Posted on 06/23/2006 7:22:56 AM PDT by governsleastgovernsbest
by Mark Finkelstein
June 23, 2006
Let me share a little trade secret. Any time I'm on the prowl for something to write about, I go to the editorial page of the Los Angeles Times. Almost invariably the journey is rewarded with a remarkable liberal morsel.
Take this morning's editorial - 'Battling over Bishops' - in which the Times decides to wade into the controversy roiling the Episcopal Church. Here's the kernel of the Times' argument
"What both controversies [over homosexual and female clergy] have in common is not only a fixation on sex and gender but also the challenge of deciding what religious practices can and should change with the times."
The Times unwittingly offers a good illustration of the liberal understanding of religion. For liberals, religion is not much different at all from politics. You've got to adapt to the times. Immutable truth through revelation? How utterly quaint!
The Times closes with this observation-cum-fond wish:
"Many, though not all, members of that faith have accommodated themselves to what was once seen as a heretical idea, without compromising what they see as the essentials of their faith. That experience can only give heart to advocates of other kinds of inclusiveness in the church's ordained ministry."
I told my priest, "Culture shouldn't shape religion; religion was meant to shape the culture." Which is not to say that forms don't change. The Bible says to make a joyful noise unto the Lord; well, what constitutes a joyful noise can be different from one place to the next. But the core beliefs are not mutable.
A good summary. I believe there's room for everyone in the church, including gays. But I don't think that means that the church should become a wing of the gay rights movement. Christianity doesn't promise any of us the right to seek happiness by following our own desires -- if that becomes the message, then the church has become a temple dedicated to self-love.
Absolutely! What there isn't room for is sin. And I have yet to interpret anything in the Bible regarding homosexuality as anything other than sin.
Would that be the "Gateway to the Himalayas?" (can't remember what movie that was from).
I think leftists who want to change everything to suit their ideas of the minute are the obsessed ones
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