Inclusiveness, Homosexuality, and the Church of the Brethren

Well, there are many different views concerning homosexuality within the Church of the Brethren, so I thought I would share some thoughts of my own in the form of a sermon which I wrote for a class entitled Prophetic Voices in Preaching. I think it speaks very intuitively into my personal view of the issue and at least one part of the larger topic.

This is not the end-all-be-all on the topic, but it is a stepping off point for the larger context of the debate. Hope you enjoy...


MATTHEW 15:21-28: JESUS AND THE CANAANITE WOMAN

I love the Canaanite woman! I admire her spirit, her tenacity, her guts and her courage!

I mean, come on, think about it. As far as Jesus and the disciples are concerned, she is a complete outsider; she wasn't Jewish and had no business turning to a Jewish religious leader for help. She didn't even worship the right God or follow the right customs or laws.

She was a nameless woman searching to find healing and wholeness. She comes to find Jesus because she has heard he could help her, but she has to jump through a few hoops first.

After the woman decided to approach Jesus, after she saw him and called upon him to heal her daughter, she had to deal with his silence. She had to overcome the natural reaction that surely welled up within her to simply give up and go away.

When she persisted in crying out she had to deal with those closest to Jesus - with the disciples, who tried to drive her away and who even went so far as to ask Jesus to send her away.

She had to overcome the scorn, the frustration, and the repugnance of those around her - those who seemed to have been told by the master that he had no responsibility towards outsiders like her.

That’s an interesting thought, but nothing like that happens in our church, right? We are open to all sorts of people. What does this story have to do with our church?

We would love to say that our church and those in it are most like the Canaanite woman in the story, we have that great faith in which God finds favor, but I have a good feeling that too often many of us are more like the disciples. We meet someone who is different from us and we ignore him or tell her to go away.

Too often, we Christians are the reason outsiders suffer; because often it is we Christians who stand at the forefront of the fight against any rights for our lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgendered sisters and brothers who face that same kind of persecution as the Canaanite woman every time they step into a church.

Let’s be honest folks, we could argue about what the Bible says about homosexuality until the day of judgment is at hand, and there would still be disagreements. Even so, let’s take a step back for a moment and ask ourselves a few questions.

Are our LGBT sisters and brothers receiving love from the church?
Are they finding hope in Christ?
Have they found a place in the family of God?

Mostly the answer is “No.” Instead, we see LGBT persons leaving the church because God’s love sounds like a pleasant sounding lie. New Testament scholar Dale Martin sums up the problem when he says:

There can be no debate about the fact that the church’s stand on homosexuality has caused oppression, loneliness, self-hatred, violence, sickness, and suicide for millions of people. If the church wishes to continue with its traditional interpretation it must demonstrate, not just claim that it is more loving to condemn homosexuality than to affirm homosexuals. Can the church show that same-sex loving relationships damage those involved in them? Can the church give compelling reasons to believe that it really would be better for all lesbian and gay Christians to live alone, without the joy of intimate touch, without hearing a [partner’s] voice when they go to sleep or awake? Is it really better for lesbian and gay teenagers to despise themselves and endlessly pray that their very personalities be reconstructed so that they may experience romance like their straight friends?(1)

It has been said, and we may have even said it ourselves that, “I’m not against gays; I’m just against gay marriage.” Think about what is being said there. I’m not against gays, but I’m against giving them legal rights for their relationships. I’m not against gays, but I’m against treating them like family. I’m not against gays, but I want them to experience pain, hardship, and anguish that I don’t want to ever experience. Is this really the message the church wants to convey? Is this really the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ?

I say no! The good news of the Gospel is that we can change our minds; we can open our eyes to a higher calling, even when we don't necessarily agree with what is going on.

The author of 2 Timothy tells us that Paul was “reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.”

We have a spirit of power and love, which enables us to be not the disciples with a weak faith that excludes, but to be true disciples of Jesus. Not only being open and including those like the Canaanite woman whose enduring and powerful faith empowers us to open our eyes.

My grandmother, God rest her soul, has taught me a lot about faith and love. In her life and her ministry, she intentionally reached out to those like the Canaanite woman. She was not a woman who was one to quote scripture, or speak theologically about controversial issues. What she did, was more powerful, she used not her words to demonstrate her faith; she used her life and her actions to speak of her faith.

