Partner Benefits Achieved!

I just had to share this with everyone.  Yesterday Gary's Blue Cross card came in the mail.  He is now officially carried on my policy from the ELCA as my same-sex partner.  He's treated just like any other hetero spouse with all the same benefits.  There are a few tax implications since we are not legally married but some day those will cease to exist as well.  It makes me proud to be pastor in the ELCA.  I now feel fully supported by my denomination that now supports my family just like any other pastor's family.  Praise God!

Help Wanted

When Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor." And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." [Luke 4:16-21, NRSV]

This is the first time we hear Jesus define the nature of his ministry in the gospel of Luke. Up until this point there have been a number of prophecies about him but we have not heard from Jesus himself directly. If we're serious about answering the question "What Would Jesus Do?" then we definitely have to pay close attention to what Jesus said he would do.

Looking at this quotation from the prophet Isaiah, we learn that Jesus intends to 1) bring good news to those who only have bad new in their lives, 2) release those who feel like they are imprisoned, 3) to help people see clearly, 4) to end oppression, and 5) to announce "This is God's year to act."

This is not a bad job description for Jesus. It's not a bad job description for us either. Our calling as people of faith is to do as follows: 1) Proclaim the good news that everyone is welcome to attend the feast of God's kingdom. Faith in Jesus is the only requirement to make it onto the guest list. Sexual orientation is a non-issue. 2) Help those who are imprisoned by fear, hate, worry, etc. We do not have to be haunted by the ghosts of our past, present or future anymore. 3) Give people eyes to see the true nature of who Jesus is. He wasn't concerned with the minute details of the Law. He was far more concerned with whether we showed mercy and compassion toward all of our neighbors and not just the ones we like. 4) Become a voice for justice on behalf of those who are being oppressed for any reason. 5) Act now and become God's visible kingdom here on earth instead of waiting for the heavenly kingdom to come.

That should keep us busy for a while. Any questions?

Let Your Rainbow Light Shine

I'd like to share a humorous story that happened two weeks ago  at First Congregational UCC, downtown.  This is the church where my husband, Gary serves as commissioned minister of Music and Arts.  He was in the church sanctuary getting ready to meet a bride when a group of teenagers appeared. They were from an out of town church and were on a service-oriented mission trip in Asheville.  They were working with a local organization that take youth around our city and explore the ways Asheville is addressing homelessness.  Their task for the morning was to go to all the downtown churches, pretend they were homeless, and see what each church would do for them.

So Gary told them what 1st UCC did for the homeless including the Pritchard Park Sunday breakfast [which Abiding Savior is also involved with] as well as Room at the Inn and A Hope.  He also told them what his congregation does if a homeless person comes knocking at their door during the week.

While he was talking he admitted that it was difficult for him to determine who was in genuine need and who was trying to take advantage of him.  He also casually mentioned that his husband, who is the pastor of Abiding Savior is pretty good at this and his church also has a heart for helping the homeless.

Gary thought nothing of the conversation until a few days later when we ran into a friend of his whose sister was with the group.  Apparently, the youth group was from a conservative Christian church. After they left First UCC they had a debriefing session because they couldn't believe their ears.  They weren't sure they had heard him correctly.

Not only was Gary a gay man serving as a church leader and his partner was a pastor as well.  His congregation was also the ONLY downtown church who did anything to help the homeless.  Needless to say, this caused a theological crisis, as well as a paradigm shift, for that group of young people.  Their experience that morning contradicted everything they thought they knew, or were told by their pastor, about gay people and progressive churches in general.

The truth was staring them straight in the face.  Those so-called "God-forsaken liberals" were doing what Jesus taught us to do while the conservative churches they visited were doing absolutely nothing to help the homeless.  I wish I could have been a fly on the wall while that conversation was taking place!  You gotta love it!

The Butch Factor

I saw an interesting documentary the other day called "The Butch Factor."  Here's what Netflix has to say about it: "Director Christopher Hines paints an intimate portrait of contemporary gay culture by asking pointed questions and studying the diverse lifestyles of its members, with the resulting film offering a fresh look at masculinity and homosexuality. Interviewing gay men ranging from rugby players to rodeo stars, Hines also talks to historians, psychologists and sociologists to help identify the similarities in the way gay men view themselves."


This one is well worth your time.  You can rent it or watch it instantly on Netflix.  enjoy!

