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marriage debate

Source: Being A Pastor in a 5-4 World by Rev. Travis Garner | Greater Things Are Yet To Be Done

With the SCOTUS decision on marriage equality now a done deal, I have many friends celebrating the affirmation of legal marriage, including their own. Its a great day for them and I’m happy for them. In my denomination/tribe, we have been permitted to do same sex blessings since 2009 but those didn’t have any legal standing. Now it can be fully called marriage in our congregations that choose to do so, as the choice to do so remain a local congregation and pastoral choice.

At the same time, I have friends who are troubled by the decision. Some because it changes the tradition of church and culture for 2,000+ years and that radical of a shift is hard to understand and embrace. Others are troubled less by the legalization of same sex marriage but the judicial arguments supporting it, fearing it will dramatically change the role of the church in US culture. It could impact how much longer churches can maintain a not for profit status if they prohibit same sex marriage yet still act as agents of the state to perform legal marriages; the possible loss of the clergy housing allowance; and what is seen as a marginalization of Christianity in particular from the public square. Their concerns are not driven by bigotry or hatred but understandings of Christianity that are shared around the world and for centuries.

This article is helpful for me in that it addresses my role as pastor in this moment, which is bigger than just the marriage decision but also the ongoing discussions of race, religious freedom, national politics, and more. Our society seems more fragmented now than in decades and its being lived on in local congregations as well. As a pastor, I’m not first called to be a prophet or activist, I’m a shepherd and leader of a local gathering of Christians who are equally divided and flawed as I am. I’m not here to convince them to think like me. I’m here to point us all to living like Jesus, particularly in our differences. As Pastor Garner says in this brief blog, we live in a 5-4 world, not a 9-0. All are invited, disagreements and all, and together find a unity in Jesus that will still bind us together. Good insight.

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