God is still with you
by Rev. David North
I was the pastor of a large Baptist church in Northeast, D.C., being a big hypocrite, and living on the down low. My biggest sin was living a lie so long, and denying who and what I was at the expense of the love of my family and church. As horrible as the experience was, being outed gave me a chance to make a clean, fresh start on life and ministry.
IT IS FRUSTRATING that there are many churches with clergy who do not choose to be informed about modern biblical scholarship. Their clergy training, if any, is from fundamentalist institutions that perpetuate archaic and inaccurate biblical interpretations. I am appalled that there are many clergy persons who have received credentialed seminary post-graduate educations who choose to ignore the modern biblical scholarship they were taught. And so too many of our pulpits have clergy who either don’t know better, or even worse, clergy who know better but don’t and won’t preach and teach what they know to be the facts, the truth about God’s unconditional love. GLBT persons who attend these churches are constantly at risk of spiritual and psychological damage.
That’s how and why MCC, Faith Temple, Inner Light, etc., and the whole affirming church movement came into being. We all understand that it’s hard to let go; it’s difficult to say goodbye; it’s tough to change. The abused seem to linger in futile hope that abuser will stop abusing. I say to all those GLBT brothers and sisters continuing to be in abusive churches, you have viable wholesome options, you have choices and alternatives to have fellowship and faith within safe and accepting contexts.
But whether you leave or stay, be true to yourself. God is still with you, just like God was and still is with me.
full article
I was the pastor of a large Baptist church in Northeast, D.C., being a big hypocrite, and living on the down low. My biggest sin was living a lie so long, and denying who and what I was at the expense of the love of my family and church. As horrible as the experience was, being outed gave me a chance to make a clean, fresh start on life and ministry.
IT IS FRUSTRATING that there are many churches with clergy who do not choose to be informed about modern biblical scholarship. Their clergy training, if any, is from fundamentalist institutions that perpetuate archaic and inaccurate biblical interpretations. I am appalled that there are many clergy persons who have received credentialed seminary post-graduate educations who choose to ignore the modern biblical scholarship they were taught. And so too many of our pulpits have clergy who either don’t know better, or even worse, clergy who know better but don’t and won’t preach and teach what they know to be the facts, the truth about God’s unconditional love. GLBT persons who attend these churches are constantly at risk of spiritual and psychological damage.
That’s how and why MCC, Faith Temple, Inner Light, etc., and the whole affirming church movement came into being. We all understand that it’s hard to let go; it’s difficult to say goodbye; it’s tough to change. The abused seem to linger in futile hope that abuser will stop abusing. I say to all those GLBT brothers and sisters continuing to be in abusive churches, you have viable wholesome options, you have choices and alternatives to have fellowship and faith within safe and accepting contexts.
But whether you leave or stay, be true to yourself. God is still with you, just like God was and still is with me.
full article
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