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Keller Clarifies Position on Same-Sex Marriage

Tim Keller writes:

A recent article on the Huffington Post reported on a discussion among journalists about how younger evangelicals view the issue of same-sex marriage. I was present, and I said that I have noted many younger evangelicals are taking an Anabaptist-like position; that is, that while they still believe homosexuality to be a sin, they don’t think the government should put that belief into law for the nation.

In explaining the Anabaptist tradition, I was quoted saying, “You can believe homosexuality is a sin and still believe that same-sex marriage should be legal.” I did say that—but it was purely a statement of fact. It is possible to hold that position, though it isn’t my position, nor was I promoting or endorsing the position. I was simply reporting on the growth of that view.

I can see how some readers might be confused at these points in the article and think that I support the legalization of same-sex marriage. I do not. I hope that clarifies things for those of you who asked about this article.

April 1, 2013 in Culture, Practical Ministry | Comment

Amazing Video of a Baby Formed in a Womb

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.” (Psalm 139:13-15)

HT: Marvin Olasky

March 31, 2013 in Culture, Practical Ministry | 1 Comment

Evangelical Colleges Responding to Students with Same-Sex Attraction

Sarah Pulliam Bailey reports on how evangelical colleges are responding to the perception that their institution is not a safe place for those who possess same-sex attraction. For example, Wheaton College created “an official group in February for students to explore questions of gender identity and sexual orientation. The group is intended as a ‘safe place for students who have questions about their sexual orientation or gender identity,’ where students may self-identify as LGBTQ.” But all Wheaton College students sign an agreement promising to refrain from “the use of pornography … premarital sex, adultery, homosexual behavior and all other sexual relations outside the bounds of marriage.” Other evangelical colleges have similar pledges.

An excerpt:

Continue Reading…

March 30, 2013 in Culture, Practical Ministry | Comment

Edith Schaeffer (1914-2013)

Edith Schaeffer, widow of renown apologist Francis Schaeffer, went home to be with the Lord today. Alongside her husband, she was instrumental in running the day-to-day operations of the L’Abri Fellowship in Switzerland since its founding in 1955. The name “L’Abri” came from the French word for “shelter.” L’Abri was a large home that people could come and stay to discuss God and the meaning of life, along with other spiritual questions.

One of the Schaeffers’ many legacies was helping others see that the Christian worldview was intelligible–it wasn’t just a leap in the dark. On the contrary, Christianity made good sense, and it could satisfyingly and reliably explain the world and everything in it, including suffering and evil. Another legacy was hospitality, something Edith was particularly known for.

Edith ultimately wrote or co-wrote eighteen books (see below), including Affliction, a book on suffering, and the autobiographical The Tapestry: the Life and Times of Francis and Edith Schaeffer, each of which received the Gold Medallion Award from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (in 1979 and 1982 respectively). Those looking for a good biography on Francis Schaeffer should consider Francis Schaeffer: An Authentic Life by Colin Duriez. To my knowledge, there is no book-length biography of Edith Schaeffer. The best way to benefit from Schaeffer’s work is to pick up The Complete Works of Francis A. Schaeffer: A Christian Worldview (5 Volume Set), which, at over 2000 pages, is well worth the price.

March 30, 2013 in Culture, Personal, Practical Ministry | 1 Comment

We Need New Methods in the Fight for Marriage

A great set of posts by Greg Forster (PhD, Yale University) on what he sees as key disadvantages in employing either natural law arguments or explicitely Christian/biblical defenses of marriage in today’s cultural landscape. In short, he sees both as unconvincing to those predisposed to endorse same-sex “marriage.” Instead, he offers a new path forward. Excerpt:

We must speak the truth about sexuality and romance in the language of sexuality and romance. This can’t be a special, private sexual language for Christians that others will need to learn. It must be a language that speaks to people in terms of their everyday experiences and doesn’t presuppose that you need to be Christian before you can have a humane understanding of sexuality.

