I'm an evangelical Christian - ask me anything

[Insieme]

I'm happy to answer questions, though I'm not interested if people just come on to be insulting.

I can only give my views and talk about what I believe - evangelicalism covers a broad spectrum of beliefs and I can only speak for myself.

Ask away!

as insieme says she does not spend much time thinking about homosexuality being sinful as lots and lots of other sexual activities are sinful, and many of them worse if people kept to this there would be no need for #metoo or laws against upskirting etc as they would be covered by "not looking at another women with lust" cheating on a partner is sin; adultery causes untold pain and distress to lots of people not just the wronged husband/wife but parts child from parents and extended family means them traipsing between 2 homes
the sex trade ( which is responsible for most modern day slavery) and pornography cause far more damage than a monogamous homosexual relationship but one thing being more harmful doesn't make the other thing ok
stealing a pension fund is far more wrong than stealing a few chocolate bars however it doesn't make stealing chocolate ok

just think how many less threads there would be on here is people were loving and faithful spouses

it is not just Christians that believe that homosexual sin is wrong and that fidelity in marriage is important so do Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists in fact I do not know of a major religion which does not support marriage. it is not us that decide what is sin it is God.
just like if you are a UK citizen UK laws apply whether you believe in them or not, they apply to you from the moment of birth; they still apply if you were born elsewhere etc etc

See that is what I cannot get my head around. How can you buy into ANY religion and the concept that homosexual sex is wrong because God says so? I do know 2 gay vicars so obviously not all gay people feel this way but.....

Let's suppose that the bible said theŕe was a problem with being black. Not that black people arent wprthy of love and respect, but they certainly shouldn't get married and have kids.
See, I think people would say "but that is abhorrent".Which it would be.

The thing I have never got is why you would choose to give up your freedom to believe whatever you liked on issues like homosexuality because God said so? It puts limits on your critical thinking, to my mind. But them I'm not religious!

actually apart from western Europe and Northern America most people and most nations in the world do believe it is sin and practically everyone in the western world did too for thousands of years, some people now disagree but in world terms they are a small minority and the change of mind has only happened in last 50 years or so, and other gender issues are even more recent and even on mumsnet there is huge differences of opinion on what a women is and their rights as opposed to transrights

you're analogy with black is false you can not change the colour of your skin you can alter your sexual behaviour; you can be celibate, you can choose not to commit adultery you can choose to be faithful etc, you can choose not to watch porn etc
Celibacy is the biblical position outside marriage whether hetero or homosexual,

@TeacupDrama how exactly is homosexuality harmful and to who?

Who created the devil?

Most people cannot change their sexuality. It is wrong to deny people the expression of their sexuality, unless they are actively harming vulnerable people, i.e. paedophiles.

Hanging and stoning was considered quite normal and appropriate for millenia, and still is in some places. Doesn't mean it is the natural order of things or an excuse for carrying it on...

But the difference is, straight people get to engage in god- approved sex after marriage.

Gay people even if married/ CPd have to.. what? Forego sex for ever more? Why???

Ps in most societies no sex before marriage is the ideal but very much not the reality. Including many places you would think of as deeply religious and socially conservative.

Thanks insieme and madhairday

Thanks OP and question-askers for an interesting thread.

I too am an evangelical Christian and have found a lot of MN threads to be either dismissive or hostile of Christian beliefs, or the views of anyone who calls themselves a Christian.
It has been refreshing to read a respectful and articulate thread where, I hope, everyone felt listened to even when others didn't agree.

This has been a refreshing diversion from my insomnia!

Although the OP has been pretty selective in the questions answered.

Have I? If I've missed some do point me in their direction.

I get you have a belief system and feel spiritually aligned with your entity, but surely you must know none of it (commandments, creation in the biblical sense, Jesus rising from the dead) really happened?