Facing Difficult Times

I came across a poem the other day by Susan Palo Cherwein from her book "Crossings: Meditations For Worship." It is a word of encouragement for those of us who have experienced loss of any kind:

"Difficult Times"

The hard part is trusting.
When life is overfull with sorrow songs,
When we fall into the deep pit,
When the forces of nature seem to conspire against us.
When the clouds gather in the west
When the fierce winds whip about us
When the rain pelts our bare backs
When our fingers bleed from extorted work
When our throats knot and beg to cry out.

When life is overfull with sorrow songs,
The hard part is to sing:
Glory hallelujah!

It is difficult to raise our voices in praise when life has thrown us a curve ball; when we have more questions than answers; when the darkness seems to be overtaking the light in our lives. However, our God promises that no matter what we are going through, God will be there and will travel with us.

There are many Scriptures that testify to this truth. One of my all-time favorites has to be Isaiah 43:1-3 which says "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior."

We can sing "Glory, hallelujah!" because we have a God who has promised that when we feel like we're drowning and we're in way over our heads, the waters of life will not overwhelm us. We can sing "Glory, hallelujah!" because we have a God who has promised that we can remain unscorched by the fiery trials of life.

Take heart, my friends! Difficult times will always be a reality in our lives. However, we have God and we have each other. That is most certainly worth celebrating, even in the darkest of times.

Listening to the Call

If you talk to most clergy long enough, you can usually pinpoint the moment when they first received a call to ministry. Nine times out of ten, it did not come straight from God. Instead, it came from a grandmother, a father, a sick sibling, a wounded bird. Sometimes the call came with spoken words such as, "You're good at this," or "I need your help badly." Other times, the words arose inside, such as, "This needs fixing and I think I know how." --Barbara Brown Taylor, "Leaving Church: A Memoir of Faith"

I remember the first time I seriously considered going into ministry. I was in college and the pastor of my church was sharing a message about how we discern God's call for our life. He was sharing his own personal story of his call to ministry and I felt like his words were written just for me. In fact, I felt like he had his eyes on me the whole time he was preaching the sermon. Afterwards, I asked him for some time to talk and when we met he assured me he didn't write the sermon specifically for me but, perhaps, the Holy Spirit, was trying to tell me something.

Not too long after that I was on a beach retreat with a group of Jr. and Sr. High students. I was one of their youth group advisors and we were tent camping. Everyone was nestled snugly in their sleeping bags and the tent was filled with chatter. One by one the boys drifted off to sleep except for one. The two of us continued talking for quite some time and when we finally decided to call it a night the young man said to me, "You know, you'd make a great pastor."

I continued to hear the call from many others along the way including the congregations I served while I was in seminary. I never had a "burning bush" experience. It was always still, small voices along the way who nudged me in that direction.

I am certain that there are other LGBT Christians out there who have heard the call to go into some kind of ministry but have ignored the call because of their sexual identity. I wish I could say that it is easy being gay and being a pastor. It is not. However, if it is truly who you are called to be, God will find a way. Therefore, me advice is to listen to the call wherever it comes from. God wants to use you to shed light into the darkness of other people's lives.

Help Wanted: Shepherds

For thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land. [Ezekiel 34:11-13, NRSV]

In the 34th chapter of Ezekiel, the prophet gives a bold vision of what King David will do for the nation of Israel. If we see this text through the eyes of the LGBT community, it takes on a profound meaning: There are many of us who feel like lost sheep; who have been treated harshly and unjustly by the shepherds of the church. This text, for me, is a call for healthy LGBT Christians to seek out the lost sheep in our community. You and I both know that there are many of them and I get into some interesting conversations when I'm at parties and people find out what I do for a living!

Some people get a horrified look on their faces as which tells me that the church has been a place where they felt rejected and abused. I immediately reassure them that I'm not that kind of pastor but, for some, that's the end of the conversation. Others are cautious at first, testing the waters to see what kind of shepherd I am. When they feel it's safe to talk, they open up and share their story with me. I am always honored and humbled when this happens.

Do you have a passion for seeking out the lost sheep? It's not an easy process, in fact it's back-breaking, hard work. My challenge to all of us who are people of faith is to seek out those who have been treated cruelly by unjust shepherds. I believe Ezekiel's vision can be realized in our community but it will take the efforts of many to make it happen.

