From the Associated Press, via USA Today:
Lutherans move toward more open view on gays
Delegates to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s nationwide assembly in Minneapolis on Wednesday approved a “social statement on human sexuality.” The vote was a prelude to a bigger debate Friday, when delegates will tackle a proposal that would allow individual ELCA congregations to hire people in committed same-sex relationships as clergy.
I was pleasantly surprised by the dialog and open-mindedness that the Lutheran church is welcoming. However, one dissenting opinion in particular caught my attention:
Opponents of the social statement said it ignores clear scriptural direction that homosexuality is a sin. “We are asked to affirm a description of sexuality based on a reality that’s shaped not by Scripture but by today’s culture,” said Curtis Sorbo of Adams, North Dakota, a convention delegate from the ELCA’s Eastern North Dakota Synod.
What a different statement that would be if we replaced one word: “We are asked to affirm a description of slavery based on a reality that’s shaped not by Scripture but by today’s culture.”
Today’s culture does indeed shape the reality of slavery, as opposed to what was shaped by scripture.
There are so many potential examples of how Mr. Sorbo’s statement is indeed true, but not in the way I think he intended. What else could we plug into that sentence? Racism. Apostasy. Diet.
What right have Christians to interpret their most holy scripture like Swiss cheese?