One Anchorage Report

By Michael Burke

In this Holy Week, there is much suffering in our community. 

All last week my phone rang off the hook with people calling from other congregations feeling a tremendous amount of pain because of the anti-prop 5 messages they heard from their church's pulpits these past two weekends. I heard from young parents that they never again wanted their children exposed to the kind of messages they heard from the pulpit this past week. I heard stories of elders who had been in their churches for 30 or more years, feeling that they just couldn't go back again. One elder told me, "I've listened to thirty years of sermons from my pastor. But Sunday was the last time I will ever sit and listen to him refer to my family members and children as 'disordered' or 'deviants.'

Christians For Equality has adopted a three-fold approach to these calls we are receiving:

1) We commit to listen deeply to the painful experiences people are expressing, and assure them of God's love for them and their family members. Whenever possible, we will encourage callers to hold fast to their faith, their hope, and the transforming and redeeming love of Christ in their lives.

2.) We will encourage people, as much as possible, to go back and talk with their pastors and church leaders, to first share with them the pain they are experiencing. In many cases, people have years of history and a web of church family relationships that have been strained, and in some cases broken irrevocably.

3.) If there is no way they can continue in their own faith communities in a spiritually healthy way, being honest about themselves and the lives of their loved ones, then we commit to walk with them as they search for a supportive faith community that welcomes all in Jesus' name, and will hold them tenderly in Love and prayer.


But people have also e-mailed to share encouraging thoughts and theological reflections. Here's one such e-mail that is representative of the many I have received:

"It's both ironic and humbling that the Prop 5 vote is coming during Easter Week. I'm sure this isn't lost on you, but it's been a small revelation for me, unschooled as I am, in churchy things. : )

Anyone reading the scriptures with an open heart must recognize Christ's message to the religious institutions of his day. Jesus worked so hard to tear down the social barriers of his time which were created and upheld by certain powerful religious factions. The Sanhedrin and the Chief Priests primary interest was protecting their institutionalized bureaucracies.

History is intent on repeating itself. So many "Christian" religious institutions are disregarding Jesus' core teachings and reacting to protect perceived, earthly rights, rather than embrace scripture's healing message. In their blindness, they try to protect their institutional dogmas created by men (and I do mean men, for the most part), that aren't of God.

I don't know what will happen to these religious institutions, but long-term I believe they'll end up having painted themselves into such a corner they'll be unsustainable. Whenever that happens, it could mean the collapse of all Christianity or a time of great growth and renewal for the church.

Whatever happens with Prop 5, I believe that Anchorage will be better place for having had the conversation" - Deb S.