Defining the "H" Word

Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. [1 Corinthians 13:4-8, NRSV]

Frederick Buechner, in his book "Whistling in the Dark: An ABC Theologized," offered the following words of wisdom on the subject of homosexuality: "To say that morally, spiritually, humanly, homosexuality is always bad seems as absurd as to say that in the same terms heterosexuality is always good, or the other way around. It is not the object of our sexuality that determines its value but the inner nature of our sexuality. If (a) it is as raw as the coupling of animals, at its worst it demeans us and at its best still leaves our deepest hunger for each other unsatisfied. If (b) it involves some measure of kindness, understanding, affection as well as desire, it can become an expression of human love in its fullness and can thus help to complete us as humans. Whatever our sexual preference happens to be, both of these possibilities are always there. It's not whom you go to bed with or what you do when you get there that matters so much. It's what besides sex you are asking to receive, and what besides sex you are offering to give."

I couldn't have said it better myself.

Crispy Critter

Then Elijah was afraid; he got up and fled for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongs to Judah; he left his servant there. But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a solitary broom tree. He asked that he might die: "It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors." [1 Kings 19:3-4, NRSV]

Talk about drama queens! Elijah was definitely one of them. In 1 Kings 18, Elijah engaged in a "My God is better than your god" contest with the prophets of Baal. Elijah won the contest with an overkill of special effects from God [read the story for yourself], and celebrated his victory by having all the prophets of Baal killed. This enraged Queen Jezebel who issued a death threat against him.

What did Elijah do? He panicked. He lost his perspective. He fled into the desert, plopped himself under a broom tree and, like James Kirk from the Starship Enterprise, yelled out "Beam me up, Yahweh. I don't want to spend another minute on this god-forsaken planet!"

I have always suspected that Elijah was suffering from burnout and this is why he lost his perspective so quickly. Burnout is something everyone usually experiences in life. However, burnout is higher in the queer community because of the added prejudices and discriminations we face: losing a job because we were outed; fear of being thrown out of our churches; loss of our family's love and support; being the object of taunting and scorn in school; etc. Sometimes it makes us want to yell like Elijah "Beam me up, Yahweh. I don't want to spend another minute on this god-forsaken planet!"

Fortunately, this is not the end of the story...for Elijah or for us. After Elijah's dramatic plea to God, he falls asleep, exhausted. Twice during the night, an angel rouses him from his sleep and gives him a loaf of fresh baked bread and a jug of water. Now that's room service!! The next morning, 1 Kings 19:8 tells us "nourished by that meal, Elijah walked forty days and nights, all the way to the mountain of God, to Horeb."

Elijah's story reminds us that when we are feeling burned out the best thing we can do for ourselves is to create a space for rest and solitude so that God can restore our bodies, minds and spirits. We cannot always "fight the fight." Sometimes we need to rest as well. Think about it.

Sunday Sermon - Good Samaritan

7 PENT C                                              Luke 10:25-37                                                   David Eck

7/11/10

I.  Sometimes in life we are forced to make

---What I call a "paradigm shift."

---What I mean by this is that

---We have a life experience that is so profound

---It literally changes our way of thinking overnight.

It calls into question what we thought we knew was true.

---It challenges us to look at the world

---in a new and different way.

Let me give you a case in point

---That happened last week at First Congregational UCC, downtown.

---This is the church where Gary serves

---As commissioned minister of Music and Arts.

He was in the church sanctuary getting ready to meet a bride

---When a group of teenagers appeared.

---They were from an out of town church

---And were on a service-oriented mission trip in Asheville.

They were working with a local organization

---That take youth around our city

---And explore the ways Asheville is addressing homelessness.

Their task for the morning was to go to all the downtown churches,

---Pretend they were homeless,

---And see what each church would do for them.

So Gary told them what 1st UCC did for the homeless

---Including the Pritchard Park breakfast

---[Which Abiding Savior is also involved with]

---As well as Room at the Inn and A Hope.

---He also told them what his congregation does if a homeless person

---Comes knocking at their door during the week.

While he was talking he admitted that it was difficult for him

---To determine who was in genuine need

---And who was trying to take advantage of him.

He also casually mentioned that his husband

---Who is the pastor of Abiding Savior

---Is pretty good at this and his church

---Also has a heart for helping the homeless.

Gary thought nothing of the conversation

---Until a few days later when we ran into a friend of his

---Whose sister was with the group.

Apparently, the youth group was from a conservative Christian church.

---After they left First UCC they had a debriefing session

---Because they couldn't believe their ears.

