I’ve been terrified to post this for a while – but it feels like it’s time for me to be honest. After growing up in a Christian home, being a pastor’s kid, playing and singing in a Christian band, and having the word “Christian” in front of most of the things in my life – I am now finding that I no longer believe in God.
Steingard has received many messages of love and support.
Popular Christian author also denounced faith
Steingard isn’t the only Christian public figure to renounce their faith. Last year, popular author, Josh Harris shocked fans when he claimed to no longer be a Christian.
For those who don’t know, Harris became a pinup-boy for the purity movement in the U.S after his book I Kissed Dating Goodbye was published and became a best – seller in the late 1990’s. The book took the no – sex- before – marriage message to the extreme. He encouraged readers to not even kiss before marriage.
Harris was only twenty – one and not married when the book was published.
Last year, Josh Harris turned a corner and started to regret what he wrote in his book. He welcomed confrontation from critics and admitted that he helped caused harm. Later, Harris announced that he was separating from his wife and that he was no longer a Christian.
Were Harris and Steingard ever Christians?
If you take take 1 John 2:19 literally (from modern English translations anyway), Apostle John argued that people who fell away from the faith were “never of us”.
I’m not going to speculate whether or not Steingard or Harris were ever ‘true Christians’ or not. However, I want to make a few observations.
Both Harris and Steingard have profited from the Christian pop culture. Harris, in particular, benefited from being a spokesman for Christianity.
It’s obvious that Steingard also grew up in the Christian faith. That doesn’t mean that the faith he grew up in would necessarily become his own. As a Christian, I truly think that faith is only cemented through revelation. Maybe a true revelation might bring both Harris and Steingard back.
Again, I don’t want to speculate too much. Only Harris and Steingard knpw deep down whether or not they really believed.
A number of Christians ‘soften’ (or hide) controversial views
A number of Evangelical Christians have been very careful of their public persona. Many have either softened their views on controversial topics, such as the LGBTQ+ community.
Churches like Hillsong in Sydney have caused controversy over their views on same – sex marriage by both opponents and supporters alike. No one liked the fact that they tried to have feet on both sides of the fence.
While not changing their views, a number of Christian personalities have chosen to suddenly avoid controversial cultural topics. Kristen Beal and Bethany Baird of blog/ YouTube channel, Girl Defined is a prime example.
Prior to last year, content created by Beal and Baird caused mountains of controversy online. Their views on womanhood, gender, marriage and the LGBTQ+ community stirred up fierce criticism from Christian and non – Christian YouTubers.
Last year, tensions boiled over between Girl Defined and God is Grey’s Brenda Davies. Long story short: Davies reached out to and invited a discussion on their different views.
Instead, Beal and Baird decided to drag Davies’ name through the mud at the Girl Defined Conference. Baird and Beal not – so – subtly implied that Davies was not a real Christian, largely because of Davies’ allyship to the LGBTQ+ community. This caused outrage from Girl Defined’s critics and fans.
Since then, Girl Defined has avoided controversial topics. Does this mean that they’ve changed their views? Probably not. Their just not vocal now. Frankly, I find this quite cowardly. To their defence though, (kinda), being repeatedly scrutinised wouldn’t be easy.
I believe that Christianity in the West is shifting massively. Christians have been forced to see their impact on others. Also, living in a Christian culture is no substitute for revelation.
I’ll be blunt. Sometimes, I’m critical of Newscorp media, especially some of its commentators. I wonder why I’m a Herald Sun subscriber or watch Sky News Australia at all. During 2017 same – sex marriage debate, I found Newscorp media particularly unbearable to watch or read.
They also made some bad calls. I thought Sky News Australia’s decision to feature former United Patriot Front leader, Blair Cottrell was stupid. Surely they knew his record! After the backlash and the threat of a commercial boycott, the management vowed to never whave Cottrell on SkyNewsAustralia again.
Herald Sun opinion exposes the harms of conversion therapy
Despite all my criticisms, the Herald Sun did something that I thought was good. On the 3 April 2019, they published an opinion piece from Chris Csabs, an outspoken opponent of conversion ‘therapy’. Csabs has appeared in the SBS series, Christians Like Us.
