Dissonance is Very Christian | Week 2 | Liberated to Love: A Teaching Series
There are an estimated 250-1200 Christian denominations within the United States alone. Each denomination brings with it its own interpretation of Christian history, orthodoxy (right teaching), and orthopraxy (right practice). It would not be unusual to see a member of a Mennonite community covering their hair in accordance with verses like 1 Corinthians 11:6. You would, however, be hard pressed to find women covering their heads out of religious conviction at a Hillsong gathering.
Those who claim that once God has spoken, there must only be one interpretation for all time are simply unaware of the evolution of Christian doctrine. Theological differences between followers often settle into identity-defining issues of deeply held conviction over time. Dr. David P. Gushee, distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics at Mercer University, acknowledges that;
Every generation has its hottest of all hot-button issues, the issue that becomes the litmus test of everyone’s orthodoxy and provokes conflicts sometimes leading to schism. In earlier generations it was slavery, or segregation, or apartheid, or Nazism, or abortion, or temperance, or Sabbath, or tongue-speaking. I am old enough to have lived through the 1980/1990s fight over women’s roles in the Church among Baptists and evangelicals, which led more than one congregation into schism. This LGBTQ+ issue...is doing the same thing.
LGBTQ+ affirmation and inclusion is arguably the hottest of hot-button issues in Christianity today, often involving family conflict and church and denomination-wide splits. Deeply held disagreement seems a part of our journey as Christians. As we journey with God and with others, we should continue to hope for changes of heart and also we must leave room for the fact that some will land in different places.
As we disagree in good faith, we must learn to do so while also prioritizing the physical safety and emotional wellbeing of those involved. While we hold space for the process by which many continue to evolve in their understanding, we must extend grace while also maintaining healthy boundaries and sharing our own experiences and understanding. For those within our community at Q Christian Fellowship, the full affirmation and inclusion of LGBTQ+ identities and relationships are ultimately not up for debate. Yet, within the broader faith, various forms of dissonance abounds.
From baptism to communion, there are many different convictions and deeply held beliefs within Christianity. We can hold these differences in tension, yet we must employ protective boundaries when it comes to practices that cause explicit harm to mental, physical, or psychological well-being, i.e. those that bear bad fruit. The bad fruit of LGBTQ+ exclusion and non-affirmation is readily apparent.
In partnership with The Trevor Project, Q Christian Fellowship released what we’ve called The Good Fruit Project—a Christian case against LGBTQ+ change efforts. Included is a Guide outlining the ways in which conversion therapies and ex-gay ideologies bear rotten fruit. Click here to learn more.
