Posted on 04/28/2011 5:55:29 AM PDT by ZGuy
Being gay is a gift from God, asserts one church in Ohio.
That’s the message that Central United Methodist Church is spreading throughout their community via a digital billboard, launched on Monday.
This “simple statement,” the church announced, is “intended to be a gift to those who have experienced hurt and discrimination because of their real or perceived sexual orientation.”
“The Church seeks nothing less than the healing of the world, and Central UMC wants to offer words and acts of healing to those hurt and marginalized,” the website states.
Jeff Buchanan, the director of Exodus Church Equipping & Student Ministries, agrees that the Church must display love and compassion for those in the LGBT community. But he opposes the message that CUMC is sending through their “Being Gay is a Gift from God” campaign.
“Why would God bestow this ‘gift’ only to condemn it throughout the Bible? This would seemingly contradict His character as a God who is loving and just.”
The Toledo church’s controversial billboard ad is directly connected to a long month-long sermon series by its new pastor, Bill Barnard. The church is hoping that the ad will move the public towards tolerance, reported ABC 13, and not perpetuate anti-gay attitudes and behaviors, which were harming the LGBT community.
The purposes of their recently launched campaign are threefold: to offer welcome to all persons who are gay; to challenge the larger Church to fully accept persons who are gay into the life of the Church; and to call on all people to bring all the gifts of who they are to God.
“By welcoming and living in community with faithful Christians who happen to be gay, we have come to understand that being gay is part of who God made them to be,” CUMC proclaims on their site. “And by gay Christians bringing all that they are to God, the body of Christ has been strengthened.”
“In fact, we would experience the body of Christ as incomplete without LGBT persons.”
Barnard told ABC, “We really believe that being gay is a gift from God, and it’s not anything that anyone has to apologize for or be ashamed about. So that’s how [the campaign] came to be.”
Believing sexuality to be a “good gift from God” – or as they declared yet another way in God’s infinite diversity – CUMC defines sin as denying who God created them to be.
“The overwhelming scientific evidence is that people are born with their sexual orientation, that it is not a choice,” the church contends. “Fully accepting one’s sexual orientation and identity is key to leading a normal and healthy life.
“Forcing people to act against their God-given sexual orientation will lead to disordered lives. Allowing people to act in accordance with their God-given sexual orientation leads to reconciliation.”
While deeming the marginalization of LGBT persons as “unjustified” – mentioning that Jesus did not speak directly regarding homosexuality – the Toledo church recognizes that the Church today continues to be divided over interpretation of Scripture related to homosexuality.
Just two months ago, 33 retired United Methodist bishops urged the denomination to remove its ban on homosexual clergy, prolonging the undying debate within the church body.
CUMC hopes to unify believers by focusing more on “things that [they] agree on, such as kindness, justice, and humility,” instead of contributing to hate and discrimination, which they believe leads not to reconciliation, but to self-destructive practices within the LGBT community.
“Holding people responsible for matters in which they have no control is irrational and immoral,” the church declares. “We believe that both those within and without the Church are hungry for dialogue about homosexuality that reflects compassion and humility rather than intolerance and strife.”
Buchanan contends that CUMC’s message “tells people that the only option they have is a gay identity.”
But “people need to understand that thousands of men and women have found there is another way and have found freedom from homosexuality through the power of Christ,” he says.
Even if there was conclusive evidence supporting the theory that people were “born this way,” Buchanan stresses that Christians were called to be “born again.”
“While we may not choose our desires, we do have the ability and responsibility to choose whether or not we act on those desires. Our goal should be living a life that is congruent with Scripture,” he says.
“Genesis describes the fall of man and the permanent effects that sin has on us spiritually, mentally, and physically. Just because something may be inherent does not mean it was intended.”
Despite the outcry of many from the Christian community against CUMC’s campaign, Barnard continues to proclaim that homosexuality is a “gift” and has people come and remain just “as they are.”
Working to accept persons who are gay into the full life of the Church, CUMC is a founding member of the Reconciling Ministries Network, which is the United Methodist movement for gay equality in the denomination.