Csabs is candid and quite detailed in his account. He realised he was gay at thirteen and came out to his pastor at sixteen. He went to regular worship and prayer sessions and was told faulty beliefs about sexuality (that he and other attendees were gay because they weren’t breastfed, etc).
Like so many LGBTQ+ Christians, Csabs went through shame and suffered emotionally because he couldn’t change his sexuality.
Csabs was isolated. Leaders told Csabs to abandon his friends from Sydney to avoid ’temptation’.
After exiting Living Waters, Csabs got involved in other ministries and tried other sexual orientation change efforts (SOCE). Needless to say, none of them worked.
The aftermath
Csabs claimed that he tried to ‘starve’ his sexuality. This made him have thoughts of castration and affected his relationships with other men. He became paranoid about seeing any men he may deem attractive, including on TV.
Csabs is in the process of learning to accept himself as a gay man and work on his relationship with God.
What people should know
Chris Csabs’ story should make it clear; LGBTQ+ people can’t stop being LGBTQ+. Any pressure on LGBTQ+ Christians to change who they are is nothing short of emotional and spiritual abuse. Conversion therapy doesn’t win people over to God, but rather keeps them distant from Him.
A note to Newscorp opinion writers: I hope this has given you an insight into what a number of LGBTQ+ people in Australia go through. Hopefully, it puts Israel Folau’s recent comments in context.
Please speak out against conversion therapies. Fight against the Australian Christian Lobby who repeatedly push conversion therapy on minors. We need to spread a strong message that abuse towards LGBTQ+ people will not be tolerated. Nobody should be shamed for who they are.
If this post has brought up any issues for you, you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Beyond Blue: 1300 224 636. Information about LGBTQ+ mental health can also be found here.
For emergencies call your national crisis number (for Australians: 000. U.S: 911 and UK: 999).
If anyone knows of any other contacts or you want to share your own experiences of faith and sexuality, please leave them in the comments below.
Wallabies player, Israel Folau, has caused a storm after he posted on Instagram that gay people that don’t repent will go to hell. This comes less than twelve months since he expressed his view that marriage should be between a man and woman on Twitter. Rugby Australia are not planning to sack Folau, but will encourage him to be mindful of divisive comments on social media in the future. According to The Australian, Qantas and Swisse have threatened to withdraw sponsorship from Rugby Australia in revolt to Folau’s comments.
Here’s my take.
I actually agree with Rugby Australia for not sacking or suspending Folau.
I also defend the right of Qantas and Swisse to pull their sponsorship as a form of revolt. They can put their money where they like.
What Folau said would have hit a lot of people hard. The relationship between LGBTQ+ people and Christians has been rocky in the past to say the least.
While religious belief and participation is shown to be beneficial to people’s mental well – being, this can’t always be said for LGBTQ+ people. In fact, a number of LGBTQ+ people end up abandoning their religion because of the conflict between their sexuality and their religious affiliation.
Some attitudes and actions of some Christian (and other religious) organisations have been downright harmful.
So – called ‘conversion’ or ‘reparative’ therapy; which is thankfuly becoming rarer, is known to be harmful and does not work. Multiple medical and psychological bodies around the world have publicly rejected the idea that sexual orientation can and should be changed. Some of them have also warned about potentially damaging effects of the practice. Conflict between sexual orientations and religious affiliation has also shown to be a risk factor to poor mental health and suicidal thoughts among LGBTQ+ people.
With all that said, Folau should be debated, not penalised or silenced.
People caould argue, what I said and linked above; that most medical bodies around the developed world reject the notion that sexual orientation can or should be changed. They also argue that sexual orientation can’t be chosen.
Christians also have different interpretations of the so – called ‘clobber passages’ in both the Old an$ New Testament that are often used as a justifications for condemning gay people.
Chill and hear me out. The most common arguments of these Christians, sometimes referred to as ‘Side A’ Christians, are that the passages condemn same – sex acts (often committed by men), that were not consensual, were often committed against children or was committed as a ritual in idol worship (Corinthians, in particular, did worship Aphrodite).
