Posted on 09/23/2005 6:11:36 AM PDT by 69ConvertibleFirebird
Two things:
1) Congratulations to the school for standing on solid, moral, principle.
2) A BS article in that the liberal writer doesn't understand that the child can not have two parents of the same sex. The writer must understand that the child would not have been born with "parents" such as this.
We must remember to lover the sinner (all of us) but not endorse and/or condone the sin...
I think teaching the Gospel is critical, of course. I think the difficulty some of us have is that we feel we are being beaten with a Bible. There is such anger and shrillness that it is hard to see the love of Jesus underneath. I know that if I scream and rail at my children when they have erred, the rant falls on deaf ears.
I agree with many of you on this thread about standards, families and Christ. But I also feel very alienated by what I take to be a self-rightiousness which won't dicuss or teach, but will only scream and yell. And it seems like there is a ranking of sin, with sexual sin are worse than others.
I suggest everyone take a breath and say a prayer for the girl, the two women raising her and the school officials.
BUMPing your comments!
Amen.
Is it the scripture quoting part that bothers you? He did quote the Apostle Paul accurately. And it pretty much says what he quotes it for (except that Paul does say Christians should associate with immoral unbelievers. But immoral believers, as he notes, should be excluded from fellowship).
The article does not contain enough info to reach a conclusion. For one, the article also does not tell us whether she professed to be a believer or a non-believer. For two, even if she was an unbeliever, the girl was obviously spouting off at school about something (the article does not tell us what). If she was proselytizing the homosexual lifestyle, I think it is well within proper Christian judgment to regard the influence on other kids as important and negative enough to exclude her from the school--whether you like it or not, scripture is really clear about homosexual acts and where they stand in the pantheon of sins and scripture is the only basis for Christianity.
But I am just speculating here because the article does not say what she was spouting off about.
Amen.
What makes you think two 'parents' who deliberately break the rules are teaching this girl anything about decency. They would have lied in order to get her in. My kids attended Christian school;there are very specific questions which must be answered- no way this girl would have been accepted if the questions were answered honestly. Why would you think these two are any better than the parents of the monsters who apparently attend school with your children?
You are assuming that Christ did not come back after the crucifixion in the flesh. Once you go there, you have pretty much abandoned Christianity. Peter, the designated leader of the Apostles, accepted Paul as one of the twelve and stated that Paul's writings were scripture.
You seem to believe that love requires unconditional acceptance of sin. It does not, as Jesus demonstrated repeatedly. He required repentence before He would heal.
To require your religion to fit your beliefs is to construct God in your own image.
>>I think the difficulty some of us have is that we feel we are being beaten with a Bible.<<
Sorry if the words of the Living God upset your delicate sensibilities, but watering down Holy Scripture because it makes people "feeeeeeeeel bad" is what got us into a lot of these messes in the first place.
>>There is such anger and shrillness that it is hard to see the love of Jesus underneath.<<
You're confusing anger and "shrillness" with a stern rebuke. Again, another by-product of weak Biblical exhortation and liberal theology.
>>But I also feel very alienated by what I take to be a self-rightiousness which won't dicuss or teach, but will only scream and yell.<<
You, ma'am were the one who refused to answer pointed questions regarding the basis of your faith. You, ma'am were the one who told both pageonetoo and I to "leave you alone" when we asked you some pretty simple questions regarding your spiritual foundation. You, ma'am were also the one joking with EveningStar about us, so don't try playing the "Harmless Wounded Flower" bit.
Jesus Himself spoke more of hell and the need for repentance than he did of love. His first sermon was to repent and be baptized, for the Kingdom of God is at hand. It wasn't , "Let's sit and discuss this naughty thing you're doing."
Many on the liberal side of faith envision God as a kindly old Grandfather, or at worst, a non-judgemental nagging girlfriend. Many refuse to see Him as the Holy, Just, Righteous, and Sovereign creator of the Universe that He is. God's wrath and rebuking judgement on the sinful and unsaved is something that you won't find on too many Church marquees these days, but it needs to be there.
>> suggest everyone take a breath and say a prayer for the girl, the two women raising her and the school officials.<<
Depends on your manner of prayer. It would seem that several here would pray for salvation and a conviction of sin, while others would pray for deliverance from the "big mean judgemental bigots".
Hyperbole doesn't help your argument. I didn't say anything about "catering" to the children of homosexuals. But is it Christian behavior to turn away children from exposure to Christian teaching because their parents or guardians are sinners? I don't think so.
When I was younger, we visited a remote town in the mountains of Colorado. The only school in town was run by Benedictine Sisters. Well over 90% of the children in the town were the progeny of the local prostitutes. The sisters forbade the mothers to ply their trade or behave provocatively while at the school but they certainly did not turn the children away. IMO, that was the Christian thing to do.
