Survey: Parents of LGBT+ Loved Ones
Our friends and partner orgnization, Lead Them Home (LTH), is in the process of expanding their top-selling resource, Guiding Families of LGBT+ Loved Ones. In doing so, they want parents to hear directly from other parents in learning how to best engage, relate to, care for, and foster faith identity in LGBT+ loved ones. Bill Henson, the founder and president […]
10 Things I Wish All Christian Leaders Knew About Gay Teens in their Church
Those gay teens in your church? I was one of them. I didn’t really know it yet—I didn’t identify as gay—but I was attracted to women. I felt an increasing intrigue towards them, while boys were… kind of gross. I had five brothers (and seven sisters), so I grew up fighting with the boys, […]
You Don’t Need to Pray that God Makes Me Straight
The following blog is written by Dr. Greg Coles. Greg is part of The Center’s collaboration team and has a Ph.D. in English from Penn State. He’s also the author of the recently released: Single, Gay, Christian. It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a good conservative Christian boy who realizes he’s gay will spend […]
Gay Celibacy is Weird, and That’s a Good Thing
*The following post is written by Greg Coles. Greg is a Ph.D. student at Penn State and is part of the collaborative team for The Center. Greg is also the author of the recently released book Single, Gay, Christian, which is published by InterVarsity Press. I’ve always been bad at blending in. I grew up in […]
The Debate about Same-Sex Marriage is Not a Secondary Issue
That may sound like a bold claim, and maybe it is, but it’s important that you read the previous post before you read this one. In short, there are many methodological questions that often go unanswered when Christians are quick to say that same-sex marriage is or isn’t a primary theological (or gospel, or essential, […]
Is the Debate about Same-Sex Marriage a Primary or Secondary Theological Issue?
I hear this question quite often, and my response—which is frustrating to some—is always the same. What do you mean by primary and secondary, and how do you determine what is primary and secondary? People often sort out their theological convictions in terms of primary and secondary, or essential and non-essential, or gospel issues and […]
Eugene Peterson Believes in a Christian View of Marriage After all
What a weird week in Evangelicaland. Yesterday, Eugene Peterson was interviewed about his recent and final book, As Kingfishers Catch Fire, and somehow the interview was steered into a discussion about same-sex marriage. As I said in a blog yesterday, I found Peterson’s response to be fairly ambiguous and unclear. When asked a hypothetical question about […]
Eugene Peterson on Same-Sex Marriage
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably already heard the news. Pastor, scholar, writer, and professor Eugene Peterson has apparently changed his view on same-sex relations and marriage. I’ll tease out what I mean by “apparently” below. But I first want to acknowledge that Eugene Peterson has had a massive influence in my life and will continue to do […]
What Should We Call the “Traditional” View of Marriage?
I really don’t like labels, but sometimes they are necessary. In the LGBT+ conversation, labels are particularly problematic. They try to stuff complex topics into a single word (or phrase), which usually diminishes various nuances of the topic they are discussing. For instance, what label do we use to describe Christians who believe that […]
Living in Terror as a Gay Christian
*The following post is by a friend of mine who wishes to remain anonymous. He’s a conservative Christian who experiences same-sex attraction. He grew up in the church, but due to his struggle he wasn’t welcome. He wandered from God for 23 years, but 6 months ago he returned to Jesus and has found a […]