Second common argument, which is kind of related, is the controversy over the interpretations of some of the Hebrew and Greek.
I understand why people are angry and hurt by Folau’s comments. I feel for people who have been damaged by the actions of certain Christians. However, I don’t think censoring or punishing people like Folau will ultimately do anyone any good.
Let Folau and those like him to have their say, then non – Christians and Christians alike can debate it out, then leave it alone. The LGBTQ+ community can’t be seen censoring people. Not after the hard – won battle of same – sex marriage in Australia.
Christian singer, Vicky Beeching has revealed that she’s temporarily leaving social media after she received a torrent of homophobic abuse.
As you can tell from the embedded link, from Christianity Today, most of the abuse was by Christians.
I fumed when I first read this on Monday.
The debate over the LGBTQ+ community and the church still goes on. It looks like it may go on for a while. Some people still have a staunch traditional view when it comes to sexuality. Regardless, this can’t be accepted.
When will we learn? The church seems to have a dark history of abuse. Even if you take the Catholic Church sexual abuse to one side, the toxic culture of spiritual and emotional abuse is horrifying. Domestic violence is another scourge just coming to light.
Some people use the “not true Scotsman” argument. “Well, they (the bullies and abusers), aren’t real Christians”.
I think this is a convenient excuse, to be honest. The problem is, these issues aren’t just caused by a few “bad eggs”. If it was, it would be dealt with years ago. But like with the Catholic Church abuse scandal and others, the issue goes much deeper. As you’ll see if you click the link, unfortunately the Church’s attitudes towards sexuality and gender has exacerbated the rates of sexual assault and domestic violence.
Going back to the Vicky Beeching story, this issue is an issue that must be addressed. I firmly believe that it’s stems from certain members of the Church dehumanising the LGBTQ+ community. They are equated with “what they do”, rather than a child of God. Harmful stereotypes and misinformation are what fuelled the incredibly harmful “ex gay” therapy. Some attitudes, seems like haven’t changed.
There is good news for LGBTQ+ Christians though. A group, Equal Voices offered a national apology to the LGBTQ+ community on any mistreatment they suffered at the hands of the Church late last month.
Australian Christians are apologizing to the LGBTIQ community. Are you one of them? Read the apology here https://t.co/ULf1BtgYDw
— Anthony Venn-Brown OAM 🏳️🌈 (@gayambassador) March 27, 2017
Last time I checked the letter, over 500 people signed. Most of them identified as being a member of a Christian denomination. Others said they were ‘ex’ members and others identified as either agnostic or atheist. I do believe that this is a sign that there are Christians who want to move in the right direction and treat LGBTQ+ community with dignity and compassion. That doesn’t mean that what has happened to Vicky Beeching shouldn’t be addressed.
Here’s the thing. If you are a Christian and you see abusive comments on social media by other Christians, call it out. Block or report the person. If you hear it in real life, if you can, confront it head on. It’s about time all Christians start being real and calling out abuse when it occurs. Whether it’s against an LGBTQ+ person, someone suffering domestic violence or any other types of abuse, it needs to be called out and condemned.
There is another thing. Calling out abuse is only a tip of the iceberg as well. Christians need to develop a culture where abuse cannot fester. Everything needs to be examined, including theology and whether it’s used as an instrument of harm rather than healing. Correcting someone when they are wrong is one thing. But abuse cannot be tolerated. If you need to, look deeply into Scripture. Look at the historical context and the original Greek and Hebrew/ Aramaic to get a fuller understanding on what the authors meant. If you can’t get an exact answer, I believe that we need to go back to the number one rule: Love God and love our neighbour as ourselves fulfils the law and the Prophets. I believe that means that anything that causes harm – whether intended or not – cannot be accepted and cannot remain a part of Christian culture.
This goes to the those who abused Vicky Beeching as well. You’re conduct does NOT in any way fulfil what I said above about loving God and others. If you are against same – sex relationships, I’m not going to attack that. But the abuse needs to stop. Treat LGBTQ+ people like people FIRST!
