Jonathan Merritt, a conservative evangelical Christian, offers a constructive rebuke to those who demonize homosexuals in God’s name. Rather than argue about the interpretation of Biblical teachings on the subject, he says that Christians will have a greater impact and witness if they simply remember the mantra: “love the sinner.”
Evangelical opposition to anything even remotely concerning “the homosexual agenda” has often been vitriolic and unbalanced by a message of love for our gay neighbors. Thus, it is understandable that people have incredibly negative perceptions of Christians…
If Christians’ language were marked by these characteristics of humility, kindness and grace it would ease tensions and open up avenues for dialogue. It is time for evangelical Christians to reform our rhetoric.
This call for greater love, sensitivity and respect should be indisputable by all but the most embittered Christians. But he goes on to make a more challenging point about the proper relationship between Biblical teaching and political lobbying (emphasis added):
…our role as Christians is not to delegitimize the existence of those who do not share our beliefs. Our job is to mirror Christ by loving people in spite of our differences and advocating for our culture’s disenfranchised groups. Only then can we effectively share with them the reasons that we believe our beliefs are most compelling.
Filed under: commentary | Tagged: gay marriage, homosexuality, Jonathan Merritt, USA Today
“Our job is to mirror Christ by loving people in spite of our differences and advocating for our culture’s disenfranchised groups.”
That seems like it would be especially difficult, considering that some of these groups are being disenfranchised by the Christians.