I don't know how to do anything halfway, unless--let's be honest--I start something, get distracted, and start something else. All of my people with ADHD, where you at? Anyway, there comes a point in the Christian life where we don't have to obey with gritted teeth. Our obedience doesn't come with apologies to the watching world; it just comes quickly, and without struggle. This is joy, and this is the possession of virtue. I'm not saying this to tell you what a great man I am, but to say that, at least as an intellectual matter, I don't ask why things are the way they are.
We all slip up sometimes, and it doesn't mean that we never believed in God, or wanted to do His will. And we do need to give grace to one another, for the times when we fail. That's easy for some of us, and harder for others, or harder in particular situations.
Human sexuality is a topic that is coming up a lot, not only among Christians, but obviously with everyone. Many people say that they don't want to share a church with those who are not "affirming."
The bottom line--for those who somehow hope that all Christian communities will abandon traditional teachings on human sexuality--is that much of the truth of that subject is accessible to reason alone. Even if it could somehow be argued that no Christian anywhere had authoritatively taught certain things to be wrong, those things would still be wrong. And of course we know that Christians have been authoritatively taught for centuries, about a great many things, including homosexuality.
It is not for me to deny the experiences of those who have experienced unjust persecution and ostracism as a "sexual minority." I do say that the validity of those experiences is not an argument for the licitness of particular behaviors. In point of fact, hypocrisy doesn't change the moral calculus of any particular moral question, either. We ought to know the old saying: "Hypocrisy is the tribute that vice pays to virtue." We ought to be discerning enough to recognize when someone is making an argument that assumes the correctness of their position without arguing for it.
I don't like most of the labels of sexual identity, especially "gay" and "straight," because to put those two terms as opposites implies that both orientations are equally good, and equally valid.
On the other hand, I don't engage in trolling, celebrating "straight pride," because I don't know who is struggling to integrate their sexuality into their whole self, and who isn't. There are some people who claim to hold the traditional Christian teaching about human sexuality, but it could be that they have not thought too deeply about why they hold it, and they hold it with a certain shame or apology, as though they have to answer for every wayward Christian who was not as charitable to struggling people as they ought to have been. Some of those people I have already addressed. If it doesn't apply, great.
I had a bold thought, as I was thinking about the Presbyterian Church in America, who is having their General Assembly now. I would not have supported the resolutions banning same-sex attracted candidates for ministry from ordination, but I understand those concerns. I do think that a good chunk of the denomination is infected with progressive political ideology, just as another large chunk is infected with the opposite ideology. In any case, my bold idea is this: all unmarried candidates for ministry in the Presbyterian Church in America could voluntarily embrace celibacy. Put it in the bylaws, or whatever it is you call those things, and stand with those brothers and sisters who already voluntarily embrace celibacy, in order to be faithful to Jesus Christ. No one would or should ask questions about a candidate's sexuality, if everyone is laying down the privilege of expressing that sexuality for the sake of the Kingdom, and in solidarity with one another.
They'd never go for it; I think the anti-Catholic bigotry of thinking that the discipline of celibacy has been the cause of the sexual abuse crisis is more appealing for many Presbyterians than in sharing the burden of the Cross. But I dare you: prove me wrong.
Celibacy is noble, and it is explicitly encouraged and elevated by St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 7. When I was a seminary student for the Presbyterian Church in America, it was my experience that a special vocation to celibacy was not encouraged for anyone. In fact, a minister who chose to be celibate for any number of reasons had a hard time being placed in ministry. It's as if the noble calling of celibacy were turned on its head. And yes, in my experience, you are not doing well in ministering to either singles or celibates in your communities.
This is not a thoroughgoing treatment of the issue, and I don't intend it to be, but I wanted to sketch out my thoughts in these moments. I do fear that the PCA will be completely "affirming" in 20 years. So indeed, I don't think the traditional elements within that community are being heard out with their concerns, even if particular hurtful attitudes also exist among those same people. The blunt reality is that sexual minorities--so to speak--are not the only human beings who experience painful alienation from other human beings. And it is not a free pass to run over those with whom you disagree, because the pain of certain alienations is preventing you from engaging charitably with the arguments that are being made.
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