Guidance for Churches on Membership, Baptism, Communion, Leadership, and Service for Gay and Lesbian People
Joshua Ryan Butler is on the Collaborative Team for The Center and serves as Pastor of Local and Global Outreach at Imago Dei Community in Portland, OR. You can read his whole bio by clicking here. Can I Belong? There is perhaps no question more central to the human heart than this: Can I […]
Should Christians Attend a Same-Sex Wedding Ceremony?
Should Christians attend a same-sex wedding ceremony? This is one of the most common questions that pastors and leaders are being asked. And, to lay my cards out upfront, I don’t think there is one clear black-and-white-answer to this question—even for those who uphold a traditional view of marriage. To be clear, everything […]
Why Didn’t Jesus Mention Homosexuality?
Jesus never explicitly mentioned homosexuality in the four gospels of the New Testament. He talked about fornication, adultery, lust, marriage, divorce, and other aspects of sexuality. But he never mentioned same-sex sexual relations. Some say Jesus would have affirmed same-sex sexual relations. Since he didn’t mention them, they reason, and since Jesus was focused […]
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 […]