the near east 1 century, and how much was the unchangeable Word of God. I think Abp. Tutu is right in that no one chooses to be villified, and I think sexuality is more of a percentage than a direct black and white thing, and that it is complex. I think modern medicine has shown that they have little to no choice over it. So in some areas I think the Archbishop is correct, in others, not so much. We must love homosexuals, they sin, just like liars, and hate filled conservatives. But to utterly ostracize those who are repentent is completely graceless.
My main problem is with those like Gene Robinson who go around flaunting their homosexuality like a badge of courage and who think it’s practically the gospel. These folks don’t even believe in the virgin birth, deity of Christ, resurrection, Trinity etc. I personally don’t think you should even be able to be a member of a Christian church unless you can confess the Apostles, Nicene, Chalcedon, and Athanasian Creeds faithfully, let alone be a clergy member. However there are much more important issues than homosexuality. I mean selfishness is a sin, but you don’t see a crusade erupting over it.
So why don’t we just leave it at: some people are naturally homosexual, it is still a sin, just as we are all inclined to sin in general, God help us all, but thanks be to Jesus for freeing us from sin, let’s move on as best we can, and ask God once we get to Heaven why he left us in a state of moral irresponsibility but still holds us responsible. There are much greater tragedies: AIDS, Starvation, Genocide, Congregationalism, and Rap music. Lets worry about those first.