Harmony of Grace

There are many common phrases that are thrown around by non-affirming people that may be well-intentioned, but can be extremely painful for LGBTQ+ people to hear. Some of these may even be believed to originate in the bible. Whether you are personally affirming of LGBTQ+ people and relationships or not, I am sure that we would all like to be more loving towards each other so please take these reflections to heart and perhaps think twice about the words that you use when talking to LGBTQ+ people (in fact, a good rule of thumb is to be careful with our words no matter who we are talking to - not least because many LGBTQ+ people are still living in the closet and may not disclose how they feel to you). “Love the sinner, hate the sin” This phrase is commonly quoted by non-affirming Christians to claim that they still love LGBTQ+ people, even though they “disagree with their lifestyle” (another very harmful phrase to avoid). This phrase is declared so strongly by some that you would swea...

  The Romans Clobber Passage If you grew up in a non-affirming church as I did, you were probably told that you can either affirm homosexuality or uphold Paul’s authority as a biblical writer - you cannot do both. For many non-affirming Christians, Paul’s words in Romans 1 are the end of the debate. There’s no question that Romans 1 is the most significant biblical passage in this debate. It is the longest reference to same-sex behaviour in the bible and it appears in the New Testament. Paul’s letter to the church in Rome has been used to label countless LGBTQ+ people as unnatural, shameful and immoral. This is also the only passage in scripture that seemingly refers to same-sex relations between women as well as men. But as we dig into this text, we may be surprised by what we find as we try to determine whether it is fair and a faithful application of the text to use it to reject all same-sex relationships and LGBTQ+ people today? Paul’s discourse that is often quoted in this deb...

One of the most difficult parts of an LGBTQ+ Christian's life is choosing a church to attend. Many have experienced much hate and abuse in the church in the past and are fearful of being hurt again. There are three main approaches that churches have towards LGBTQ+ folk: Welcomed One of the most common stances towards LGBTQ+ folk in many churches is to declare that they are welcome to attend the church's worship services on a Sunday. I think that even the most conservative churches today would not prevent LGBTQ+ folk from attending their services. After all, it adds to their attendance figures and increases their financial coffers. However, there is usually a catch. While LGBTQ+ folk might be welcome to attend these church's services, they will never be allowed to take up any leadership roles, they might be prevented from partaking in certain parts of the church's life, will probably receive many condescending looks and will be at risk of being made to feel inadequat...