In the Fridae article 08 Aug 2011, the former
Evangelical Baptist pastor Steve Parelli talks about his ex-gay and
coming out experience. He came out in his mid-40s, and that was about 10
years ago. Steve spoke about the need to re-think the whole evangelical
theology, and not only adjust our scriptures on the same sex parts.
Coming out however is slowly moving away from just a Queer theology of
progressive/liberal churches into new churches with a Progressive
Protestanism. This is surprising since the anti-gay movement has been
led by the Evangelicals. However, the leading of the Holy Spirit in the
Charismatics changes perceptions.
The evangelical theology of Protestanism
has descended to be little different from the Catholics/Orthodoxy and the
strict Jewish faiths. The Reformation calls for Faith in the grace of
God, they have added in the law for which by Gays have become the
most condemed. Hence, such evangelical faith became mere participation in the routine religious sacraments and
repetitive quoting of scriptures without insight. However, the Holy Spirit
has been bringing revival through the new wave of Modern Protestanism in
the last 50 years and this move of God is now spreading to the GLBT
community.
Christianity is not made up of the
Evangelical versus Progressive/Liberal divide per say. It is a
Catholic/Orthodoxy world (70%). Progressives/Liberals
only make up of less than 2%
(US Episcopal, UM, UCC etc). The Gay churches has hitherto came from
progressive movement where the conversation is about how to re-think the
entire evangelical theology in light of our coming out.
However, In the last 10 years, with outing of
prominent charismatic evangelicals such as Roberts liardon, there is new
peculiar wave of gay charismatic evangelicals. It appears that the
"revival" of the GLBT Christian community is taking upon a more
charismatic and evangelical tone to the disdain of many progressives
seeing it as abandoning liberal theological integrity.
Ironically, those who move by the Holy Spirit
of God should have been the first to discern the acceptance of God of
the GLBT community. Rather than living by the letter of the law we
should move by the Spirit of the Law.
There is a rethinking of theology focusing on the grace of God in Christ Jesus rather than the religious laws
which has become a bondage. Without the Holy Spirit of God, it is
difficult to live out the ministry of Christ with grace nor interpret
the bible consistently for our modern times/context. The grace of God is not
really a teaching, but it is Christ the person. The churches are moving
to a greater understanding of God's grace, the heart of God which
will eventually include the GLBT community.
(Mat
19:12 NKJV) "For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their
mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and
there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of
heaven's sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."
The Jewish religious laws did forbade same sex acts as unclean
because it was commonly associated with the pagan priests making
themselves eunuchs and the people of faith would have anal sex with
these castrated priests to join themselves with the demonic spirits.
Hence, same sex acts in the usual idol worship context was a religious
abomination where the men who worship the gods was frowned upon. Gays
were commonly known as natural Eunuchs in contrast to those who castrate
themselves in the name of religion. As Jesus said sarcastically "there
are eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's
sake".
(Deu
23:17 KJV) There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a
sodomite of the sons of Israel.
(Deu 23:18 KJV) Thou shalt not bring the hire of a whore, or the price
of a dog, into the house of the LORD thy God for any vow: for even both
these are abomination unto the LORD thy God.
The Christian Right often mentions that permitting
homosexuality would result in gays having sex with dogs. Hence, the
likes of Pastor Rony Tan has likened gays to dogs. This is a gross
distortion of religious history. In the bible, in religious faith
worship of pagan gods, the dogs of the temple are young men, that would
help the priests by availing themselves to have anal sex with the
worshippers of the demonic deities.
The evangelicals are deluding themselves when they
say they interpret the bible literally (few people do!). For example, in
Deu 23:17, they would interpret "Sodomites" as Gays, but literally the
hebrew word used for Sodomites or "Kadesh" is a Canaanite religious male
religious prostitute. Reading Deu 23:17,18 together, the children of
Israel shall not be made to serve in the temples of these gods which is
an abomination to the God of Israel. It's not about same sex
orientation, rather sex with the deities. On the other extreme,
Progressives deny themselves understanding the meaning of the verses all
together by not believing in the reality of demonic entitities, and
generalising that we could not believe in the bible literally or that
God is a mystery.