Content warning: homophobia and Church abuse.
Christian singer, Vicky Beeching has revealed that she’s temporarily leaving social media after she received a torrent of homophobic abuse.
As you can tell from the embedded link, from Christianity Today, most of the abuse was by Christians.
I fumed when I first read this on Monday.
The debate over the LGBTQ+ community and the church still goes on. It looks like it may go on for a while. Some people still have a staunch traditional view when it comes to sexuality. Regardless, this can’t be accepted.
When will we learn? The church seems to have a dark history of abuse. Even if you take the Catholic Church sexual abuse to one side, the toxic culture of spiritual and emotional abuse is horrifying. Domestic violence is another scourge just coming to light.
Some people use the “not true Scotsman” argument. “Well, they (the bullies and abusers), aren’t real Christians”.
I think this is a convenient excuse, to be honest. The problem is, these issues aren’t just caused by a few “bad eggs”. If it was, it would be dealt with years ago. But like with the Catholic Church abuse scandal and others, the issue goes much deeper. As you’ll see if you click the link, unfortunately the Church’s attitudes towards sexuality and gender has exacerbated the rates of sexual assault and domestic violence.
Going back to the Vicky Beeching story, this issue is an issue that must be addressed. I firmly believe that it’s stems from certain members of the Church dehumanising the LGBTQ+ community. They are equated with “what they do”, rather than a child of God. Harmful stereotypes and misinformation are what fuelled the incredibly harmful “ex gay” therapy. Some attitudes, seems like haven’t changed.
There is good news for LGBTQ+ Christians though. A group, Equal Voices offered a national apology to the LGBTQ+ community on any mistreatment they suffered at the hands of the Church late last month.
Australian Christians are apologizing to the LGBTIQ community. Are you one of them? Read the apology here https://t.co/ULf1BtgYDw
— Anthony Venn-Brown OAM 🏳️🌈 (@gayambassador) March 27, 2017
Last time I checked the letter, over 500 people signed. Most of them identified as being a member of a Christian denomination. Others said they were ‘ex’ members and others identified as either agnostic or atheist. I do believe that this is a sign that there are Christians who want to move in the right direction and treat LGBTQ+ community with dignity and compassion. That doesn’t mean that what has happened to Vicky Beeching shouldn’t be addressed.
Here’s the thing. If you are a Christian and you see abusive comments on social media by other Christians, call it out. Block or report the person. If you hear it in real life, if you can, confront it head on. It’s about time all Christians start being real and calling out abuse when it occurs. Whether it’s against an LGBTQ+ person, someone suffering domestic violence or any other types of abuse, it needs to be called out and condemned.
There is another thing. Calling out abuse is only a tip of the iceberg as well. Christians need to develop a culture where abuse cannot fester. Everything needs to be examined, including theology and whether it’s used as an instrument of harm rather than healing. Correcting someone when they are wrong is one thing. But abuse cannot be tolerated. If you need to, look deeply into Scripture. Look at the historical context and the original Greek and Hebrew/ Aramaic to get a fuller understanding on what the authors meant. If you can’t get an exact answer, I believe that we need to go back to the number one rule: Love God and love our neighbour as ourselves fulfils the law and the Prophets. I believe that means that anything that causes harm – whether intended or not – cannot be accepted and cannot remain a part of Christian culture.
This goes to the those who abused Vicky Beeching as well. You’re conduct does NOT in any way fulfil what I said above about loving God and others. If you are against same – sex relationships, I’m not going to attack that. But the abuse needs to stop. Treat LGBTQ+ people like people FIRST!
Content warning: homophobia and Church abuse.
Christian singer, Vicky Beeching has revealed that she’s temporarily leaving social media after she received a torrent of homophobic abuse.
As you can tell from the embedded link, from Christianity Today, most of the abuse was by Christians.
I fumed when I first read this on Monday.
The debate over the LGBTQ+ community and the church still goes on. It looks like it may go on for a while. Some people still have a staunch traditional view when it comes to sexuality. Regardless, this can’t be accepted.
