Love and friendship, really?
B. LAHAYE: And I want to make it clear right here, we're not angry at homosexuals, really aren't. We love homosexuals and we want to help them. And I know of hundreds...
"No greater love than this that a person lay down his life for a friend." It seems to me that much of the talk about love of God and neighbor is often more about love of self. Paul calls it selfish ambition. Agape is much different that "tolerant feelings toward someone." According to Jesus isn’t love an action that mean respects and honor?
When I hear comments from Christians like "we really love homosexuals and want to help them." First off, who is "we"? I wonder what they really mean? Does one mean love them like Jesus, you know, die for them? Does this mean to find out where they are being persecuted in society and at church and be the voice of justice for them? Is that what she means by loving them? Help them? Help them to what? To be treated with the same dignity we treat those we love, like, and agree with? Let’s not ask ourselves how we are doing, let’s ask a gay person if he/she is loved.
I once posed this question to a group of Christians I was immediately labeled liberal and treated very poorly by the group. It was as if they had a license to attack and treat me with no respect, with hatred and fits of rage. According to this group to love meant to tell people how sinful the group thought they were. The group seemed to have ignored the following:"The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: idolatry, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy…I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God." (Galatians 5) It makes my stomach sick just thinking about it, and I’m not gay.
If it really is love, I wonder why does it seem like hate? Just curious? If it is help why does it seem like exclusion? It seems more like the false prophets Jesus spoke about-- the wolves in sheep’s clothing. Jesus warned Christians to beware of those false prophets who lead you astray by causing you to cool from the love of neighbor. (MT11:24) Perhaps one of the greatest false prophecies that has led the Church astray is a segment of the church’s the treatment of gay people???
MCLAREN: And I think one of the greatest things that Christians can do, especially Christians with the name evangelical, would be to start making some friends and invite their neighbors over, and get to know someone who's gay, get to know someone who's very different. And not to just fix them or argue with them, but really to understand them. I would add: pray and worship God with them-- and this can only happen in community.
Word History: A friend is a lover, literally. The relationship between Latin amcus "friend" and am "I love" is clear, as is the relationship between Greek philos "friend" and phile "I love."
(Webster)
Love and friendship, really? Perhaps when we become friends with "gay" persons we will begin learn to love them as "persons" without the need for adjectives.
7 Comments:
Amen.
Pardon me while I ramble for a moment, you got me all fired up again.
Along with the gay adjective, I wish we could get rid of the liberal v. moderate v. conservative label. Bottom line, when we as Christ followers start spending more and more time with the very Jesus we claim to follow, we love better. It’s that simple. And I’m not talking about more time at Bible studies, or Sunday school, or attending a second service on Wednesday nights. While those are great and they serve a purpose, I’m talking about the hard core anonymous service to people that don’t know your name. The ones that might not ever thank you. The dirty. The unlovable. The unwanted.
If you think that you can’t just invite a person (who happens to be gay) to worship or pray with you, if you can’t quite fathom it, then get a little dirty on a Saturday morning. Get a little anonymous. Pretty soon the homophobic in you.. the racist in you.. the collective wagon circlers in your midst.. you will all care a lot less about the sexual preference or any preference of the people that are being loved (or you’re loving with). It doesn’t happen overnight, but slowly but surely.. well, it just doesn't matter anymore. It never should have in the first place.
OK, I'm done now. Thanks Rick for your challenging words.
Rick,
Although I'm sure that our theologies concerning this subject are somewhat different, I don't freakin' care. I wish my fellow Evangelicals would take a page from your book and actually take the time to form relationships with their lost neighbors before they try to sit 'em down, go through a tract, and lead 'em to Christ. I think the best way of leading someone to Christ is by showing a genuine concern in their life. Be their friend because you just want to be their friend, not because of some ulterior motive, no matter how "righteous" that motive might be.
Keep the faith, brother,
Josh
Love is...the woman at the well...yah, I know you've 5 husbands, in fact your not married to the man your with now...but, come close I want to tell about this well, this never ending spring that dwells from with in. Kneeling before the adulteress, scribling in the sand and saying to her...who condems you now? Is our love more condeming than it is life giving? Thanks for stretching us Rick.
Good post, and good food fer thought. It's hard for anyone to know their own motives for "loving", and most of us are ignorant about how to love someone so "different" from us until we take the time to seek out how "like" us they are.
Gosh, so much what you've said in this post (and others) resonates with me. Why is it when we make an effort to love and accept others, we're labeled "liberal" and then ignored from then on? When certain Christians make statements like Lahaye on homosexuals or the poor or whatever and try to justify/validate their statement because they "know" people from said groups, I really, really doubt they do. If they did, if they shared life with these people, then they wouldn't have the attitude and presumption they have. McLaren couldn't be more right on.
Hoo boy, Rick, you said it all for me!
At an HIV/AIDS conference I attended this weekend (more details over here), a pastor pointed out that homophobia isn't going to be cured by knowledge or intellectualism - because it's an emotional reaction. So Brian McLaren's suggestion that people step over the line and get to know the people they think they despise is a powerful one. Because my experience is that until I understand someone's story, and their truth, I can't "love" or "help" them.
I admit, it's hard to love the unlovable. In fact, I have a hard time loving those who claim Christian love and then deny it in their attitudes and their actions. Yet I know I can be just as hypocritical, at times... I find the stones I would throw dropping at my feet, once again...
As for the LaHayes, and folks like them, all I can do for them is pity them, and pray for them that they can find the will to live a little more like Jesus. You've certainly given them a challenge in this posting, brother.
Amen, amen.
Post a Comment
<< Home