Two fundamentalists walked into Pride, seeking to save us sinners from our lost-ness. They were young and polite, well-groomed and well-trained, and they decided to stop and try to save souls – including mine. I don’t know why they chose me – maybe it was my “I might be straight, but I don’t hate” T-Shirt, or maybe it was the Holy Spirit whispering Her words of encouragement in their ears to talk to me; I have no idea. They began innocently enough; they told me it was their first time there and they didn’t know where things were – could I help them? I could tell they weren’t there to enjoy the rainbows; I have fundy-radar as well as gay-dar. They were sincere and patient and they spun out their defense of traditional, orthodox Christianity, but they had absolutely no idea what was ahead.
We stood there discussing salvation in Christ for about half-an-hour, and every time they would go from one argument to another, I would counter it with a little Bible study. “Marriage is between one man and one woman.” My reply – so, what about King David and King Solomon and the prophet Hosea? If what you say is true, won’t Pres. Trump and Pres. Clinton, for example, go to hell? Next – “Homosexuality is clearly condemned in the Bible.” My reply – the word “homosexual” didn’t exist until the late 1800’s – how could it have been in a compilation of books written thousands of years earlier? And so it went. They kept to the script, mostly, but my responses stopped them a number of times as they recalibrated. I was clear and concise and respectful, as were they, and I thanked them and went back to our table.
This is why I stress the need to know our Bible. Every person who accepts LGBTQ people needs to know how to answer the kinds of volleys these two nice guys were tossing at me. We can’t get angry or indignant or insulted; we need to speak the truth with love. They aren’t bad people; in fact, they are probably very moral, devout Christians. Their theology, however, tells them than not being straight is wrong, and they have been taught this for their whole lives. I doubt I changed them, and they sure didn’t change me, but I may have planted a seed that moved them to question some of what they believe. Maybe. And maybe it will make them less sure of their condemnation. Maybe it will make them less judgmental. Maybe. I am not in charge of them – neither are you – all we can do is speak our truth. With love. And let God figure out the rest.
Prayer – Holy God, thank You for Your patience and grace and understanding. May we become more like You. Amen.
Today’s art is “The Last Judgment” by James B. Janknekt.