Plain Talk About Tough Issues: Frequently Asked Questions about Sexuality, the Bible, & the Church

In 2006, twenty-six scholars from nineteen seminaries and colleges offered short, accessible essays to inform discussion about the appropriate participation of gay and lesbian Presbyterians in church life and leadership. Intended for lay readers, the essays addressed core biblical and theological questions with clear thinking, lively faith, and deep concern for the church.

Table of Contents

1. What are the questions? And what is this booklet? — Ted A. Smith, Vanderbilt Divinity School

2. What do Presbyterians believe about the authority of Scripture? — William C. Placher, Wabash College

3. What does Genesis 1-3 teach about sexuality, and how should we live in response? — Patrick D. Miller, Princeton Theological Seminary

4. For what sin did God destroy Sodom and Gomorrah? — Christine Roy Yoder, Columbia Theological Seminary

5. What does Leviticus teach about same-sex relations, and how should we live in response? — Robert B. Coote, San Francisco Theological Seminary

6. On matters of sex, what kind of “textual orientation” does the wisdom literature provide? — William P. Brown, Columbia Theological Seminary

7. What do the Gospels say about sex and sexuality? — Margaret P. Aymer, Interdenominational Theological Seminary

8. What does Romans 1 teach about homosexuality, and how should we live in response? — Beverly Roberts Gaventa, Princeton Theological Seminary

9. What does 1 Corinthians 6:9 teach about sexuality, and how should we live in response? — Robert L. Brawley, McCormick Theological Seminary

10. Since the Bible seems only to condemn same-sex relations, how can some Christians affirm same-sex marriage or the ordination of openly gay and lesbian Christians? Where is there any support for this approach in the Bible? — Jeffrey S. Siker, Loyola Marymount University

11. What does Christian baptism have to do with the current controversy in the church about sexuality and ordination? — Thomas G. Long, Candler School of Theology

12. What do the Confessions teach about sexuality? And how do they inform the ethical commitments of Presbyterian Christians? — Christopher Elwood, Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary

13. What has ordination implied for Reformed Christians, and how might Reformed theologies of ordination inform our current debates about ordination and sexuality? — Dawn DeVries, Union Theological Seminary-PSCE

14. What do Presbyterians say about marriage? — David H. Jensen, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary

15. Is gender complementarity essential to Christian marriage? — Mary McClintock Fulkerson, Duke University

16. Can God use sex for our sanctification? — Eugene F. Rogers, Jr., University of North Carolina-Greensboro

17. What can we learn about the texture of Christian ethics by observing how African American congregations have historically dealt with issues related to sexuality? — Gayraud S. Wilmore, Interdenominational Theological Center

18. If the church accepts homosexuality, what is to keep us from accepting sins like adultery, incest, bestiality, and sex with children? Don’t we have to draw the line somewhere? — Mark Douglas, Columbia Theological Seminary

19. How does the struggle for full inclusion of gay and lesbian Christians relate to the civil rights movement and other struggles for freedom and equality? — J. Herbert Nelson, II, University of Memphis

20. What do Presbyterians teach about sexuality? — Su Yon Pak, Union Theological Seminary

21. Is there room in the PC(USA) for those of differing orientations? — Jeanne Stevenson-Moessner, Perkins School of Theology

22. Can people change their sexual orientations? Should the church require gay and lesbian Christians to try to change their orientations in order to be ordained? — Nancy J. Ramsay, Brite Divinity School

23. How might we respond in debates among Christians on homosexuality when told to “love the sinner but hate the sin”? — Robert C. Dykstra, Princeton Theological Seminary

24. Would inclusivity alienate our global partner churches? — M. Thomas Thangaraj, Candler School of Theology and Bishop Stephen Neill Study and Research Center

25. What could bring a person to change his or her mind about sexuality and ordination? What happened in your case? — Jack Rogers, San Francisco Theological Seminary

26. Which side are you on? And are there more than two? — Cynthia M. Campbell, McCormick Theological Seminary