Posted on 08/16/2013 7:48:11 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
A significant number of evangelicals believe both that homosexuality is a sin and civil unions for same-sex couples should be legal, according to research recently presented at the American Sociological Association annual meeting. These evangelicals find themselves in the "messy middle," Baylor University researchers Dr. Lydia Bean and Brandon Martinez argue, due to competing notions about how to engage with homosexuals: both wanting to show love and compassion for their gay neighbors, and wanting to remain loyal to the teachings of their faith. Those in the "messy middle," they find, are more similar to conservative than liberal evangelicals.
Evangelicals sustain "two competing scripts about homosexuality," explain Bean, assistant professor of sociology, and Martinez, a doctoral student in sociology. First, evangelicals believe homosexual behavior is sinful and harmful to those who engage in it. Second, evangelicals emphasize the importance of sharing their faith with others by building relationships in love and empathy. Expressing belief in the first can sometimes make the second more difficult because of the commonly expressed view that it is hateful to say that homosexual behavior is a sin.
Using data from the 2010 Baylor Religion Survey, Bean and Martinez divide their sample of evangelicals into three camps: "cultural progressives" (those who do believe homosexual behavior is not morally wrong and support civil unions for same-sex couples), "gay rights opponents" (those who believe homosexual behavior is morally wrong and do not support civil unions), and "ambivalent evangelicals" (those who believe homosexual behavior is morally wrong and support civil unions).
While one possible hypothesis is that the ambivalent evangelicals, who comprised 35 percent of the sample, hold competing views because they have loose ties to the evangelical subculture, Bean and Martinez find this not to be the case. Rather, the ambivalent evangelicals are much like the more consistently conservative evangelicals, or gay rights opponents. Unlike cultural progressives, 24 percent of the sample, ambivalent evangelicals score high on measures of religious participation, religious salience and religious practice. Like the gay rights opponents, 41 percent of the sample, ambivalent evangelicals attend church often, read their Bible often and have a high number who believe in a literal interpretation of scripture. (All three groups do not differ much in frequency of prayer.)
Using a term from sociology, Bean and Martinez said this can be explained as "structured ambivalence." Unlike "psychological ambivalence," which entails simultaneously holding contradictory views, structured ambivalence occurs from different demands and expectations based upon different social settings.
"Structured ambivalence emerges at the overlap between social institutions, like family, religion, and work, as individuals struggle to perform the contradictory demands and expectations that they encounter there," they wrote.
The authors use Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Community Church, as an example of structured ambivalence. Warren publicly expressed support for a ban on same-sex marriage, then later expressed regret for speaking out on the topic.
"Structured ambivalence," Bean and Martinez claimed, "has taken hold within evangelicalism: not just secularization or accommodation of broader cultural trends, but institutionalized sources of ambivalence that generate tensions within evangelicalism. When leaders like Rick Warren express ambivalent, qualified attitudes about gay rights, they are not prophetic voices crying in the wilderness: they speak for a solid constituency of people in the pews who agree with them."
The authors conclude from their study the structural ambivalence of evangelicals will have political consequences, and that opposition to redefining marriage to include same-sex couples will not have the same "staying power" as the pro-life movement.
The paper, "How the Messy Middle Finds a Voice: Evangelicals and Structured Ambivalence Towards Gays and Lesbians," has been submitted for publication in a scholarly journal. A copy was provided to The Christian Post.
Lot’s of confused folks.
I so don’t care what sodomites do.
And they can call their sin whatever they want, provided I can call it the abomonation that it is and provided they can’t force me to recognize their fake union as anything more than the fake union that it is.
I don't have a problem with this.
I do have a problem with devaluing family formation. Raising children properly is difficult, time-consuming, and a sacrifice. Society at large benefits greatly from healthy families that create new civil, productive adults. The benefits society grants married couples that are beginning new families are a recognition of the debt owed them by the rest of society.
Homosexual marriage is a dismissal of all the good that proper families do.
Not this “evangelical.” It’s a sin and the word “marriage” shouldn’t be in the same conversation as homosexual. Why don’t they have the Wiccans perform their ceremonies? They can celebrate to the same god.
God and His word has no middle or compromise.
But the Lie is being facilitated by the people who allow the public schools to “educate” their children. It is why there is “confusion” in the “Evangelical” groups. When you are taught to take “Pride” in Vice at early ages-—you can not be Logical—and use Reason. Emotions will dictate “Good and Evil” when you are conditioned to “think” that way.
You are brainwashed into a “worldview” like Marxists are. There is no Truth in Marxism, Satanism. Emotions rule; Intellect is not used. -—it is all twisted, sick lies and sick use of others and self. It is pure evil—and Demonic-—like Islam.
The authors use Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Community Church, as an example of structured ambivalence. Warren publicly expressed support for a ban on same-sex marriage, then later expressed regret for speaking out on the topic. "Structured ambivalence," Bean and Martinez claimed, "has taken hold within evangelicalism: not just secularization or accommodation of broader cultural trends, but institutionalized sources of ambivalence that generate tensions within evangelicalism. When leaders like Rick Warren express ambivalent, qualified attitudes about gay rights, they are not prophetic voices crying in the wilderness: they speak for a solid constituency of people in the pews who agree with them."
YBPDLNPL Ping!
I find this true with a huge swath of Christians across multiple denominations. I credit the cultural influence that weighs more heavily than the influence of God’s Word.
They probably have that attitude toward any sin. Or they don’t believe in sin.
To those who keep their convenant with God, there is no “messy middle”.
Matthew 13:24-31
24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:
25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.
26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?
28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.
30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.
This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
God's word says homosexuality is a sin. Therefore, I cannot support with my vote or any other action any law that tries to "legitimize" the sin. If people don't like me because of that, so be it.
For me, EVERYTHING that happens in our world is better understood from that perspective.
One tactic that's been used to great effect is a variation the very first one used: Get us to slowly lower our standards, our definitions, along with our devotion and faith by getting us to somehow participate, with our emotions and rationality, just enough that we'll turn away just a little, then build on those gains.
So, we slowly cut ourselves loose from the anchor that keeps us from being swept away by the strong currents of the era's abundant influences that constantly tug at us.
Rick Warren appears to be one of those handing us a knife to cut our mooring lines, getting us to weaken our grip and reach for a weaker hold, to ultimately prefer our will to His.
The tactic works and we have legalized infant sacrifice and soon gay marriage.
We are to pray for our enemies, for His fallen that they might find their way home, as for the sick that they might be healed, and to forgive as we are to be forgiven.
Our world has a lot that needs forgiving and we're making things worse. I hope we have time to come to our senses, but I think we're too far along. I pray for Him to hit the cosmic Reset button and reboot us for another second chance. We're ready for the Garabandal warning.
That's the attitude that brought us to our current situation.
Do you believe that states should have the right to criminalize homosexual sodomy? That amounts to "caring what sodomites do." Are you aware that the USSC Lawrence decision decriminalizing homosexual sodomy nationwide opened the floodgates of homosexual dominance in this country?
1 John 2:3-5
(NKJV)
The Test of Knowing Him
“Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.”
__________________________________
Acts 17:10-12
Ministering at Berea
“Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.”
The federal government now recognizes same sex marriage, and it is now the same as normal marriage.
If it were just about individual religious beliefs, then polygamy and homosexual marriage would have been legal in America, centuries ago.
"And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word." (1 Ki 18:21)
Um, no.
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