Even the RCC doesn't support or require a literal reading of the OT and Genesis. As to the resurrection, were you there? Jesus as a historical figure was well documented by Jewish and Roman historians. There's no serious doubt that he existed.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historicity_of_Jesus

Dontdrinkdontsmoke as MissConduct says, there is no reason to read non-narrative parts of the Bible as literal history. I've already explained what I think the creation account is trying to teach us, and it's not a scientific account of how the world began.

And actually, I do believe in the basic tenets of Christianity. The facts are remarkable, but that doesn't make them untrue.

Nor does it make them facts

@missconductus were you?

There is a book called The Implausibility Problem written by a gay, celibate Christian. He says that all Christians have to give up big things in their life; for him, it was a sexual relationship.

Worth a read if genuinely interested in the topic.

JeanBodel it's actually The Plausibility Problem by Ed Shaw. I was going to recommend Vaughan Roberts' writings on the matter, and I see he wrote the foreword for this book.

I knew Vaughan Roberts many years ago and can only admire the way he has lived a faithful life in celibacy. He in no way claims it has been easy, but he holds firm to the belief that this is what God requires.

There are many, many single people who are living a celibate life in obedience to what they read in the BIble. Some are gay, but most are straight. They may face as many frustrations and hear-aches, but they tend to be less noticed somehow.

Because, according to you anyway, straight people have the option to get married but gay people have no choice but to be celibate, because apparently a consensual relationship between two people of the same sex is somehow harmful.

Segmentation Fault people are of course entirely free to sleep with anyone one they want (with mutual consent). I am glad to live in a country where homosexuality is no longer illegal, and indeed where gay people can marry. I'm not trying to restrict anyone's freedom or rights under the law of the land.

But if people CHOOSE to follow the instructions God lays out in the Bible, then they will have sex only within a heterosexual marriage. No one is compelling anyone to believe this or follow it. However a fair number of people, gay and straight, do willingly choose to live celibate lives in obedience to what God says.

But why? A previous poster implied that same sex relationships are somehow harmful. How?

There is diversity of thought on this issue. My church is fine with gay marriage:

www.integrityusa.org/archive/FAQs/index.htm

My parish priest is a lesbian and I usually share a pew with her wife during services.

From the web paged linked above:

A number of passages in the Bible are used to condemn homosexuality. Click here for a good analysis of those passages.

For Episcopalians, the four gospels are the most important part of the Bible. It is significant that Jesus never addressed homosexuality. However, Jesus spent a great of time ministering to those considered outcasts by the society and religious leaders of his day.

Episcopalians have historically looked to three sources of spiritual authority--scripture, tradition, and reason. Using scientific knowledge and personal experience, we employ our God-given intellect to interpret the Bible. In the past, the Bible has been used to justify slavery and the domination of women. Even so, the Holy Spirit is leading the church into a greater understanding of the truth about homosexuality.

I probably can't do better than recommend this article as an explanation of why Christians believe homosexual acts are wrong or harmful.

www.desiringgod.org/interviews/why-is-homosexuality-wrong

And yes, it's true that not all Christians agree on this, as we don't agree on many issues. Everyone interprets the Bible as they choose, or of course they can reject it altogether.

For me it’s so if you feel it you know it, I can’t really describe my faith in God in words but I am completely sure of it

What science teaches us about homosexuality is that it's a result of exposure to abnormal levels of androgens in utero:

Prenatal hormones and sexual orientation

Prenatal endocrine influences on sexual orientation and on sexually differentiated childhood behavior

So sexual orientation isn't a choice, it's biologically determined. Lesbians, for example have characteristically male finger length ratios

news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sci/tech/695142.stm

and inner ear structures

link.springer.com/article/10.1023%2FA%3A1014087319682

You could argue that gay people should ignore their biology and remain celibate. My church thinks that they should live in committed loving relationships like marriage.

MissConductUS I agree with you that homosexuality is innate, not a choice. We disagree about how Christians should conduct themselves if they are attracted to people of the same sex.

However, we don't need to agree on everything. Posters have asked me what I believe and I have done my best to answer them. This is not an issue where I'm going to try to persuade anyone to change their view, although I'm happy to explain mine if they ask.