Evangelicals Are Changing Their Minds on Gay Marriage And the Bible isn’t getting in their way

[William769]

my Tincher is an evangelical Christian who plays bass in the band at her suburban Ohio church, where she and her fellow congregants firmly believe the “words we adhere to” are those in the Bible. But last summer, without telling her husband and two kids exactly what she was doing, she boarded a plane for a conference in Kansas whose purpose many evangelicals would plainly consider heretical.

Tincher was one of 50 people flown from around the country and the world—Canada, China, Nigeria and South Korea—to a four-day Bible boot camp dedicated to discussing, and embracing, gay relationships. The gathering was organized by Matthew Vines, who by then was enjoying modest fame for a 2012 YouTube video in which Vines, looking even younger than his 21 years, delivers an hour-long lecture arguing that the Bible does not, in fact, condemn all same-sex relationships. The video has gone viral, racking up more than 730,000 views to date, landing Vines on the cover of the New York Times Sunday Styles section and helping him raise $100,000 for the conference, where he launched The Reformation Project, a nationwide network of pro-gay evangelicals committed to ending their church’s longstanding hostility toward gay people.

Tincher told me she had once “tried on” an anti-gay attitude to fit in with her conservative community in Liberty Township, outside Cincinnati, but like many evangelicals, she struggled to see how homophobia could accord with an all-loving Christian God. So when her pastor sent her a link to Vines’ video, she recalls, “I remember sitting in my kitchen and just crying. I knew it in my heart, but I had never been told that from the pulpit.”

It’s no secret that attitudes toward same-sex relations have changed in this country: Gay marriage is legal in 19 states plus the District of Columbia, and all major public opinion surveys now show a majority of Americans are in favor of it. But Matthew Vines and Amy Tincher are no longer outliers either: Increasingly, even evangelical Christians, long known for doctrinally condemning homosexuality, are embracing gay people, too.

http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/07/evangelicals-gay-marriage-108608.html#.U725CmdOU5t

[msongs]

1. lol they never let the bible "get in their way" nt

[William769]

2. Thanks for the kick.

[bluesbassman]

3. Every step forward counts Bill.

I spent many years around evangelicals and there were some like me who held progressive views. I hope this gains a lot of traction in that community.

[William769]

4. This blew my mind away.

I have a niece (Evangelical) who just two weeks ago told me I was still going to burn in hell for my sinful ways.

Grant you she had a child out of wedlock, and is sharing a bed with a man who she is not married to, but hey she thinks that's ok.

She has single handedly tore up my relationship with her father (my brother).

[longship]

5. This is why, as an atheist, I hate religion, love the believer.

I might not always bust the chops of a pew potato for their beliefs. When I talk to one, or engage with one online, I am polite and try to supply some gentle, friendly persuasion. These people are not my enemy. No need to be rude. They aren't the problem with religion.

But where do they get those beliefs? Generally, from some person standing in the pulpit! Now the pastors are supposedly educated in their trade. They are supposed to know what they are doing. I hold back no animosity towards them when they tread over the line. By line, I mean things that may negatively impact the lives of my friends, family, and generally humanity.

I do not want to rid the world of religion (as if that were even possible, which likely isn't). But as Daniel Dennett once opined, I would like to see it evolve into a less virulent form. That's a goal the world could use.

This article is a good sign that this may be happening.

[progressoid]

6. "I knew it in my heart, but I had never been told that from the pulpit"

And therein lies the problem. Well, one of the problems.

[Cha]

7. Wow.. very heartwarming to read this, William.. Evangelicals with heart! Thank you!

[William769]

8. I realize that is a long video but it is well worth watching.

That video alone started the ball rolling.

[Cha]

9. Thanks.. I'll try.. I started

bawling just reading about it.