While my grandfather was getting his degree at Manchester, she was working at JC Penney, and at this particular store, there was a man who was openly gay, and therefore was looked down upon by most of his co-workers, being ridiculed, and harassed. However, my grandmother made it a point to every day seek out this man, give him a hug, and say “God Loves You!”

Likewise, when Jesus came to this earth, through his ministry, he made the point to say “God Loves You all!” God loves you Pharisee, Canaanite, Conservative, Liberal, Heterosexual, and Homosexual.

I have a good feeling that in this passage, Jesus is testing the disciples, who were a little too eager to send the Canaanite woman away from Jesus and who in fact begged Jesus to send her away. He is making us think. Think about where we come from, whom we are, what are our faults that make us outsiders within the kingdom of God.

He is giving us a chance to realize that we are not part of a “select few” who are worthy to be saved. We are more like the Canaanite woman, a woman who does not deserve anything from God. He wants us to realize that we are not the “perfect” religious people we think we are. We are in the company of the common, ordinary, broken, screwed up people for whom he came and died on the cross. We, even as disciples in Christ are no more worthy of God's love than the prostitutes, tax collectors, adulterers, mental-cases, and losers of all kinds who we in Jesus company.

However, like the Canaanite woman, we are all made worthy through our great faith when we open our eyes to see those who we persecute, to see those who we treat as outsiders, who we dismiss and marginalize.

This is the message of the story of the Canaanite woman. This is the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord, all praise and glory be unto his name. Amen!
________________________
(1) Martin, Dale B. "Arsenokoites and Malakos:Meanings and Consequences" Biblical Ethics and Homosexuality: Listening to Scripture. Ed. Robert Rawley. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996. 130-131.


(Sermon originally written by Stephen Hershberger for Prophetic Voices in Preaching on December 7, 2006)

Addendum, Historic Peace Church

I am aware that there is more to being an historic peace church than simply abstaining from the military. It is more about working toward peace on all fronts, in our own homes, in our churches and communities, within our nation, as well as abroad.It is working to bring about wholeness to all...

Why do I focus on the military and the COB? Mainly because it is the focus of most conversations that occur within the realm of the seminary and denominational levels, and since it hogs the spotlight in most occasions, it is the issue that I have to deal with and speak about most often.

Do I believe that people's theologies and beliefs should be silenced? Not at all! However, as clergy we have a responsibility to the community that is the church. Edifying the larger body. When we are licensed or ordained we affirm that we will uphold the polity and practice as well as the doctrine of the church and denomination to which we are being licensed or ordained. Does this mean we can't believe other things and can't work toward changing those things? By no means, but it does require us to discover ways to work within the system, bringing about a refreshed understanding of our heritage, backing up our new discoveries with conversation, experiential relevance, biblical understanding, construction of theologies, etc. This is not something that we can take lightly.

Many times I wish that I could simply go on my gut, making the system work for me and my goals. But, no matter what setting I find myself, no matter what setting any of us find ourselves, we must recognize that the world is larger than ourselves, the church is larger than ourselves...

Am I being passive aggressive in my pontificating? Probably, but not intentionally! Do I agree with what many others say that run counter to what I have said? Yes, I do. Am I writing this in response to anything? Yeah, I am...

In short, do I support those who have decided that they want to do military chaplaincy while trying to remain Brethren? Yes, although I also recognize that they will not get any support past the individual and/or congregational level. Is there anything we can do about it? Possibly, but with agencies such as On Earth Peace, and many individuals and other organizations which are in place to remind us of our heritage and our historical stance on such things, it will be a steep climb. I am willing to be convinced in either direction, I am open to the many possibilities of the moving of the spirit and believe that God calls us all in many different directions, some that may run counter to denominational or congregational or individual calls. If one is contemplating such a call as military chaplaincy, I know that it is not always about the overarching call (i.e. being called into military chaplaincy), but its the specificity of the call (i.e. one would find more acceptance stating that they wanted to work at a VA hospital). As a member of the set apart ministry, we have to be able to understand when to draw connections to various institutions and when to work to keep them separate.

As a self-proclaimed heretic, I do not simply say and do things to evoke responses, I converse with a myriad of persons, I do my research, I temper that with my own theology and the theology and heritage of the church. Finding the best way to work toward change, where change is needed, this the main goal of this heretic.