I would pray for guidance for all involved. I would pray for healing for the women. I would pray for wisdom for the women and for the school officials. I would pray for the girl's soul and for her heart, that it is not hardened to Christ.
Your reply proves my point. I tried to reach out and thought there was common ground to ease the rancor, but you only want to be RIGHT. You are using God's word to make you feel good about yourself.
I will not discuss my religious beliefs with anyone who wishes to beat me into submission with Scripture. I have more respect for the Bible and for my faith than to sully it here.
I do not think we should accept sin. I fully support the school's right to expel this girl and have repeated that several times. I agree with many of you about the cost of homosexual parents to society.
I refer to the tone of these posts. There is a level of anger and pride to some of them that is as distressing as this girl's family situation.
>>I tried to reach out and thought there was common ground to ease the rancor, but you only want to be RIGHT<<
It's called conviction. It happens because there are very, very few grey areas in life, when held to the light of the Word of God.
>>You are using God's word to make you feel good about yourself.<<
Nonsense. Exhortation is not about the speaker, it's about the audience. I'm using God's word in the manner it is intended, to correct and guide.
>> I will not discuss my religious beliefs with anyone who wishes to beat me into submission with Scripture<<
Again with the hyper-sensitive feelings of a liberal theology. If the word of God makes you feel bad, then you need to seek out the whole counsel of God, not just the parts that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
>>I have more respect for the Bible and for my faith than to sully it here.<<
Apparently not, since you won't back up your position with any scriptural authority. Only emotion and feelings.
Yes, what raised my hackles immediately was that the poster seemed to be gleefully pouncing upon this story
and using it to support his agenda, without probably even CARING what the all-important real life details were.
Agreed, proselytizing a homosexual lifestyle should not be tolerated ANYWHERE , let alone a Christian school. My extreme reaction was based on the fact that no facts other than the skeletal ones seemed to be NEEDED. The worst was ASSUMED, and that always makes it easier to post a story about which everyone is invited to "think the worst". I doubt anyone has any interest in really finding out the real details behind this, but now that I think of it, I may just do that just to make my point even better. If I turn out to be wrong, I will admit it. Those that found fault with my reaction might also read "non sequitir" 's
replies-----he was a bit calmer than I was.
As Emerson put it in Self-Reliance: A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, much beloved by small statesmen, philosophers and divines.
I don't find this nearly as easy a situation as you do. While I think the school surely has the right to set its own standards for admission and retention, I question the wisdom of their decision to expel this young woman because of the behavior of her mother and the mother's lesbian lover of longstanding.
I have known homosexuals in settled relationships who had children (in these cases from previous marriages) who enrolled their children in church school and made a real effort to see the kids spent most of their time in school, church and community environments in which heterosexuality was the norm. While these homosexuals did not change their own lifestyle, they profoundly desired their children to grow up straight (which most did, the jury is still out on one kid who seems pretty confused).
In light of my own experience, and my understanding of the importance of providing Christian nurture to those tempted by sin to strengthen their resolve to resist it, I would not have expelled the girl on the facts known. I would have made it plain to the girl that she would be judged on her own behavior and that the church and school would be there for her to help her live her own life in a Christian manner.
I appreciate the argument that other parents might not want their children to go the other girl's house, or associate with the sinner parents, but, again, I don't think keeping the young woman and supporting her in her Christian education and behavior is consorting with sinners. Who knows, it could even potentially influence the mother to give up her own sinful lifestyle.
In a word, no. If they want to be a Christian Church, then their rules are set for them by God and described for them by Christ. But then you knew that already, didn't you?
Your quote is non sequitur. If the girl herself was an unrepentant lesbian, then it might apply, but let me give you a quote that is germane:
"And it came to pass, that, as Jesus sat at meat in his house, many publicans and sinners sat also together with Jesus and his disciples: for there were many, and they followed him. And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners? When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
And another:
"Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence."
This school is certainly free to set whatever rules it pleases, but it can claim no scriptural or spiritual authority in turning away the apparently innocent children of sinners.
And BTW, the Scripture-quoting part does not bother me, but it seems rather irrelevant to apply it where it doesn't belong: if a "Christian school" finds a student and that student's life-situation to be at odds with the goals or protocol of the school, does then Scripture become equivalent to that school's "policy"?
You know, I'm not sure about that. They obviously wanted her to have an education from this Christian private school. It may be because the academics are superior, or they have special programs, or the school has some other special features independent of its Christian based nature. But if their lifestyle is completely opposed to the school's Christian teachings, is it right for them to enroll the girl there? That, to me, is the real issue. I find it difficult to believe that the lesbian family described in the article is trying to get a Christian education for their child. It may be that this school is the best one available, and they consider the Christian nature of it a minor issue they can just ignore in the interests of their child attending. That approach isn't fair to the other students.
"The girls MOMMIES set her up".
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.