Chester Street Uniting Earth Ministry Lacuna Group


Ryan: The Convenience of Selectivity

Posted: 27/07/2008


It interesting to observe the way in which Churches, whether consciously or not, choose to promote certain issues at the expense of other, perhaps more important ones.

A primary illustration of my point is the debate surrounding homosexuality's relationship to scripture. My purpose here is not to delve into the intricacies of the issue (the Theological territory is not as smooth as many fundamentalist scholars think). Instead I want to raise the question of motivation. Why, for example, does there exist a homosexual 'debate' while it is still rare to hear a sermon on greed, excess consumption and materialism? I am exasperated by the fact that while greed is having such a destructive effect on our world many of our  mainline Churches are sitting around condemning people's sexual preference which, by the way, has nothing to do with them in the first place.

I believe the reason for this can be summed up in one word: Convenience. It is convenient to overlook greed because we are all affected by it. To  address the problem of greed is to address ourselves and this is always quite uncomfortable. A casual glance through a local Christian bookstore will leave one in no doubt as to the extent in which greed has infiltrated the Church. But again, to tackle greed head on is to implicate oneself and this is difficult, especially if one is in a leadership position. When was the last time you heard a sermon on mindless consumption, selfishness or  environmental issues?

The prevalence of the Homosexual 'debate' is also a matter of convenience . A cynical view would suggest that the only reason it is on  the agenda in the first place is because of the negative way in which homosexuality is viewed by those who had already made up their minds long before they examined the issues. But even if the 'debate' is raised with the very best of intentions, it still operates at a distance. Whereas we are all effected by greed, not all of us know someone who is Homosexual. We make our sweeping statements in a vacuum, smug in the knowledge that our position is the 'Biblical' one. We leave ourselves unexamined as we quickly condemn those whose sexuality is a threat to us. It's Matthew 7:3  all over again.

Yet there is hope.  As World Youth Day arrives, I am surprised and excited by the wide variety of forums in which young Gay and Lesbian people will share their views and critiques. Although these have been predictably condemned by Cardinal Pell, these types of events and activities do perhaps represent a significant step forward for the Church, even if most of the world has moved on.

by Ryan Buesnel

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  • Well said Ryan!


        — Clare · Oct 5, 11:37 pm

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