---They weren't sure they had heard him correctly.

Not only was Gary a gay man serving as a church leader

--And his partner was a pastor as well.

---His congregation was also the only downtown church

---Who did anything to help the homeless.

Needless to say, this caused a theological crisis,

---As well as a paradigm shift, for that group of young people.

Their experience that morning contradicted everything

---They thought they knew, or were told by their pastor,

---About gay people and progressive churches in general.

The truth was staring them straight in the face.

---Those so-called "God-forsaken liberals"

---Were doing what Jesus taught us to do

---While the conservative churches they visited

---Were doing absolutely nothing to help the homeless.

---I wish I could have been a fly on the wall

---While that conversation was taking place!

II.  The reason why I share this story with you this morning

---Is not only because I thought it would bring a smile to some of your faces.

I also share it because Jesus was trying to accomplish

---The same kind of paradigm shift in our gospel lesson for today

---Through his masterful telling of the parable of the Good Samaritan.

The setting is a group of lawyers,

---Which is not a bunch of men in dark suits and brief cases.

---It is a gathering of rabbis, religious scholars,

---Who know the Jewish law inside and out.

They believe they know exactly what God thinks.

---They believe they have it all figured out.

They also hope they can corner Jesus in a religious debate

---And tear him to bits.

---But, Jesus would not let this happen.

---Little did they know but he was going to shake them up

---And challenge them to make a paradigm shift

---With one simply story.

III.  The conversation began with a question:

---"Teacher, what must I DO to inherit eternal life?"

Jesus replied with a counter question "What is written in the law?

---What do you read there?"

That was an easy one for any rabbi to answer.

---So the lawyer responded, "Oh, I've got that one covered.

---"You shall love the Lord your God

---With all your heart, and with all your soul,

---And with all your strength, and with all your mind.

---Deuteronomy 6:5.  Piece of cake!

And you should love your neighbor as yourself.

---Leviticus 19:18.  Easy-peasy!"

I'm sure Jesus just smiled as he responded

---"You have given the right answer;

---Do this and you will live."

But the lawyer was not content with the standard answer.

---He wanted to attach a few limitations and pre-existing conditions

---To these two commands.

The NRSV says he wanted to "justify" himself

---Which means he was looking for a loophole.

---He wanted to limit the definition of "neighbor."

So he asks the mother of all religious questions:

---"And who is my neighbor?"

The Message asks it this say:

---"And just how would you define neighbor?"

IV.  This is the point where Jesus tells the parable.

---I'm certain that most of us have heard many sermons on this particular story.

---It, along with the parable of the Prodigal Son,

---Are considered by many to be Jesus greatest parables.

As we enter the story of the Good Samaritan,

---I'd like to make the observation that what we get out of this parable

---Depends upon what character we most strongly identify with.

In Western Churches, the strongest connection

---Is usually made with the Samaritan

---Whom we are told we are supposed to emulate.

However, it is interesting to note that in Africa

---The character that people most strongly identify with

---Is the injured man on the side of the road.

Mark Allen Powell, professor of New Testament

---At Trinity Lutheran Seminary,

---Calls this phenomenon polyvalence.

I don't have time to go into this in great detail.

---But what he means by this term is that

---The Bible means different things to different people.

It depends on the country we live in,

---Our socioeconomic status, our gender,

---As well as other factors.

These factors make us hear the Bible differently.

---He has done some impressive studies to prove this is true.

In the case of the parable of the Good Samaritan

---It is important for us to acknowledge

---That because we live in a country of plenty,

---We rarely identify with the injured man on the side of the road.

---We view ourselves as helpers, saviors if you will.

---We picture ourselves as Superman

---Who comes to save the day.

This is fine and good and we can learn a lot

---By identifying with the Good Samaritan.

---But I would like to argue that

---The most powerful paradigm shift occurs in this story

---If we identify with the injured man on the side of the road.

This is how the majority of Africans hear the story.

---The lesson they take away from it 

---Is that we should never refuse help when we are in need,

---Even when that help comes from someone

---Who looks different than us or has different beliefs than us.

So, as we make our way through the story

---I'd like us to view it from that perspective

---And see what it can teach us.

V.  The story begins with a man

---Who is walking the road between Jerusalem and Jericho.

---He is attacked by robbers who beat him and,

---We assume, took all of his valuables as well.

They also strip him of his clothes

---Which means he was left vulnerable

---To the intense desert heat.