The OT biblical laws have no grace, but grace came in through Jesus Christ. Eg if
you accidentally killed another person, you are liable with an eye for
an eye punishment. Jesus is a picture of the OT cities of refuge where
one could escape to avoid punishment under the law since they were
actually innocent. Likewise gays are innocent.
(Acts
11:5 NKJV) "I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a
vision, an object descending like a great sheet, let down from heaven by
four corners; and it came to me.
(Acts 11:6 NKJV) "When I observed it intently and considered, I saw
four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and
birds of the air.
(Acts 11:7 NKJV) "And I heard a voice saying to me, 'Rise, Peter; kill
and eat.'
For the Charismatic Evangelicals or modern
protestanism/ Anglicanism where the ministry
of the Holy Spirit becomes paramount, we are reminded that the first
Christians were Jewish. Yet, it was the Spirit of God who commanded
Peter to break the OT scripture by eating unclean animals whom Peter
later summised as ministering to the Gentiles.
It was the Holy Spirit of God who moved upon the
Roman Centurion who asked for Peter's presence and when Peter preached
the good news, the Holy Spirit fell on the Gentile believers and they
begin to speak in tongues.
The Holy Spirit is proclaiming the Gospel of
Salvation in Christ alone. Jesus is God's grace. He is moving in the
hearts of Christians breaking their hearts of legalism and self
righteousness exemplified by their anti-gay crusade.
It was the Holy Spirit of God, whose still and quiet voice
confronted me that I was Gay. I already knew. God was
asking me to accept my own sexual orientation. I was the problem, and
not God because I wanted to belong, and being gay would meant being an
outcast. Being Gay and Christian broke through all my self
righteousness and pride. God knew, and God had accepted me. Who am I, to
reject myself when God already had accepted my sexuality. I was accepted
in the beloved, accepted in tJesus Christ.
There is a wind blowing, a mighty wind, it is the
Holy Spirit of God moving amongsts Gay Charismatic Evangelical
Christians to come out. For today is your day, your destiny in God's
grace. The time of tarrying before God is over. Our
generation have had to wait for the
freedom to come out. We got lost in the desert of our closets, our
theological baggages, fears, hurts and pain too difficult to bear. We
live in the era where to survive was hiding the closet. The desert
destroyed us from within.
Today, the younger generation have much more
acceptance and freedom coming out as gays. It will get much better. God
is doing a mighty move this day. New GLBT Churches are arising in
the US and Asia, that
will move in the mighty power of the Holy Spirit and by God's love,
grace and mercy. They are starting to move out of the
progressive/liberal fold.
They will be praising God aloud with tongues filled
with the Holy Spirit of God. Modern Protestanism/Anglicanism just like the Jews of old
will be amazed how God could be moving in the gay community whom they
had previously condemned as sinners. God's amazing grace is
coming.
The grace of God which has hitherto extended to the
Gentiles, will now be extended to Eunuch who are born like that. They
will bring along an extended revelation of God's grace, a breakdown of
the discrimanatory religious/societal structures, and a deeper respect
for human worth and dignity, and a focus on loving and accepting
ourselves as being created beautifully in the image of God.
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A detailed breakdown from
Wikipedia of Christianity is as follows:-
a. Catholicism - 1.2 billion
b. Protestanism - 650 million
1.
Historical Protestanism 350m (Baptist 100m, Lutheran 75m, Methodist 75m,
Reformed 75m). United Church of Christ 1.2m. United Methodist 12m.
2. Moden
Protestanism 274m (Pentecostalism 130m, non denominational 80m)
c. Eastern Orthodoxy - 230 million
d. Oriental Orthodoxy - 82 million
e. Anglicanism - 82 million (US Espiscopal church
2.4m)