When will we learn? The church seems to have a dark history of abuse. Even if you take the Catholic Church sexual abuse to one side, the toxic culture of spiritual and emotional abuse is horrifying. Domestic violence is another scourge just coming to light.
Some people use the “not true Scotsman” argument. “Well, they (the bullies and abusers), aren’t real Christians”.
I think this is a convenient excuse, to be honest. The problem is, these issues aren’t just caused by a few “bad eggs”. If it was, it would be dealt with years ago. But like with the Catholic Church abuse scandal and others, the issue goes much deeper. As you’ll see if you click the link, unfortunately the Church’s attitudes towards sexuality and gender has exacerbated the rates of sexual assault and domestic violence.
Going back to the Vicky Beeching story, this issue is an issue that must be addressed. I firmly believe that it’s stems from certain members of the Church dehumanising the LGBTQ+ community. They are equated with “what they do”, rather than a child of God. Harmful stereotypes and misinformation are what fuelled the incredibly harmful “ex gay” therapy. Some attitudes, seems like haven’t changed.
There is good news for LGBTQ+ Christians though. A group, Equal Voices offered a national apology to the LGBTQ+ community on any mistreatment they suffered at the hands of the Church late last month.
Australian Christians are apologizing to the LGBTIQ community. Are you one of them? Read the apology here https://t.co/ULf1BtgYDw
— Anthony Venn-Brown OAM 🏳️🌈 (@gayambassador) March 27, 2017
Last time I checked the letter, over 500 people signed. Most of them identified as being a member of a Christian denomination. Others said they were ‘ex’ members and others identified as either agnostic or atheist. I do believe that this is a sign that there are Christians who want to move in the right direction and treat LGBTQ+ community with dignity and compassion. That doesn’t mean that what has happened to Vicky Beeching shouldn’t be addressed.
Here’s the thing. If you are a Christian and you see abusive comments on social media by other Christians, call it out. Block or report the person. If you hear it in real life, if you can, confront it head on. It’s about time all Christians start being real and calling out abuse when it occurs. Whether it’s against an LGBTQ+ person, someone suffering domestic violence or any other types of abuse, it needs to be called out and condemned.
There is another thing. Calling out abuse is only a tip of the iceberg as well. Christians need to develop a culture where abuse cannot fester. Everything needs to be examined, including theology and whether it’s used as an instrument of harm rather than healing. Correcting someone when they are wrong is one thing. But abuse cannot be tolerated. If you need to, look deeply into Scripture. Look at the historical context and the original Greek and Hebrew/ Aramaic to get a fuller understanding on what the authors meant. If you can’t get an exact answer, I believe that we need to go back to the number one rule: Love God and love our neighbour as ourselves fulfils the law and the Prophets. I believe that means that anything that causes harm – whether intended or not – cannot be accepted and cannot remain a part of Christian culture.
This goes to the those who abused Vicky Beeching as well. You’re conduct does NOT in any way fulfil what I said above about loving God and others. If you are against same – sex relationships, I’m not going to attack that. But the abuse needs to stop. Treat LGBTQ+ people like people FIRST!
Content warning: homophobia and Church abuse.
Christian singer, Vicky Beeching has revealed that she’s temporarily leaving social media after she received a torrent of homophobic abuse.
As you can tell from the embedded link, from Christianity Today, most of the abuse was by Christians.
I fumed when I first read this on Monday.
The debate over the LGBTQ+ community and the church still goes on. It looks like it may go on for a while. Some people still have a staunch traditional view when it comes to sexuality. Regardless, this can’t be accepted.
When will we learn? The church seems to have a dark history of abuse. Even if you take the Catholic Church sexual abuse to one side, the toxic culture of spiritual and emotional abuse is horrifying. Domestic violence is another scourge just coming to light.
Some people use the “not true Scotsman” argument. “Well, they (the bullies and abusers), aren’t real Christians”.
I think this is a convenient excuse, to be honest. The problem is, these issues aren’t just caused by a few “bad eggs”. If it was, it would be dealt with years ago. But like with the Catholic Church abuse scandal and others, the issue goes much deeper. As you’ll see if you click the link, unfortunately the Church’s attitudes towards sexuality and gender has exacerbated the rates of sexual assault and domestic violence.
