Homosexuality and Seventh-day Adventism: Difference between revisions
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==History== |
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== Church opposes gay rights == |
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| ⚫ | When a gay marriage bill came before the California legislature in April 2004, Adventist church members were urged to contact their representatives and voice their opposition.<ref name="Reinach"/> In "The Liberty Blog" the religious liberty director for the [[North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists|North American Division]] of the Adventist church argued against the proposed federal "Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007," suggesting it could have an indirect impact on free speech, would give special protection to some crime victims while failing to cover others, would be unnecessary since local laws already provide protection against hate crimes, and could lead to marginalizing those who oppose homosexual practice.<ref>http://www.religiousliberty.info/blog/index.php?paged=3, June 28, 2007</ref> In the September/October, 2004, issue of church periodical, ''[[Liberty (Adventist magazine)|Liberty]]'', which was devoted to the issue of gay marriage, another religious liberty director called for the church not to remain silent in opposing gay rights.<ref>Barry Bussey, "Why Silence is Not an Option," ''Liberty'', September-October, 2004</ref> |
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The Adventist Church has long been an active supporter of religious freedom as a fundamental human right, subject to the equal rights of others. An official church statement says, "We will continue to cooperate and network with others to defend the religious liberty of all people, including those with whom we may disagree."<ref>[http://www.adventist.org/beliefs/statements/main_stat19.html A Statement on Religious Freedom<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Nevertheless, when faced with gay rights and gay marriage issues in recent years, several Adventist religious liberty directors have argued that religious liberty is only concerned with the first four of the [[Ten Commandments]], or one's obligations to God. The last six, they assert, are also civil obligations enforceable by government, although opposition to gay rights violates the religious convictions of a significant minority of Christians.<ref name="Reinach">http://churchstate.org/article.php?id=72 – Alan Reinach – March 5, 2004</ref><ref>http://www.gleaneronline.org/99/9/22128.html - Greg Hamilton - Sept, 2004</ref> |
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| ⚫ | When a gay marriage bill came before the California legislature in April |
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== Biblical Research Institute publishes book == |
== Biblical Research Institute publishes book == |
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Revision as of 19:56, 11 September 2012
 | This article may need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia's quality standards. (March 2012) |
In Seventh-day Adventism, homosexuality is considered a violation of God's commandments by, and is subject to church discipline. The Church is opposed to same-gender sexual practices and relationships on the grounds that "sexual intimacy belongs only within the marital relationship of a man and a woman." It believes the Bible consistently affirms the pattern of heterosexual monogamy, and all sexual relations outside the scope of spousal intimacy are contrary to God's original plan.[1]
History
When a gay marriage bill came before the California legislature in April 2004, Adventist church members were urged to contact their representatives and voice their opposition.[2] In "The Liberty Blog" the religious liberty director for the North American Division of the Adventist church argued against the proposed federal "Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007," suggesting it could have an indirect impact on free speech, would give special protection to some crime victims while failing to cover others, would be unnecessary since local laws already provide protection against hate crimes, and could lead to marginalizing those who oppose homosexual practice.[3] In the September/October, 2004, issue of church periodical, Liberty, which was devoted to the issue of gay marriage, another religious liberty director called for the church not to remain silent in opposing gay rights.[4]
Biblical Research Institute publishes book
In the 1980s, the Biblical Research Institute of the General Conference, which, according to its newsletter, aims "to foster doctrinal and theological unity in the world church"[5] commissioned David Larson, ethics professor at Loma Linda University, to write a paper about homosexuality. When the paper he submitted did not conform with their viewpoint and he declined to revise it, they turned to Ronald Springett, a religion faculty member at Southern University of Seventh-day Adventists (now Southern Adventist University). His paper was published as a book, Homosexuality in History and Scripture, in 1992, and reviewed in Spectrum magazine by Larry Hallock, who concluded that although the bulk of the material represents some minimal changes from traditional Adventist understanding, the certainty with which unwarranted conclusions are presented in the final chapter negate this advance.[6]
Church statements regarding homosexuality
Official statements:
- "Seventh-day Adventist Position Statement on Homosexuality", voted 1999
- "Seventh-day Adventist Response to Same-Sex Unions--A Reaffirmation of Christian Marriage", voted 2004
- "A Statement of Concern on Sexual Behavior", voted 1987
- "Safeguarding Mission in Changing Social Environments", voted 2007
See also "An Affirmation of Marriage", voted 1996, and "Marriage and the Family", doctrine number 22 in Seventh-day Adventists Believe—A Biblical Exposition of 27 Fundamental Doctrines.
According to the Seventh-day Adventist Church Manual, one reason for church discipline includes, "Such violations as fornication, promiscuity, incest, homosexual practice, sexual abuse of children and vulnerable adults, and other sexual perversions, and the remarriage of a divorced person, except of the spouse who has remained faithful to the marriage vow in a divorce for adultery or for sexual perversions."[7]
Church ministries
The Seventh-day Adventist church was involved with Colin Cook's Homosexuals Anonymous in the 1980s. Lately some church publications have been supporting the ministry of Wayne Blakely, a gay man who has been celibate for 6 months[8] .
Progressive Adventists
Some within the "progressive Adventist" subculture, although not others, support homosexuality.
A book Christianity And Homosexuality - Some Seventh-day Adventist Perspectives[9] edited by Ferguson Guy and Larson was published in 2007, covering a range of issues and perspectives.
A group and website, "Adventists Against Prop 8", formed to resist California Proposition 8, an amendment to the constitution of California which limits marriage to just between a man and a woman in the state, which was passed in 2008.[10] A film, Seventh-Gay Adventists made by a wife-husband pair, and was motivated by the debate around Proposition 8.[11]
See also
References
- ^ Annual Council of the General Conference Executive Committee (October 3, 1999). "Position Statement on Homosexuality". Seventh-day Adventist Church Statements. Retrieved 2012-April-06.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Reinachwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ http://www.religiousliberty.info/blog/index.php?paged=3, June 28, 2007
- ^ Barry Bussey, "Why Silence is Not an Option," Liberty, September-October, 2004
- ^ http://www.adventistbiblicalresearch.org/. Accessed 2008
- ^ Larry Hallock, "Adventists and Homosexuality Revisited," Spectrum, Volume 20, No. 2
- ^ Seventh-day Adventist Church Manual, page 194
- ^ Akers, Daneen. "A Response to Andy Nash's Review of "Seventh-Gay Adventists"". Spectrum Blog. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
- ^ Furgeson, Guy and Larson. "Christianity and Homosexuality". Retrieved 8 August 2012.
- ^ "Adventists Against Prop 8" website
- ^ Seventh-Gay Adventists official website, by Daneen Akers and Stephen Eyer. Daneen Akers, "An Update on Seventh-Gay Adventists", Spectrum blog, 1st March 2012
External links
- Vance, Laura L. (1999). Seventh-Day Adventism in crisis: gender and sectarian change in an emerging religion. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. pp. 160–171. ISBN 0-252-02434-6.
- Drumm, Renee D. (July 2011). "Gay and Lesbian Seventh-day Adventists: Strategies and Outcomes of Resisting Homosexuality". Who Cares? A Newsletter for Caring Pastors and Educators. 1 (3). Online: Seventh-day Adventist Kinship International. Retrieved 2012-Feb-11.
{{cite journal}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - "Dilemmas of a Homosexual" by Wayne Blakely. Adventist Today website, posted September 7, 2009
- Adventists and homosexuality part one and part two, from ReligiousTolerance.org
- Marriage, Homosexuality and the Church special report, from the Adventist Review