About our opponents.

August 23, 2007 by Pastor Dan.

Jesus had words for those who sought to destroy him.

For the men who physically took his life by nailing him to the cross, Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” The centurions were simply carrying out orders from a secular government.

But for those who were deeply religious yet constantly sought to silence his teachings, who frequently opposed him or belittled his insights, he had harsher words. “You blind guides, hypocrites.”

The spiritual reading of the texts leads me not to apply harsh words to our opponents in the struggle for understanding and acceptance of LGBT Christians and our place in God’s house, even though Jesus looked upon religious mis-guidance as much more serious. When I reflect, several weeks after the ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Chicago, on the bitter and cranky statements coming from Lutheran “CORE” and Word Alone factions, I must only pray this prayer which our Lord has also given us: “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.”

I do not fear conservative Lutherans.  I grew up with them. I knew no pejorative terms then because, in the old Norwegian mission church in which I grew up, it seemed everybody was pretty conservative.

When I made the first forays into self-discovery as a late teenager, I only began to sense dissonance between the strictly conservative views of church people and my own innate sexuality and gender identity. There was no dissonance between the self I was discovering – bringing to light – and my faith in Jesus Christ as Lord. The gradual sense of dissonance was between myself and other Christians whom I came to realize could not understand the inner discoveries I was making.

Somehow I came through that entire period (probably ages 16 through 26) relatively unscathed. I suffered no terrible period of self-doubt or self-hatred. I was never suicidal. I didn’t internalize society’s homophobia. For a time, perhaps, I must have partitioned my mind to keep the “gay self” and the “Christian self” from harming one another while both were maturing.  Looking back, I credit much of my survival to the fact that, growing up in a Lutheran household and attending Sunday school and worship virtually every week, I did not ever hear a message of bigotry, misunderstanding or hatred about human sexuality or homosexuality.

Part of this was, no doubt, the times. People didn’t talk about such things in the 1960s. But the more important factor was that the pastors and teachers in our church preached the Gospel and led us in faith. They did not use the Bible as a weapon to terrorize anyone. They did not, for whatever reason, latch on to controversial social issues and use them as catapults to launch their own campaign of power and intimidation or money and prosperity. These good men (pastors were only men in those days) didn’t even dream of a radio or TV ministry. But they built a community of spiritual growth, mutual care, and faithful discipleship in the local church where we all gathered weekly. What a gift that was not to have suffered spiritual abuse or religious bigotry in my emerging years.

But what now? After coming out during my seminary years I could no longer partition my mind to protect the gay self from the Christian self. I had to re-integrate what had become segmented. And as I faced this (mostly alone at first) I still held— with deep respect— my memories for the “conservative” Christians who taught me the faith I still hold.

One thing I have learned is that there ought to be no division or dissent between us in matters of faith. We all worship the same God, we all are followers of the same Lord Jesus. We all heed the same call to discipleship, to forgiveness, to stewardship. There is nothing in the ancient Creeds or the Lutheran Confessions (The Book of Concord, 1580) in which LGBT Christians or heterosexual Christians need to argue. We are not spiritual enemies. Our disagreements are disagreements in faith about matters which we face and burdens which we bear. But our disagreements are not in the content of our faith nor in our commitments to remain faithful.

Yet our opponents do not agree with those simple statements. Are they using catapults or weapons? Or are they just “going postal” with their fears and prejudices? I don’t know for sure. “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

But what they seem to be making an article of faith —and I say this with misgiving and caution, since one cannot make a new article of faith — is that we who are LGBT Christians are either disregarding the Word of God (as fundamentalists would say, we are “Bible doubters”), that we are deluding ourselves, or clinging to a caricature of true Christian faith.

These and other mis-characterizations have been discussed elsewhere thoroughly. But my concern now is that these splintering groups of Lutherans are trying to elevate their concerns (fears, prejudices) to a level of theological disagreement which the disagreements do not merit.

But am I being arrogant and condescending to suggest that our opponents have done something which needs forgiveness? Do I have a right to say not only that I felt stepped on (”Excuse me!), but sinned against?

Jesus anticipated there would be times like this. He suggested that even brothers and sisters in the community would at times commit wrongs against their siblings. We are instructed to forgive one another as we have been forgiven, to do it 70 x 7 times, and to give pause when we are coming into God’s presence if we realize that our brother or sister has something against us.

—Pastor Dan Hooper, Los Angeles

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