Two of the volunteer staff members at their church, including the music director and lead team chair, live with their partners and have served the church for over seven years.
Grieved over the misinterpretation of Scripture and false teaching that is being promoted by CUMC and many other churches like them, Buchanan encourages churches to deliver the message of Christ with love and grace, but also with accuracy and uncompromised truth.
“We must always remember that authentic love is built upon a foundation of grace and truth.”
Calvinwasafaggot
Furthermore, this attempt by your group to debase the divinity of Christ forgets that Paul is contrasting Christ and Adam -- Adam who was the image of God but not equal to Him, yet tried to be (Genesis 3:5), while Christ who was in the FORM of God and thus equal to God, yet surrendered this to take on human nature and die on the Cross (Philippians 2:7-8)
Took 61 posts before the first broadside at the Catholic church. Is that an RF record?
I would say that a follower of Christ is a follower of Christ and that Sanctification is an ongoing process. Repentance comes through Salvation but it may not be immediate. You are not Saved by your abstinence from sin.
My experience is that if you push people against their sin, they will be forced to make a decision between sin and Salvation. The modern church does not do that.
I am amazed at the number of people who will spend thousands of dollars to fly across the world to witness to people but they won’t walk into a local church they consider to be theologically liberal to do the same. Imagine a missionary saying “I left the mission field in Egypt because the Muslims didn’t have a proper Biblical view”.
Well, in all fairness to ZGuy and Westbrook, I would have done the same but I’ve been lucky to meet xzins on this board to know Methodists better. I also used to dismiss Episcopalians the same way, but learnt better. FR can really help you learn.
Well written. The gay acceptance is because we don't talk about sin too much.
Sexuality is indeed a gift from God, when expressed according to Biblical principles. And in a way, CUMC is right but for the wrong reason.
God created us to marry male and female -- and as a result, shows prima facie why homosexuality is a sin. Gays indeed deny who 'God created them to be', by choosing to live a lifestyle of unrepentant, Scripturally defined sin.
My church talks about sin but it is usually sins that liberals see in everyone else (not being “green”, greed, opposing government programs, etc). My pastor preached against porn once and it didn’t go over well with the congregants.
One thing is universal. If you preach from the Bible, every church will be offended by something they hear.
seriously is there any historical wisdom, much less positive theology in rumphumpin ???
CUMC = comme ci comme ça
What I read from that whole thing was the church was basically saying “If you get sick and die from AIDS, we don’t want to hear it”. It’s the elephant in the living room. They want the happy, cheerful gay couples they see on sitcoms and Bravo. They don’t want to deal with the guys busted in rest stop bathrooms, sick from Hep B, attention whores and serial victims.
Despite what your TV teaches you, there just aren’t that many homosexuals. The ones I know don’t go to church and wouldn’t go even if the church was “welcoming”.
Catholic church history is replete with homosexuality. It does seem to be a long standing tradition.
I find it ironic and hypocritical for people to throw a charge of homosexuality out against non-Catholics in condemnation of them as if by leveling that charge it somehow discredits the men or their teachings, but when it's homosexuality and pedophilia WITHIN the Catholic church, all of a sudden everyone is supposed to be non-judgmental and understanding (tolerant).
After all, we're all just sinners, the church is made up of sinners, nobody's perfect, see what God can do in spite of men, yada, yada, yada,.....
I suppose it would be nice to see Catholics condemn the homosexuality within their own church as harshly as they condemn it in others, but perhaps hoping for equitable standards to be applied to Catholics and non-Catholics is expecting a bit much from Catholics.
Thank you, boatbums. You have a gracious and charitable attitude, and that’s something I appreciate.
Btw, you haven't answered -- does your group even believe that Jesus Christ is Lord, God and Savior?
Yes, in fact, the first comment in this thread that any religious community (other than the one discussed in the article) is “gay”-friendly was an anti-Catholic comment.
I simply replied in kind as a rhetorical exercise.
As is plainly seen in the screed posted to defend the Roman Catholic Cult, its heresies, pedophilia, and "other gospel."
Hoss
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.