Getting Rid of Gay Clergy

RELIGION IN THE NEWS

A report and comment on religious trends and events being covered by the media.This week’s item is from Times Online, July 28, 2007 with a headline: “Ridding Church of Gay Clergy Would Cause Collapse."The following are excerpts:The openly homosexual bishop whose ordination sparked a split in the Anglican Communion has claimed that the Church of England would come close to shutting down if it was forced to manage without gay clergy.The Bishop of New Hampshire in the U.S. the Right Reverend Gene Robinson who is divorced and lives openly in a partnership with a gay man said that he found it mystifying that the mother church of the Anglican Communion was unable to be honest about the number of gay clergy in its ranks.He said that many of the church’s clergy lived openly in their rectories with their gay partners with the full knowledge of their bishops.But, he criticized the stance of bishops that threaten the clergy with enmity should their relationships become public.Speaking in an interview in London, Bishop Robinson said “I have met so many gay-partnered clergy here and it is so troubling to hear them tell me that their bishop comes to their house for dinner, knows fully about their relationship, is wonderfully supportive, but has also said that if this ever becomes public then “I’m your worst enemy.”It’s a terrible way to live your life and I think it’s a terrible way to be a church.I think integrity is so important.What does it mean for a clergy-person to be in a pulpit calling the parishioners to a life of integrity when they can’t even live a life of integrity with their own bishop and their own church?Robinson also emphasized his roots in evangelicalism.“As a matter of fact, I’m more evangelical than almost anyone you would run into in the Episcopal Church.When I speak to gay and lesbian groups I don’t talk to them about gay rights.I talk to them about their souls.My goal is to get them to church and bring them to Jesus.”

Tom:

Dave this is like a mixed bag of hypocrisy.It’s like the kettle calling the pot black.It’s unbelievable.

Dave:

Well, you’ve had, of course, the same thing in the Catholic church for many years.First of all, they were openly—there were popes who married their children in St. Peters. And the problem as you know Tom—the whole celibacy thing was because the bishops, the priests, the cardinals became very, very wealthy and the popes especially.Now you can’t have them leaving an inheritance to their children—that’s got to belong to the church.So they put a stop to this.The popes were married-a lot of them—but they put a stop to this for the sake of keeping the wealth in the church.So now, it’s no problem if you are involved in an illicit sexual relationship.We had a pope who had—at least one pope—who had both the mother and daughter as his mistresses at the same time.They had many mistresses, but you don’t get married and leave the church.

Tom:

No, that’s the unpardonable sin.

Dave:

That is!Then you are out!The Catholic church as you have pointed out Tom—sexual sin, homosexuality….There are some seminaries—Catholic seminaries—70%--this is what they themselves say, 70% are homosexuals.That’s okay, but just don’t let the word out.That’s what they did for so long and these pedophiles—were—it was all covered up and now it is beginning to come out because they file lawsuits and so forth.So hypocrisy as you said?Yeah, hypocrisy!

Tom:

Dave, I think the thing that disturbs me most is—as you know and I have mentioned many times on the program—I grew up Roman Catholic and we were never encouraged to read the Bible, never encouraged to check things out.It was frowned upon to ask questions about certain things because the answer always was—especially you know in Catholic high school in religion class—“Well, because the church says so.”And you can see this is obviously a problem not just for Roman Catholics but for the priests!All they need to do is look to the Word of God and see clearly what the Word of God says about homosexuality.It’s an abomination!It’s not my idea—this is what the Word of God says.

Dave:

Absolutely, I mean we don’t have time to quote all the verses in the Old Testament when….

Tom:

Did the New Testament change that Dave?

Dave:

No, the New Testament did not!Romans 1 makes it very clear—homosexuality is an abomination!But it begins in the Old Testament and people facetiously said that God created Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve.Now, homosexuality as we pointed out violates, thumbs its nose at God on the very first command which was not love the Lord your God, it was not don’t eat of that tree, but the first command was be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth.And Tom, I’ve said it many times and I’ll say it again, not only is it violating the Word of God, violating common sense—I do not know how they can possibly have a “gay pride parade” about this when, if everybody adopted this lifestyle which they are trying to get persuasion of doing this into the public schools—.If everyone adopted this lifestyle, it would be the end of the human race.You’re going to be proud of that?God said be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth and there’s no way you can get around that.And that a church then would condone this—

Tom:

Well Dave, Gene Robinson, Bishop Gene Robinson, says my goal is to get them to church and then bring them to Jesus.

Dave:

What Jesus?How are you going to bring them to Jesus if you are already violating what Jesus said?Violating what the Word of God said?Did Jesus ever suggest any homosexual relationships?He talked about marriage, he talked about divorce, but it was a man and a woman and this is the way it is all the way through the Bible.Now are you going to change the Bible?Are you going to change Jesus?Are you going to change God?Change His commandments?No, it is wicked Tom.

Tom:

Yeah, it is Christianity out of his own imagination which is biased based on his lust.It’s as simple as that.

Dave:

And if we talked about how it cuts your life expectancy about 40% at least and they are wanting to pursuade young kids to get into this, I'll say it again it's wicked.