This past Sunday was rough. I am pleased to see so much happening in the wake of the events in Charleston. Seeing Confederate flags removed in Alabama and initiatives to do the same throughout the South is encouraging. However, there is so much more to do than change the racist décor. While we endeavor to keep the quest for racial justice in our hearts and minds, it is also important to celebrate a milestone for justice in another community. Sometime before our Sunday service, the Supreme Court is expected to hand down a decision affirming same-sex marriage as the law of the land. This is good news.
Unfortunately, just as with our continual struggle to live into racial equality, there will still be work to do even if the ruling goes our way. Many states, including Texas, have already said they will resist. I can’t see anyone seceding over it, but they’re not going to go into this new day willingly. We won’t truly have equality until hearts and minds are changed. That is church work. Sadly, the Church has been mired in a single question, a question promoted by those who would oppose same-sex marriage in any case: What does the Bible say about homosexuality?
I’m not sure that’s the best question, but it so happens that the lectionary god, which I suppose is just God, has given us the story of David grieving the death of Jonathon, in which he says that he loved Jonathon more than a woman. This passage is often lifted up as evidence of a homosexual coupling in the Bible, providing a biblical warrant for same-sex relationships. I admit, I think it’s a reasonable case and I don’t think it’s the only one. However, as with all things Bible, it is much more complicated than that.
Please join us at Church in the Cliff, 11am Sunday, as we talk about those complications and how those complications render the question moot. More importantly, let’s (hopefully) celebrate a great stride toward justice.
Grace & Peace,
Scott