Going back to the Vicky Beeching story, this issue is an issue that must be addressed. I firmly believe that it’s stems from certain members of the Church dehumanising the LGBTQ+ community. They are equated with “what they do”, rather than a child of God. Harmful stereotypes and misinformation are what fuelled the incredibly harmful “ex gay” therapy. Some attitudes, seems like haven’t changed.
There is good news for LGBTQ+ Christians though. A group, Equal Voices offered a national apology to the LGBTQ+ community on any mistreatment they suffered at the hands of the Church late last month.
Australian Christians are apologizing to the LGBTIQ community. Are you one of them? Read the apology here https://t.co/ULf1BtgYDw
— Anthony Venn-Brown OAM 🏳️🌈 (@gayambassador) March 27, 2017
Last time I checked the letter, over 500 people signed. Most of them identified as being a member of a Christian denomination. Others said they were ‘ex’ members and others identified as either agnostic or atheist. I do believe that this is a sign that there are Christians who want to move in the right direction and treat LGBTQ+ community with dignity and compassion. That doesn’t mean that what has happened to Vicky Beeching shouldn’t be addressed.
Here’s the thing. If you are a Christian and you see abusive comments on social media by other Christians, call it out. Block or report the person. If you hear it in real life, if you can, confront it head on. It’s about time all Christians start being real and calling out abuse when it occurs. Whether it’s against an LGBTQ+ person, someone suffering domestic violence or any other types of abuse, it needs to be called out and condemned.
There is another thing. Calling out abuse is only a tip of the iceberg as well. Christians need to develop a culture where abuse cannot fester. Everything needs to be examined, including theology and whether it’s used as an instrument of harm rather than healing. Correcting someone when they are wrong is one thing. But abuse cannot be tolerated. If you need to, look deeply into Scripture. Look at the historical context and the original Greek and Hebrew/ Aramaic to get a fuller understanding on what the authors meant. If you can’t get an exact answer, I believe that we need to go back to the number one rule: Love God and love our neighbour as ourselves fulfils the law and the Prophets. I believe that means that anything that causes harm – whether intended or not – cannot be accepted and cannot remain a part of Christian culture.
This goes to the those who abused Vicky Beeching as well. You’re conduct does NOT in any way fulfil what I said above about loving God and others. If you are against same – sex relationships, I’m not going to attack that. But the abuse needs to stop. Treat LGBTQ+ people like people FIRST!
If this post has brought up any issues, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14. If you’re from another country, feel free to leave numbers of any counselling services in the comments below.
Buzzfeed exposed ex gay or “conversion therapy” still being practised in Australia. This is despite the practice being condemned by all the major health bodies around the world, including the Australian Medical Association (AMA).
Fortunately, some States, including Victoria have started to clamp down on the unscientific practice. Health services will have a complaints commission. They will have greater powers to investigate any suspect health professionals. Anyone will be able to lodge a complaint, not just a client.
However, the article exposes an underground where the practice takes place and is fairly widespread, especially in evangelical Pentecostal circles. Buzzfeed Oz Politics posted a video on their Facebook page where an Australian Christian Lobby member refused to condemn ex – gay therapy during a debate concerning the “Marriage Amendment (Same – sex Marriage) Bill.
I actually find this infuriating. I’m furious that some Christians are so hell – bent (no pun intended), to hold on to their theology that they are willing to cause damage to someone’s life as a result. I’m more furious that a major political force, the Australian Christian Lobby, refuses to condemn the debunked and unethical practice, which is shown to cause unimaginable pain and suffering to many LGBTQ+ people and their friends and families around the world. Regardless of what you think about same – sex relationships, no one has the right to destroy someone’s life. Ever. I’m going to put it very bluntly and this may offend some people. Those who continually insist on conversion therapy have blood on their hands. The Human Rights Campaign in the U.S. mentions the harmful effects of such “therapy” including depression, alcohol and drug abuse and suicide. Live Science has also highlighted how harmful the so – called “therapy” is.
