Want to help young people follow Jesus? Talk about sexuality and gender
Andrew Bunt
Date posted: 6 Nov 2024
A young woman visited a local church one Sunday morning. As she met members of the church, reflected on the words of the songs, and listened to the preacher, she encountered God and decided she wanted to become a follower of Jesus.
After the service, she approached a friend of mine who was one of the leaders of the church. As the young woman started talking, she broke down and began to sob. When she had managed to compose herself a little, she explained her tears: ‘I want to become a Christian, but you’re going to hate me because I’m a lesbian.’
Preparing for the next frontier in sexual ethics: polyamory and more
Andrew Bunt
Date posted: 20 Jul 2024
The first same-sex marriages in the UK took place in 2014. A decade later, many of us Christians feel we are still playing catchup: we are trying to get our heads around same-sex sexuality and how to hold on to our Biblical conviction that marriage is the lifelong union of a man and a woman while simultaneously loving well those who are attracted to people of the same sex. We are wrestling with how both to love God and love our neighbour in relation to same-sex sexuality.
But while Christians have been playing catch-up, wider society has been continuing to develop its sexual ethic. Same-sex relationships aren’t really a point of debate for most people in modern Western society. In fact, to many, it seems obvious that two people of the same sex should be able to marry.
Move over Equality, Equity is the new kid in town: Here’s what it means
Tom Underhill
Date posted: 1 May 2024
Over the past few years, corporate HR departments and public bodies have quietly been wielding their Tipp-Ex in a bulk deletion of the letters ‘a’ and ‘l’. ‘Equality’ has been changed to ‘equity’ in a mass rebranding of EDI (Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) departments and initiatives.
Or maybe it wasn’t quiet: perhaps in your experience it was heralded with great fanfare. Either way, this deletion represents a significant extension of the EDI mission, now almost synonymous with the one term, Equity. So what is Equity, what does this change imply, and how should we think Christianly about these matters?
Now This
Going to the wedding
Bill James
Date posted: 1 Apr 2024
As summer approaches, many of us will receive wedding invitations.
We may be clear that Biblical marriage is between one man and woman, and that sexual intimacy is only appropriate within that context. But how do we respond when a friend or a family member invites us to their gay or transgender wedding? Do we prioritise friendly relationships and accept, or decide on principle that we cannot go?