Honestly, We Already Ordain Homosexuals

Here’s the thing. There are gay ministers. Always have been, always will be.

Surprisingly, at least if you listen to the Anti-Gay Minister Movement (yes, that’s a name I just made up), the church hasn’t gone to Hell in a hand basket because of it.

The thing that confuses me, to a degree at least, is the fact that the very people who want to keep gay minsters silent (effectively living a lie in order to follow the call which God has put upon their heart) would also recognize how important it is to live a life that is real and honest if you ever hope to grow closer to God.  Some of them may even go as far as to agree that the ability to fully be who God made you to be and to be fully loved at the same time is a gift of the grace of God.  Yet, they are not willing to extend that same grace for a specific group of people: gays called into ministry.

No single group is as marginalized in the Christian church, particularly in relationship to ordination, as the gay community. Interestingly enough, the only thing Jesus ever said about homosexuality was, “‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” Oh wait, that wasn’t about homosexuality at all, was it? Come to think of it, that was about all of us, wasn’t it? Well, food for thought nonetheless.

At some point, those who stand against ordaining people whose sexual orientation happens to be homosexual are going to have to admit that they believe two things that most of the rest of the Christian community do not see as core values in the teachings of Jesus: 1) that God’s love comes in degrees; that God loves some people more than others; that if you are gay you are less worthy of that love and hence less capable of being called into ministry and 2) they personally know better than the individual who feels called into ministry whether or not God is actually calling them into ministry.

Personally, I have to say, I’m completely over the archaic arguments of “it’s a sin” or” it’s a choice that can be ‘cured.'” To even engage in these arguments is to accept that they are rational, reasonable and have some hint of the truth in them. I suspect, but would never presume to say I know, that God laughs every time we do engage in those arguments. Well, maybe not every time. The way biblical texts are contorted and misused for the express purpose of marginalizing this specific group of people probably comes about has close to ticking God off as I imagine God might get.  If these same people had fought to keep me out of ministry (I’m divorced; but they wouldn’t do that being that many of them are also divorced) and were picketing Red Lobster every Friday night with “God Hates Shrimp Lovers” signs, I might feel a little bit differently, but they don’t, so I don’t.

For that matter, why aren’t we already ordaining lesbians? Out of some 31,000 verses, the Bible only has one verse that is even remotely judgmental about two women having a loving relationship and Leviticus alone has multiple verses condemning the consumption of shellfish. It just may be that this is less about biblical perspectives and more about personal preferences. Kind of ironic isn’t it? People who claim being gay is a choice are making the choice to condemn begin gay in the face of a largely missing condemnation of it in the Bible particularly when compared to other ‘sins’ which the Church has, in large part, chosen to overlook. Just a thought.

My argument for ordaining homosexuals into ministry? We already do it and many of them are among the wisest, hardest working, nurturing, insightful, creative, inspiring, spiritual and loving people in  ministry.  They do it even though many in ministry want them out, profess to “hate their sin” (but love the sinner – how nice), criticize them, judge them, marginalize them and use them as scapegoats for everything that goes wrong in the world (particularly those things insurance companies call “acts of God.”). I submit, as my main witness in this debate, the works of already ordained gay ministers. We straight ministers should be as forgiving, loving, positive, giving and hopeful in the face of criticism, accusations and judgment as they are. What a wonderful world that would be – Kingdom of God like, even.

I’m not asking you to agree with me or disagree with me. Your choice is your choice. I’m just a bit weary of the hypocrisy in the Church over this particular matter and needed to say it out loud. It’s time to stop the divisive infighting. It’s time to turn outward to the world and get to worrying about the things about which Jesus actually did have something to say: loving our neighbors, advocating for the marginalized, feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, healing the sick, mending up the broken hearted and proliferating peace. What a wonderful world that would be – Kingdom of God like, even.