I get that people want to hold on to their beliefs and some people have genuine beliefs about whether same – sex relationships are moral. Some still hold the view that it isn’t. What I can’t believe is that people still insist that LGBTQ people change their orientation or gender identity when all evidence suggests that it doesn’t work. I can’ t believe how the Australian Government can watch idly as this goes on.
The U.S. is slowly clamping down on the practice, with New Jersey being the first state to ban the “therapy” for minors. Could it ever be outlawed outright? Even survivors of “ex gay therapy”, such as Samuel Brinton admitted that legally, there is a limit that should be done as to not clamp on people’s freedom of choice and beliefs if they are over eighteen. (Watch his speech at Google on YouTube. For some reason I can’t embed it here. Sorry about that).
I’ll add to that sentiment. Laws, regardless of how strict they are, can only do so much. It’s the culture in some organisations that needs to change. There needs to be a belief that LGBTQ+ have enough value to have a right to dignity and well – being. There needs to be a willingness for people to drop the stereotypes and caricatures that have given people licence to dehumanise and harm the LGBTQ+ community for so long. We need to change thinking on gender and sexuality. Organisations need to be willing to treat people in a way that protects their mental health and overall well – being, rather than use power to abuse people spiritually and psychologically.
Some people may have found this post hard to read. It was hard for me to write. Frankly, I was initially reluctant to write it. But I felt like I can’t let this go on and not say something. Too many lives have already been damaged or destroyed by this. I can’t let another life be ruined without speaking up.
Equal Voices aims to confront the failures of Christians to respond to LGBTQ people justly and “be reconciled with one another in the Body of Christ”. An apology is a top priority.
The apology
The apology covers the following points:
For being too slow to acknowledge that we need to say sorry to you.
For not speaking up
Speaking about you, without listening to you.
Not creating safe environments within our churches where people can speak openly and honestly about their struggles and understandings
Perpetuating stereotypes, and for not taking full account of your actual lived experiences
For talking to you or about you in a way as to suggest that sexual and/ or gender differences are not a part of your true identity as creatures made in the image of God, but are simply a result of brokenness or sin.
Churches have told LGBTQ+ people that they can change their orientation/ gender identity.
For not acknowledging that Christians who are seeking to be faithful to their Lord and to the Scriptures are coming to different conclusions on matters of gender, sexual orientation and marriage
One member has committed to:
Honour and support LGBTQ people in any way possible
Be open to gentle correction and guidance
Hold others to account for harmful words or actions
Resist efforts to “other” or exclude LGBTQ people
Engage in genuine conversation to gain perspectives of LGBTQ people
In March, Equal Voices will post a letter to their website that people can sign.
These points, especially number six, are huge. Finally, LGBTQ Christians will feel safe, regardless of whether they attend a progressive or Evangelical church.
What’s the next step?
While this is a great step forward, I wonder what it’ll mean for Christians politically. Many Evangelical churches have closely aligned themselves with conservative political parties and lobby groups, including the Australian Christian Lobby. Recently, Activate Church in Adelaide separated themselves from Australian Christian Churches (formerly Assemblies of God) to fully support the LGBTQ community. The pastor of Hillsong Church, Brian Houston has come under fire for not allowing openly LGBTQ people to serve in the Church.
I don’t think anyone should expect all conservative Christians to jump on this. No doubt, the ones that have raised their voices do so knowing that they’ll pay a great price. Many Evangelical, and former Evangelical Christians, such as America’s Rob Bell, have paid greatly when coming out in support of the LGBTQ+ community. So this is no small feat!
I think this is so positive. Soon, LGBTQ people will be able to worship, rest and be a part of a church community without their identity being a barrier. Finally, people in church will be able to enter, knowing that they don’t have to hide. They won’t have to sit through a sermon feeling like they don’t belong, that, despite their belief and their heart for God, that they are not enough.
I believe that this will clean up Christianity’s reputation a bit. The Church may finally be seen as a beacon of hope, rather han harm. So, for those involved in the EqualVoices movement, good on you for having the courage to speak up.
