Welcoming Christians

I talk a great deal about the less than Christian "godly Christians" who make the dissemination of anti-gay hatred and lies the lynch pin of their alleged Christian faith. In addition to gays, many of these churches and professional Christian organizations like Focus on the Family (and its Virginia affiliate, The Family Foundation), Family Research Council, American Family Association, and Concerned Women for America, hate many more people and groups besides just gays. Blacks, Hispanics, non-Christians, and immigrants are also on the roster of classes of people these un-godly folk would just as soon see disappear from the American landscape. In short, the version of Christianity that they peddle is a strong indictment against anyone wanting to be called a Christian.

*

Often lost in all of this hate filled noise is the fact that there ARE churches and denominations which are welcoming to all. I was reminded of this today when the boyfriend and I attended the baptism of my office manager's young daughters at a small Evangelical Lutheran Church of America parish. Performing the baptisms was the Bishop of Virginia's assistant, a full ordained pastor in her own right, and also in attendance were my young paralegal and his boyfriend and the secretary for the Bishop's office (which sub-lets space from me) and her husband and family. The church is much smaller than my ELCA parish in the Ghent area of Norfolk, but there was the same feeling that all were welcomed. Indeed, we two gay couples were warmly embraced and not a soul flinched when the four of us, each with our respective partner, went up to the communion rail were we received communion from the Bishop's assistant. This is the face of true Christian conduct and what - at least in my view - all Christian denominations should be like.

*

As retired Episcopal bishop John Shelby Spong has written often, the ultra- conservative, anti-gay Christians over the long term are killing Christianity. With increased medical and mental health knowledge about sexual orientation and ever expanding scientific knowledge on a host of issues, at some point either the rigid Bible beating form of Christianity must adapt to the modern, educated world, or else it will eventual die as it becomes ever more irrelevant and looks increasingly as nothing more than ancient superstitious belief used as an excuse for bigotry. In short, some of those who most loudly proclaim that they love their faith - and it's usually the far right element that do this - are the ones making the strongest argument for Christianity's demise due to their hatred of so many people and intolerance for anyone not precisely like themselves.