In or Out?

Several years ago the Episcopal Church, in their triennial convention, voted to allow the ordination of gay and lesbian bishops, and to permit bishops in states where same-sex unions are legal to bless those unions.  More recently the Lutherans (ELCA) and Presbyterians (PCUSA) have followed their example, in each case extending the ordained ministry to include non-celibate lesbian and gay clergy.  Predictably, these actions have evoked flurries of news articles and opinion columns, both supporting and opposing the moves toward full inclusion of homosexually oriented persons into the life of the church.

The “homosexual issue” is a fairly recent source of contention and anguish within religious bodies.  But it is simply the latest manifestation of a far deeper question that has been with us for millennia.  In its most concise statement, that question is, “Who is in and who is out?”  Records of humanity’s attempts to make this determination are as old as the oldest portions of the Hebrew Scriptures.

Practical Peacemaking

In late summer 2010 as I was walking downtown, I observed a vehicle parked along East Main Street with a large sign in the rear window.  The sign read, “Save America; shoot a Liberal.”  Because at the same time there was an anti-President Obama demonstration going on in front of the Post Office, my first concern was that there was potential for a shoot-out on our streets.  Later I learned that the two were unrelated.  While the demonstrators had come from a national organization to set up shop with their signs and pamphlets for a few hours and then move on, the vehicle appears to belong to someone with local ties.

First Amendment Challenge

During the months leading up to this year’s general elections, one of the races that I followed with particular interest was the one for governor of Hawaii.  The Republican nominee, Lieutenant Governor James “Duke” Aiona, is closely identified with the International Transformation Network (ITN), an extremely conservative Charismatic Evangelical Christian organization which is aligned with the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) movement.  A win for Aiona could have set the stage for a serious challenge to the First Amendment rights of the citizens of our western-most state, fewer than half of whom are Christian.

The ITN and NAR advocate a brand of Christianity which falls under the general term “Dominionist.”  That is, they seek to place their adherents in positions of power in all areas of society, including business, education, culture, and government.  The ultimate goal is to transform a multi-cultural, democratic society where minorities enjoy constitutional protection and religious freedom into a theocracy in which divergent beliefs are marginalized or eliminated.