The NRSV says that they left him "half-dead"

---Which is a terrible place to be, indeed.

At this point in the story,

---If we're sticking with the African perspective,

---We need to ask ourselves if we can recall a time

---When we felt attacked and completely vulnerable;

---When we felt totally helpless and were in a desperate situation.

This doesn't happen as much in the United States as it does in Africa

---But let's not kids ourselves.

Each of us, has a story of desperation to tell.

---Maybe our car broke down on the side of a road

---In the middle of nowhere.

---Maybe we were in an abusive relationship with someone.

Maybe we went through a financial crisis

---Where we wondered how we were going to provide for our family.

Maybe we were incapacitated due to illness or injury

---And had to rely on others to take care of us.

Each of us has our "injured man" story.

---I'd like us to imagine ourselves in that kind of situation.

I'd like us to remember how it feels to be totally helpless,

---Hoping that someone will come along and provide us

---With a hope and healing.

VI. So, there we are, lying in the desert heat,

---As helpless as a newborn infant,

---When along comes a priest,

---Which in Jesus day meant someone

---Who offered sacrifices in the Temple.

In other words, the priest was viewed as an intermediary

---Between the people and God.

---It would be assumed that he was a holy and virtuous person.

Good As New calls him a "high-ranking religious leader."

---The Cotton Patch gospel calls him a "preacher"

---Which is a good Southern term for us to use today.

We would assume this person would be our best shot for help.

---But help is not to be found.

---Scholars have argued for centuries

---As to why the preacher didn't help

---But that's not the point of this story.

It doesn't matter why he didn't help.

---All of us make excuses as to why

---We ignore the cries of the poor and oppressed.

The point is that he "passed by on the other side."

VII.  The next person to enter the picture is a Levite.

---Levites were members of the tribe of Levi

---Who helped the Jewish priests with their work in the Temple.

This was an inherited position by birthright.

---You were either a Levite by birth or you were not.

---You had no choice in the matter.

Good as New calls him

---"Someone who kept the worship center clean and tidy"

---Which is an accurate description of what a Levite did.

The Cotton Patch gospel calls him a "Gospel song leader"

---Which is also a good Southern term for us to use today,

---Although he might be called in many churches

---The "leader of the Praise Band."  [I think you get the point.]

Again, we would assume this person would be our best shot for help.

---But help is not to be found.

---They too, "passed by on the other side."

VIII.  Finally, a Samaritan enters the picture

---Which is a term many Christians have heard before

---But few know what it actually means.

According to John Shelby Spong in his book "Jesus For the Non-Religious"

---Samaritans were "the unclean, rejectable scum

---Of the first century Jewish world.

They were half-breeds whose blood lines had been corrupted

---By their Jewish ancestor's marrying Gentiles.

They were also largely viewed

---By the religious establishment as heretics

---Since the true worship of God

---Had been compromised by the Gentile side of their ancestry.

Jews so deeply loathed Samaritans that,

---When traveling from Galilee to Jerusalem,

---They would normally cross the Jordan River

---Coming west to approach Jerusalem from the South.

By going this route, they could avoid breathing

---The foul air of Samaria on their trip"

Needless to say, the Jewish prejudice against the Samaritans

---Was deeply ingrained in the psyche of the nation.

---It was based on race as well as religion

---And was rarely challenged by anyone.

IX. So, to put this in a modern context,

---Imagine we are injured and totally helpless,

---Two of our best chances of rescue had ignored us completely.

Then, along comes our worst nightmare of a person

---The person we would least expect to help us.

For some it might be someone of another race.

---For others it might be a transgendered person.

For some it might be a biker all tatted up and riding his harley.

---For others it might be one of the ladies

---Who works over on South French Broad.

We can fill in the blank ourselves.

---The Samaritan represents our deepest prejudice.

---Whatever kind of person brings out

---The most visceral, deep-seated hatred in us

---That is who the Samaritan is.

Whatever person we believe is least made in the image of God

---Is our Samaritan.

So let that thought settle in our minds for a moment.

---Let us live with our own prejudices,

---Being completely honest with ourselves,

---And see what image our mind conjures up.

The power of this parable

---Is that if we are the injured man on the side of the road

---We're about to enter a paradigm shift.

---Whoever we think is the most ungodly person

---Becomes the one who acts the most like God.

Suddenly, we're like that group of young people

---That entered the doors of 1st UCC.

