A bit more than a week ago, I somehow found this article from Brian McLaren, on the Leadership blog. Over the last few years I’ve read a lot of Brian’s books and even met him in person. A lot of what he writes and says really resonates with me. So I was interested to hear what he had to say about a pastoral response to homosexuality. (It’s an issue that has, almost literally, ripped the PCUSA apart.)
Not surprisingly, I was impressed with McLaren’s article. It reflects, to me, a sensitivity to the pain of this subject as well as the sovereignty and love of God. It seemed to me a rare, helpful contribution to the conversation.
I was disappointed and surprised to read, a few days later that Mark Driscoll, pastor Mars Hill church in Seattle, had savagely reacted to McLaren. Read that post, here. In just a few short paragraphs, he manages to be sarcastic, bigotted, and just plain mean.
McLaren responded, characteristically, with grace and eloquence. He tries to re-direct the conversation to a place where we can reflect on “not only about our rightness, but also about our ability to be “wise. And loving. And patient.” However flawed my original article was, and however flawed some responses may be, might we agree on the value of that?”
In other words, Brian McLaren is trying to be a pastor to the people involved in this conversation.
But Mark Driscoll won’t let go of the bone. He posts a comment which reads, in part: “Do you personally believe that all sexual activity between two persons of the same gender is always a sin?” He is desperate to get Brian to enter the “culture war” with him.
I’m amazed at the whole exchange. It clearly answers the questions “Is Mark Driscoll an emerging conversation guy?” (Nope. He seems to be an ascendant, mega-church pastor like Ed Young.)
It also points out the almost crazy place that the culture wars have managed to put our “christian” leaders on the left and the right. In this exchange, Mark Driscoll seems almost excited to be abandoning any pretense of following Christ, just so he can get in his licks on McLaren. He wants to WIN, WIN, WIN. And it’s absolutely beyond his comprehension that anyone could not be fighting the same culture war that he is in.
For some of us, and I think Brian McLaren is included, the culture wars are a devil-inspired distraction from the work that is set before us: sharing with a fallen and hurting world the good news of God’s love in Jesus Christ. As long as the church can fight about sex, it can avoid really listening to Jesus, and reaching out to the world.
