Letter in The Times February 23, 2007 from Denominational Leaders
Sir
On February 28th, the General Synod of the Church of England will be debating two Private Members Motions, one promoting tolerance of same sex partnerships within the Church, proposed by the Revd Mary Gilbert, the other promoting traditional marriage, proposed by the Revd Paul Perkins.
We call on all members of the General Synod to support the motion being put forward by the Revd Perkin, and to oppose that put forward by the Revd Gilbert.
Over recent months, a spotlight has being shone on the Church’s position in relation to homosexuality, with the public watching and waiting for the Church’s response to the ever-increasing parity with which homosexual relationships, and marriage, are being treated by politicians and the legal system. The question is whether the Church will shift its stance on homosexuality, swayed by the changes created by the Civil Partnerships Act and the forthcoming Sexual Orientation Regulations, or whether the Church will stand firmly in its reliance on the unchanging Word of God.
Recent discussions about the issues of gay adoption, faith schools, the rights of cohabitees and freedom of conscience and religion in 21st century
There is a battle for truth taking place in this nation. The battle relates to the meaning of family, the meaning of marriage, the welfare of children, and what sort of family and upbringing is in their best interests.
Mr Perkin’s motion calls for clarity of the Church’s witness to the Bible’s teaching on sexual morality. In contrast, the Ms Gilbert’s motion would be unhelpful and could lead to further confusion and misunderstanding about the Bible’s teaching on homosexuality. In particular, the motion could give the impression that all forms of relationship are equally acceptable and that the Bible has nothing to say about the rights and wrongs of extra-marital relationships.
Marriage is the bedrock of society. The Church is called not to reflect society’s standards but rather to show society how God has taught us to live. We ignore God’s biblical model for society at our peril.
Yours faithfully
THE REV JOHN GLASS
General Superintendent Elim Pentecostal Churches
THE REV PAUL WEAVER
General Superintendent, Assemblies of God Churches
THE REV RICHARD UNDERWOOD
General Secretary, The Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches
WARREN JONES
The Apostolic Church
THE REV ALFRED WILLIAMS
Prophetic Voice Ministers Network
PASTOR ADE OMOOBA
Cohesive and Coherent Voice
JONATHAN STEPHEN
Director, Affininity
3 comments:
Hi John,
I very much enjoyed your sermon yesterday morning, and thought I would look you up.
I find the homosexuality debate fascinating and frustrating at the same time, especially since, as an Anglican, we're the ones having the debate for everyone else to watch.
Of course I understand the reasons and logic behind your position, but I'd love to know why this has now reached such a priority that you'd write to the Times about this issue in preference to many other things which are going on in our world.
I'm very familiar with the Evangelical Alliance doctrinal basis; as a former 'Elimite' the "Fundamental Truths" page on the Elim web site holds no surprises for me. Neither of these documents mention this issue as being part of the fundamentals of the Christian faith.
I realise that there's more to being a Christian than these fundamentals, but I do believe that there's a danger in raising what are essentially side issues to a level above that of the core message. Since the average citizen of the UK has probably not made it to square 1 with repect to Christ, isn't it confusing to escalate these other issues to their attention first?
I do believe that this issue will act to discourage a lot of people from even looking at their local church, let alone going inside. Many people who share many of your views on homosexuality in a church context will wonder why this should be the view which all must embrace for themselves.
I do like Brian Maclaren's approach:
http://blog.christianitytoday.com/outofur/archives/2006/01/brian_mclaren_o.html
We must be aware that our actions may be seen as unloving, unforgiving, unwelcoming and placing obstacles in the way of people that the Holy Spirit would not have put there.
Hi Richard
Thanks for your kind comments re Sunday - much appreciated.
I am aware aware that there are those within the church that see the SOR issues as peripheral however the major players in the press and media do not, nor do the Gay lobby.
What constitues 'family' is foundational for our society and the events of the next few days in the House are crucial.
Kind regards
John
Hi John,
I'm discouraged if our agenda will be dictated by the press or any single lobbying group.
There are clearly several layers to this, and here might not be the best place to go over them. However I believe that arguments about what does or doesn't constitute family won't be won in a legal setting.
It seems to me that the more the collective church tries to enforce its opinion on others, the more there will be resistance to that. I believe in having a robust opinion that allows others the space to have their own.
People in our country have the right to ask why we would dictate the way they live their lives, especially when, by our own admission, we're not perfect either.
Ironically, as a minority group practising Christians probably have more in common with homosexuals than they would like to think. My sincere hope is that there is a way to frame these laws so that we can all be allowed freedom to live as we believe is right.
That would probably require the mainstream evangelical church to enter into a dialog with leading gay groups, and I doubt if there's enough political will on our side to make that happen.
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