Rev. Dr. Clyde Ervine set the tone first thing in the morning: “The history of the church’s lack of respect toward LGBT folk is well documented.
Though few expect the church to endorse all sexual relationships, we’ve had a heightened contempt for gay people, even though we turn blind eyes to violence, oppression of the poor, sins of speech, as well as various types of heterosexual sin, all of which the Bible condemns.
“Whether or not the [Presbyterian Church in Canada] affirms same-sex intimacy and marriage, and not all gay Christians do, let alone straight ones, it’s time that we repented of the ugly sin of homophobia, as we were told to do in the 1994 Report on Human Sexuality adopted by our church.
“Respect is a biblical issue, as well as a moral one. Admittedly, if you consult a typical theology textbook, you won’t find a chapter on respect; yet as the biblical narrative unfolds, respect becomes the air which God’s people are to breathe, and the name for the lifestyle which God’s people are to live. This is more obvious when we know that respect and the frequent biblical word honour greatly overlap in meaning.”
Ervine was the first of five speakers at an event organized on the last day of January by the Presbytery of Hamilton. It was called Speaking Truth in Love. About 300 people from across southern Ontario gathered at Chedoke, Hamilton, for what proved to be an excellent day of discernment. (At least another 100 watched the proceedings on computers across the country, including at least one congregation’s session.) The speakers were well chosen to represent the breadth, and subtlety, of what the organizers called the traditional and the revisionist viewpoints on issues of sexuality.
Ervine, minister at Knox, St. Catharines, cast back to scripture to illuminate the present debate. “Respect was a key issue for the Apostle Paul. In 1 Corinthians he accuses the church of treating some of its members with contempt: ‘as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you … do you show contempt for the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing?’
“Paul critiques what happens within Corinth’s house-churches. As socially prominent members celebrate the Lord’s Supper in the dining room, poor members, many of them no doubt slaves, stand hungry in a hallway. Paul calls it contempt, insisting that every church member is worthy of respect. 1 Corinthians 12:23: ‘those members of the body that we think less honourable we clothe with greater honour, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect.'”
The conversation on sexuality within the PCC has seemed at times more bitter than respectful, with folks on all sides of the issue often quickly devolving into hierarchies and divisions. Facebook forums, whether hosted by the Record or national offices, have not always been examples of respectfulness. Ervine expressed the hope that “though angry militants exist at either end of the spectrum, I think it’s possible to debate the issue with respect.” The other speakers proved his point.
Speaking for the traditional side were Rev. Dr. Kevin Livingston, associate professor of pastoral ministry at Tyndale University College and Seminary, Toronto, and Rev. Karla Wübbenhorst, minister at Westminster-St. Paul’s, Guelph. Representing the revisionist position were Rev. Wes Denyer, minister at Rosedale, Toronto, and Rev. Hugh Donnelly, minister at Guildwood Community, Scarborough.
We encourage you to organize a gathering—session, congregation, friends—to watch the videos. We encourage you to gather people who do not agree with each other. They will not (may not) agree with each other afterwards. Agreement is not the goal; the Kingdom is. We are the church in Christ first. While you pay attention to the arguments, also pay heed to the tone; see the respect each speaker brings to those with whom they disagree. Proceed with respect.
