Click here.
May the bishops be blessed after making such a difficult decision.
Orthodox Bishops Statement on Same-Sex Unions: Moral Crisis in our Nation
25 Wednesday Jun 2008
Posted in Uncategorized
25 Wednesday Jun 2008
Posted in Uncategorized
Click here.
May the bishops be blessed after making such a difficult decision.
Hi Ken, hope everything is fine with you.
I must say that personally I am glad that the Swedish Church has changed its view of homosexuality.
Like Desmond Tutu said: There seams to be an obsession with sexuality in many churches today.
All is well Petter, as I hope it is for you since we last met. Thanks for the comment.
I can’t really remark on what Bishop Tutu said because I don’t know the full context and why he said it. Until I do, I’ll reserve comment simply because I don’t like when anyone is quoted out of context. The last thing I want is to be guilty of that very thing.
I will say that I strongly disagree with the position of the Swedish Church, and I know I’m not alone. There are some things the Bible is very clear on, and this matter, along with adultery and fornication is one of them.
This issue seems to get more and more emotionally charged as the years go by, which to me simply proves just how powerful sex itself is, and how much we underestimate it. I try my best to not let emotions drive me on such issues, but understand just how difficult this can be. For this reason I’m very glad to have the Council of Orthodox Bishops, the writings of the Early Fathers (and believe me they are VERY clear about the Church’s position on such matters), and the tradition of the Orthodox Church and to lean on. Whether or not we want to believe it, these issues carry more weight than the average person (myself included, of course) can handle, so having all of that to rely on for help is not just liberating, but provides me with a confidence that’s hard to explain to anyone outside of Orthodoxy. Bishops are to handle such matters because of who they have shown themselves to be, and it’s been that way in Orthodoxy since the very first Council in Jerusalem.
Ultimately for me, if I’m still at a crossroads about an issue, it will come down to whether or not I can see Jesus Christ giving approval to decisions. Can I see Him saying it’s okay for homosexuals to be together, not to mention marry? No I can’t. Not Him who told us it was bad for a man to even LUST after a woman other than his wife. Christ wanted us to live holy lives worthy of the approval of His Father Who He pointed to continuously. I don’t see adultery, fornication, or homosexuality (just to mention a few) being party of a holy life.
So, it seems that you and I are in disagreement here. Quite frankly, disagreeing with me doesn’t amount to a hill of beans. The problem for us all is whether or not we find ourselves in disagreement with God.