---We're thrown into crisis mode.

---The world we thought we know is a different place, indeed.

We need a major debriefing

---Where we ask ourselves the question

---"What prejudices do we need to let go of?"

X.  Jesus ends his story with a simple question.

---A question everyone who was assembled around him

---Could easily answer.

---"Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor

---To the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?"

Picking his jaw up off the floor, the religious scholar answered

---"The one who showed him mercy."

---Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

Brothers and sisters in Christ,

---If we hear what the Spirit is saying to God's people this morning

---We can only come to one conclusion.

Mercy is the characteristic that defines us as children of God

---And followers of Jesus.

---Everything else will fall short of the mark.

It doesn't matter whether we label ourselves as conservatives or liberals,

---Republicans or Democrats,

---Gays or straights, rich or poor.

We can divide, categorize and separate ourselves

---In a billion other ways as well.

---Let's be honest, we're really good at that!

The question is whether or not we are known as people of mercy,

---Which in the Greek can also be translated as "compassion."

This is the measure of what it means to be a child of God.

---Let us go and do likewise!

AMEN

Accentuate the Positives

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you. [Philippians 4:8-9, NRSV]

If there's one thing I know about the LGBT movement toward full equality, it's that we have to remain positive. We have to savor each victory won in the courts, celebrate each straight ally who stands in solidarity with us, applaud each church who welcomes us as brothers and sisters in Christ, praise each politician who does what's right instead of what makes them look good in the polls, give thanks to those who volunteer their time with LGBT advocacy groups, encourage those who are afraid to come out to family, friend and co-workers, express admiration for those tenacious PFLAG grandmas, commend businesses who offer same sex partner benefits, pay tribute to those who were a part of the gay rights movement in the early years, speak highly of gays and lesbians who have adopted children and formed new families, give comfort to LGBT youth who are coming to terms with their sexual identity, and rave about parents who love and their children unconditionally.

It is very easy to get discouraged. It is very easy to focus on the darkness instead of looking at the light. St. Paul give us some very good advice, indeed. Let's strive to keep our eyes focused on those things that are "worthy of praise." If we do this we will find a peace within ourselves that is not easily disturbed.

Interpreting Scripture: An Honest Question

Yesterday someone anonymously asked me how I reconcile being gay with my relationship with Jesus as well as the Bible. It was done in a nice way rather than the nasty postings I usually get where people accuse me of being the spawn of Satan. So, since you asked nicely, here’s my short answer:

1. I don’t think that being gay or lesbian and being a Jesus-loving Christian are mutually exclusive. Salvation is not based on what we do. It’s based on what Jesus did for us on the cross. As a Lutheran I believe a person is “justified by faith through grace apart from works prescribed by the law.” [Rom 3:28] I love Jesus with all my heart and am grateful for the forgiveness and new life I find in him. If you doubt this is true, you’re not really paying attention to what I write in my blog.

2. I prayed to Jesus exhaustively for about ten years to change my sexual orientation. No one could have prayed more fervently and honesty. All I received was silence on God’s part and a lot of self loathing. When I finally reached the point in my life when I could accept that fact that my being gay was actually a gift from God, it changed my whole life. Jesus & I are rock solid. My ministry is vibrant and active. The fruits of the Spirit are evident in my life and confirmed by those whom I serve as pastor at church and as chaplain at the hospital. Believe it or not, there are tons of LGBT Christians out there who are quite happy and well adjusted. Don’t believe the hype groups like Exodus International espouse about us. It’s simply not true.

3. I am not a Biblical literalist. I take the Bible very seriously, but not literally. In fact, I have yet to meet a true Biblical literalist who treats every part of Scripture equally. EVERYONE has a methodology of interpretation, whether they’re aware of it or not. In a nutshell, here are my basic prinicples I apply to my study of the Bible:

A. Law and Gospel

Lutherans say that the Word of God speaks both law and gospel and that both must be held together for God's Word to be fulfilled. One way to describe these terms is: the law is that which accuses us and judges us; the gospel is that which comforts and saves us.

B. What Shows Forth Christ

Luther said that the Bible is the manger upon which the Christ Child is laid. In other words, the whole Word of God points to who Jesus is. Therefore, when Lutherans interpret the Bible, they constantly ask the question "How does this text point us to Christ?"

