A Non-Exclusive Jesus Club

Over the past few weeks, I have heard visceral and angry comments from others about homosexuality, mostly from professed Christians. Of course, this is nothing new.

I’m sure what has likely stirred the hornet’s nest for many were the recent words of Pope Francis permitting priests to bless same-sex couples. Undoubtedly, many bishops were incensed, and I’m sure Pope Francis expected it. What I’m also sure of is that he didn’t stop to worry about the fallout of his decision, or how that would reflect on his approval numbers.

The noise was so profound for me because it came at Christmas. If you have to ask why that matters, I will tell you if you will indulge me. You are free to disagree. I would ask that you consider what I am sharing here in light of our having just celebrated the birth of Christ, which will soon be followed by a short life of loving as God taught him, followed by his unimaginable suffering, pain, and death because of that love.

Let me share the writings of two women here because they beautifully express what I feel. First, Episcopal priest Cynthia Bourgeault explains the uncomfortable question of what the Bible says about sexual orientation (italics are mine):

“How you answer this question depends hugely on what you take the Bible to be. If you believe that the Bible is a single, timeless, internally consistent teaching on matters of human morality dictated by God, then yes, the Old Testament book of Leviticus is definitely uncomfortable with “homosexuality.” But it is also uncomfortable with menstruating women, shellfish, and pigskin. (And for the record, it has some very harsh words to say about lending money at interest, a prohibition that even biblical literalists seem to find it perfectly permissible to disregard!).”

Oops…

She continues, “Like most other critically thinking Christians, I see the Bible as a symphony (sometimes a cacophony!) of divinely inspired human voices bearing witness to an astonishing evolutionary development in our human understanding of God (or God’s self-disclosure as we grow mature enough to begin to comprehend it, is another way of saying the same thing). As a Christian, I am bound, when I listen to this diversity of biblical voices, to set my compass by the teachings and the path walked by Jesus himself.”

Oops again…

“Where biblical testimony is internally inconsistent (and even Jesus experienced it this way!), I am bound to honor Jesus as my final court of appeal. And thus, the bottom line must inescapably be that nowhere does Jesus condemn gays or lesbians (or any other person identified in the diverse range of LGBTQ+), and certainly nowhere does he wish harm upon anyone, even those whom the religious culture is so quick to condemn as sinners. His harsh words are reserved entirely for those whose certainty about their religious rectitude causes them to condemn others. Jesus is all about inclusion, forgiveness, and empowerment. In the light of his compassionate presence, people are set free to live their lives in strength and hope, regardless of whether they be considered outcasts by those in the “religious” know”.

There’s a part in each one of us that would prefer the certainty of an unchanging rulebook to the radical open-endedness of God’s ongoing self-revelation in love. But as a Christian, when confronted by a tension between a religious certainty which leads me to violate the law of love and a deep unknowing that still moves in the direction of “loving my neighbor as myself,” (Matthew 22:39) I am bound to choose the latter course.

I am compelled by my Christianity to refrain from any behaviors or judgments which arrogantly demean the dignity of another human being or cause them to lose hope.”

Now, these thoughts of Alyse Jacobsen:

“In the New Testament, the original Greek words, arsenokoitai and malakoi, have been translated to “homosexual”. But their original meanings are ambiguous at best. Scholarship suggested the words are closer to describing someone who uses authority to gain sex, someone who uses sex to hurt another human being. There was no Greek or Hebrew word for a committed same-sex relationship.

In an effort to get it right, we have failed to read scripture in the context, language, or culture in which it was written. Selective and literal interpretations of the Bible are dangerous. The word of God has been used to justify slavery, segregation, and the subjugation of women. To use the Bible to disenfranchise LGBTQ+ people and perpetuate homophobia is counter to the heart of Jesus and sinful.

Jesus would have known about homosexuality. He was an educated rabbi, he would have been able to recite the verses that condemned it. But he never mentioned it. Not once. I find this astounding.

I honestly believe most people are trying to love God the best way they know how. In our Christian narrative, we believe all humanity is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26), and our divine DNA confirmed further by the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:10, Galatians 3:1–5.) But somehow we’ve forgotten that our lesbian neighbor is filled with the Holy Spirit too, that she is also made in God’s image. We’ve forgotten to see her as a whole person, with dreams and goals, and divine inspiration. Instead, we see only her sexual orientation, only that which we have been told is a sin. We end up, as Richard Rohr says, ‘Trying to love God with our own small and divided heart.’”

Finally, I believe if we claim to be Christian, we must honestly confront any hatred and prejudice we harbor in our hearts, in light of the only “law” God gave us (Matt. 22:37) –”Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul, and all your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself — which is every human being also created by God. There’s nothing ambiguous about that!

The prophetic words of Jesus in his last days were meant for all believers, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father (carry on where I am leaving off).” — works that are meant to lead others to him, not push them away.

We are all card-carrying members of a broken humanity. For the love of God, can we PLEASE try not to take our miserable mess and pile it onto others?

What are we teaching our children when we hate? What message are we giving those who are searching for the love of Christ that has been lost to them along the way? How could they feel he is trustworthy? How are we culpable in forwarding a false Christian message that Jesus doesn’t like you because you’re ______________(fill in the blank)?

“When people who are motivated by revolutionary love in the prophetic path of Jesus come together, knowing the pain of our planet and knowing the agony of the poor, to work for peace and against injustice and racism and hate, they can transform a broken world toward beloved community to the glory of God.” Brian McLaren