Continue Reading…

March 13, 2013 in Culture, Practical Ministry, With One Voice | Comment

Doug Wilson, Race and Slavery

Thabiti Anyabwile has written an excellent summary of Doug Wilson’s controversial book Black & Tan: A Collection of Essays and Excursions on Slavery, Culture War, and Scripture in America. In the days to come Anyabwile will interact with Wilson’s view, but for now here’s a summary of the summary:

Wilson rejects racism, but on slavery argues that:

1. The Bible speaks authoritatively about slavery and Christians are duty-bound to obey its teaching (p. 14, 37).

2. The slave trade was an abomination and is clearly rejected in the Bible (1 Tim. 1:10; Exod. 21:16).

3. The slavery regulated in the Mosaic law differs from slavery in pagan empires like Rome.

4. Christians must denounce as a matter of biblical principle any racism, racial animosity, or racial vainglory involved in American slavery or any other race-based system of slavery.

Continue Reading…

March 13, 2013 in Culture, Personal | Comment

Pastoring Christians for the Workplace

The most recent edition of the 9 Marks journal is on Pastoring Christians for the Workplace.

Here’s the table of contents:

What Makes Work “Christian”?
By J.D. Greear

7 Things Pastors Should Teach Those in the Marketplace
By Lukas Naugle

Pastoring the Wrongly Ambitious
By Jamie Dunlop

Preaching to Women Who Work in the Home
By Bari Nichols

Pastor, Teach Your Businesspeople to Tend the Vine
By Sebastian Traeger

Businessperson, Help your Pastor Build Trellises
By Sebastian Traeger

There are also book reviews and a few other columns. Check it out.

March 12, 2013 in Culture, Practical Ministry | Comment

Begin with Creation, Not Sin

Nancy Pearcey:

Beginning with sin instead of creation is like trying to read a book by opening it in the middle: You don’t know the characters and can’t make sense of the plot.

–Total Truth, p. 88

March 7, 2013 in Culture, Practical Ministry, Theology | Comment

President Clinton Flips on DOMA

Want an indication of how quickly the cultural landscape has shifted on the issue of same-sex “marriage”? In a Washington Post op-ed today, President Clinton flipped on DOMA, arguing that the law he signed 17 years ago, opposed by only 81 of the 535 members of Congress, is in fact unconstitutional. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is one of two major marriage-related cases to be heard by the Supreme Court in the near future. The other has to do with the Proposition 8 law passed in the state of CA in 2008, and is scheduled for oral arguments later this month. Emily Belz explains the significance of both cases. Excerpt:

The lead-up to the high court taking these two cases parallels the lead-up to the 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion. At the state level in the decades before Roe, voters blocked referendum after referendum to legalize abortion by sizable majorities. But then the Supreme Court stepped in and overturned many state-level restrictions on abortion with one decision. Similarly, in the last decade, 38 states have passed traditional marriage laws, either by referendum or in legislatures. The Supreme Court could upend those laws with these cases.

One difference is that public opinion against same-sex “marriage” is weaker than it was against abortion at the time of Roe. In the last 15 years, opposition to gay marriage has dropped by 20 points according to the Pew Research Center, down to 43 percent this year. In 1972, a Gallup poll showed that 66 percent of Americans opposed elective abortions. The court, of course, enjoys ignoring public opinion in all of its cases.

The court will likely hear both cases in late March, according to court expert Lyle Denniston of SCOTUSblog.

March 7, 2013 in Culture, Personal, With One Voice | Comment

Republicans and Their Faulty Moral Arithmetic

This weekend Gov. Romney and his wife returned to the national stage with a lengthy interview on FOX news. Why did his campaign fall short? In a sentence: Only one in three voters sensed that Mitt Romney “cares about people like me.” Fair or unfair, perceptions shape elections.

In today’s WSJ, Arthur Brooks pens a devastatingly accurate assessment on why Republicans are struggling to connect with voters. He notes that “citizens across the political spectrum place a great importance on taking care of those in need and avoiding harm to the weak.” Then he writes:

Conservatives are fighting a losing battle of moral arithmetic. They hand an argument with virtually 100% public support—care for the vulnerable—to progressives, and focus instead on materialistic concerns and minority moral viewpoints.

March 4, 2013 in Culture, Personal | Comment