C. Scripture Interprets Scripture

Lutherans believe that difficult passages of Scripture are to be interpreted in light of those passages that are more readily understandable, and that all of Scripture is to be interpreted in light of the Bible's central themes and motifs. We try to be faithful to the entire Bible rather than just picking some parts and leaving other alone. The key question we ask ourselves when dealing with difficult passages is this: "What other passages from the Bible help us to understand the passage we are reading?"

D. The Plain Meaning of the Text

Lutherans say that Scripture is to be interpreted in line with its "plain sense." This means that passages are to be understood in the sense that would have seemed obvious to their original readers. They are not to be taken out of context or twisted to be read in a sense that never would have occurred to their original readers. The key question we ask ourselves is this: "How did the original audience likely understand the meaning of this text?

E. Public Interpretation

Lutherans say that the interpretation of Scripture is a public act rather than a private one. Through the Bible, God speaks to Israel and to the church. God does not speak directly or privately to individuals. What God says to Israel and to the church may have specific application for individual lives, but the meaning of Scripture for individuals is to be in harmony with its universal meaning for the community of faith. The key questions we ask ourselves are these: "Do others hear this text the way I do? Would people from other cultures hear this passage the same way we do?"

4. Above all, I use as my guiding light the dual commands from the New Testament to love God and love our neighbor as ourselves. I always ask the question: “Are my words/actions bringing me closer to God/my neighbor, or are they pulling us apart. I believe with all my heart that LGBT Christians can be faithful disciples of Christ who have a love of the Scriptures and a passion for serving their neighbor. That’s the short answer. For a longer answer, read the rest of my blog.

Hope that helps.

P.S. As far as specific passages in the Bible pertaining to homosexuality go, I've dealt with most of these elsewhere in my blog. In short, I believe those texts in the Bible are referring to exploitive forms of sexuality such as cultic prostitution and pederasty. The Bible does not speak directly to a committed same sex relationship as we understand it in the modern sense.

The Living Word

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. [Colossians 3:16, NRSV]

One of the most beautiful and eloquent books I've ever read on interpreting the Bible is Peter J. Gomes' "The Good Book: Reading the Bible With Mind and Heart." Gomes is the "preacher to Harvard University" and if you haven't read this compelling book, I highly recommend it. Gomes sees the Bible as a "living text" that is understood and heard differently by each generation and each person.

Gomes puts it this way, "Behind the letter of the text is the spirit that animates it, the force that gave it and gives it life. Thus there is something always elusive about the Bible. This fixed text has a life of its own, which the reader cannot by some simple process of reading capture as his or her own. The dynamic quality of scripture has to do with the fact that while the text itself does not change, we who read that text do change; it is not that we adapt ourselves to the world of the Bible and play at re-creating it as in a pageant or tableau "long ago and far away." Rather, it is that the text actually adapts itself to our capacity to hear it. Thus we hear not as first-century Christians, nor even as eighteenth-century Christians, but as men and women alive here and now. We hear the same texts that our ancestors heard but we hear them not necessarily as they heard them, but only as we can."

My purpose in doing this blog is to enable LGBT Christians to hear the Bible "only as we can." It seems to me that our unique perspective of the world enables the Bible to come alive in new and exciting ways that the rest of Christendom needs to hear. Therefore, I encourage all of us to see the Bible not as bad news which condemns us but good news which liberates us. Don't be afraid to share with others how the Good Book speaks to you.

The Company We Keep

Those who say, "I love God," and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also. [1 John 4:20-21, NRSV]

Several years ago the Reconciling Ministries group from the United Methodist Church held a conference in my area which my partner and I attended to show our support. Protests from local churches were planned and it looked like things were going to get pretty ugly...until the local KKK group decided they were going to protest as well. Suddenly, all the churches that were determined to show their displeasure of homosexuals in the United Methodist Church backed out of the protest. The day of the conference, I didn't see a single protester anywhere!!!

Isn't it interesting what happens when we are confronted with our own bigotry? People felt justified in condemning homosexuals until their actions and opinions linked them arm in arm with the KKK! Ouch! God does, indeed, move in mysterious ways!

One of the challenges we have as LGBT Christians is to educate our opponents as to why their hatred of us not only hurts us, but hurts them as well. Bigotry has no place in the Church of Jesus Christ. Neither does racism, sexism or any other kind of prejudice. Too bad all antigay protesters don't have the opportunity to rub elbows with the KKK. It just might open their eyes to how destructive and hurtful their opinions can be.