Photo by Jordan Madrid on Unsplash Paper Presented at the Evangelical Theological Society SW Conference 2022 on April 1, 2022. Download it as a PDF or read it below. Orientation-as-Ontology-A-Theological-Critique-Final-Draft-1Download Resources
Photo by Ian Taylor on Unsplash This article was originally published on Advocates for Truth under the title Christian Basics: Gender, Marriage, and Sex. It certainly isn't meant to cover all the aspects of this conversation, but it will concisely lay out the Bible's basic teachings on these subjects. Introduction June is declared to be Pride month for the LGBTQ+ community. As such, gender, sex, and marriage are frequent talking points in our culture right now. What do Jesus and the Bible teach about these issues? How should Christians respond? What Does Jesus Say About This? Many Christians and non-Christians alike will say that Jesus never addresses issues of gender and sexuality. However, this is not the case. In the context of discussing divorce in Matthew 19:1-12 and [Read more...]
Photo by Margaux Bellott on Unsplash This article was originally published on Advocates for Truth under the title "Should Christians Support Fairness For All?" Introduction Since the Obergefell decision legalized same-sex marriage in 2015, there has been increasing political tension between the LGBTQ community and religious communities that hold to traditional views of gender and sexuality. More and more cases like cake baker Jack Phillips are arising (Phillips has been sued for refusing to use his creative talents to make cakes for a gay wedding and celebrating a gender transition). Holding to convictions about marriage being between one man and one woman or about gender being tied to biological sex are increasingly being deemed “discriminatory.” In response to this conflict, [Read more...]
Photo by Matt Popovich on Unsplash On June 15, 2020, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in Bostock v. Clayton County that protections for discrimination on the basis of "sex" in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also extends to sexual orientation and gender identity. Justice Neil Gorsuch authored the opinion, joined by Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan. Justice Alito filed a dissenting opinion joined by Justice Thomas. Justice Kavanaugh authored a separate dissent. What was the Court's reasoning? I read the majority opinion and both dissents. (You can find them here.) Everyone agreed that the original wording of "sex" in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 referred to one's biological sex. So what was the Court's reasoning in including sexual [Read more...]
During an LGBTQ Townhall hosted by CNN on October 10, Beto O'Rourke, to his credit, gave a very honest and straightforward answer to an interesting question: Do you think religious institutions like colleges, churches, charities---should they lose their tax-exempt status if they oppose same-sex marriage? Watch his response below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iR02Kf4wS_0&fbclid=IwAR0qTcT-8wPAhXSCUBqbGZQP-D1R5el9IAaYSv-mSiEej0fNiRf8eWMUwH4 He answers, "Yes. [Applause] There can be no reward, no benefit, no tax break, for anyone or any institution, any organization in America that denies the full human rights, and the full civil rights of every single one of us. And so, as president, we are going to make that a priority, and we are going to stop those who are infringing on the [Read more...]
Last Tuesday, the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood released the Nashville Statement, a series of affirmations and denials from top evangelical leaders regarding human sexuality, gender, marriage, and LGBT issues. Why is the Nashville Statement Necessary? The short answer is that certain assumptions about gender and sexuality that people once took for granted in both religious and nonreligious circles are no longer being accepted. Norms and standards about what it means to be male and female and what the purpose and definition of marriage is are all being challenged by our culture. I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing. While I don't agree with the direction that the culture wants to head in, the challenge brought by the culture will force both the church and society [Read more...]