Brethren and the Military

I am still working through the whole issue of the Church of the Brethren and it's relationship with the military... The traditions of the Brethren often seem to be in conflict with the current sentiment of many who identify themselves as Brethren.

Support for those who decide to enter into the military is often found within various congregations and almost all congregations will support persons in the military on a individual basis. However, as one moves higher through the ranks of the COB, one will find more resistance to the idea.

But why is there such a disconnect? Partially because as a denomination, we are working towards reclaiming our heritage as an Historical Peace Church, born and formed through the persecution of the State Churches, i.e. Catholic, Reformed, and Lutheran. These churches had the backing of the military and other law enforcement agencies of the time, and found ways to imprison, torture, and murder those who did not believe in the same things as the sanctioned church of the state. Therefore, we find great difficulty trying to align ourselves as a denomination with the same mechanisms which provided our forefathers with great persecution.

I have to admit that there is much more into the debate than this one issue. There is the fact that in our understanding of the bible, we find that Jesus calls us to move away from violence toward more constructive forms of resistance. Now this view has shifted throughout the years, beginning with complete non-resistance towards an active nonviolent civil disobedience.

However, if we look at our current congregations and the individuals that make up the larger body, we find many who have served in the military in the historic wars of the past and the present, WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, etc. others have chosen alternatives to military service, albeit noncombatant service within the military, Conscientious Objection, Alternative Service such as Brethren Volunteer Service or such similar organizations. At times and places the church's peace stance is spoken strongly and others it seems all but forgotten.

With a dichotomy between the denominational and individual levels on the issues that face the church. How are people who are within the ranks of clergy to handle the various views of the denomination, agencies, congregations, individuals that make up the Church of the Brethren?

I have found and believe that as individuals we are able to follow our own conscience in choosing whether or not we would serve within the military organization, no matter our status. However, when we take that step toward licensing and ordination, we must consider not only our own personal feelings, but the overarching sentiment of the denomination which we represent.

Therefore as a member of the clergy within the Church of the Brethren, I must obstain from participating within the military, because as an ordained person, I am required to uphold and undergird the polity and doctrine of the denomination. And as a denomination we hold to the historic peace stance that we are to work nonviolently towards peace and obstain from actions that may cause injury to others.

That is why most people, no matter which level they find themselves have fewer reservations when a lay person comes wanting to enter into military service compared to a clergy person wanting to enter into military chaplaincy. This often does not make sense to many, but when one considers that it is almost impossible to truly enter into active duty as a chaplain and truly believe that you will remain a noncombatant, especially if one is deployed to a hostile zone. Furthermore, would one truly be able to preach a message of peace, civil disobedience, and not to mention subversion from the greater society when one must commit completely to the military machine.

Now this is not to say that all types of military service are completely taboo for the Church of the Brethren clergy person. If one considers a call to chaplaincy at let's say a VA hospital... This does not bring with it the same negative connections and complications as does enlisting into active duty. VA hospital chaplaincy does not require the same sacrifices and compromises. One is not called upon to put on the uniform or swear the oaths that are required in military service, one is not required to be completely committed to the ideals of the military and the ideology that the US is the ultimate force for good that will overcome all who do not believe as we do.

I should note that I do not believe that the Military arm of the government is evil and is unnecessary, but I do believe that there needs to be some change within the ranks of the government and military to refocus the aims of military force toward creating stability and peace, rather than working towards fashioning other nations into miniature versions of the US and its democratic ways.

Welcome to the Jungle

Hello everyone! To give you an idea of what in the world I am blogging about, I thought I might give you the thought process that when through its creation.

I have been contemplating starting a blog for some time, but during Thanksgiving dinner my family started discussing the Church of the Brethren, Bethany Seminary, Theology, etc. Not your typical holiday conversation, but considering my family is made up of three ordained ministers, two licensed ministers, and a number of others who are involved in ministry and the church, etc. it makes for some interesting conversations. 

During our discussions, I found that all of us recognized that every denomination and religion have their shortfalls as well as strengths, so I thought I would take this opportunity to pontificate on the various topics related to the Church of the Brethren and the larger church in general as I come across them. 

I have found that to fully grasp the various topics, issues, controversies, etc. I do best to put pen to paper (or in this case finger to keyboard).

So if you don't agree with what I have to say... Well, that's fine... You don't have to read this. Otherwise, enjoy and feel free to comment, discuss, etc.