Between A Rock and a Hard Place

On some level, you gotta feel sorry for Barack Obama. It would seem logical that as an African American, the black community would naturally be inclined to support his candidacy, but the support of the black community in general and the black church community in particular has for the most part been trending toward Hillary Clinton.

So Obama, in an effort to reach out to the black church, decided to stage a series of Gospel concerts in South Carolina, calling it the “Embrace the Change! Gospel Series.”  He invited a virtual who's who of the Gospel world: Mary Mary, Hezekiah Walker, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, Deitrick Haddon, Beverly Crawford, Bryon Cage, Fred Hammond and The Mighty Clouds of Joy.  He also invited a Grammy award winner by the name of Donnie McClurkin.  That's where things sort of came apart in this venture.

Pastor Donnie McClurkin's testimony includes heartbreaking tales of childhood abuse and subsequent rebellion as an adult.  In his younger years, McClurkin participated in the gay lifestyle.  All of that - the anger, the hurt, the bitterness, and identifying himself as gay - ended when he came to Christ.  He is on record as saying that he believes homosexuality to be a choice and not something that is genetically predetermined, which of course puts him in at odds with gay rights advocates.

As soon as it was announced that Pastor McClurkin was going to be a part of the event, gay rights advocates began demanding that Obama uninvite him.  Much of the accompanying rhetoric was at best exaggerated.  McClurkin has been accused of saying that gay Americans are “trying to kill our children” and calling homosexuality a “curse,” neither of which he actually said.

In an interview with the Chicago Tribune, McClurkin said, “I don’t believe that even from a religious point of view that Jesus ever discriminated toward anyone, nor do I. Most of the things that were said were totally out of context and then other things weren’t true.”

To his credit, Obama did refuse to remove McClurkin from the event, saying he wants to “bridge real divides” and “bring people together.”  But in an attempt to placate the gay community he added an openly gay South Carolina pastor, Rev. Andy Sidden, to the concert. Obama also told the gay community that he "strongly disagreed" with McClurkin's views on homosexuality.

This rift highlights a problem that Obama faces: bringing together segments of his natural support base that have some serious core disagreements.  There are many in black church leadership who refuse to bend in what they feel to be core biblical truths, and the issue of homosexuality is high on that list.  Eddie Long, T.D. Jakes, Tony Evans and others have certainly sought to reach out compassionately to gay people, but they have remained steadfast in saying the Bible says it is sin.  This has earned them ridicule and scorn from Al Sharpton and other mainstream civil rights leaders.

In a larger sense this highlights a looming problem for the Democratic party with the black community.  Here is a really insightful comment posted to an article about this issue yesterday on Streaming Faith:

If [African-Americans] are going to let their religious stand guide their vote then they are going to have to reconsider if not walk away from the Democratic Party entirely. The "progressive" radio stations I listen to go so far as to mock people who believe in God as simple minded. They don't see why anyone goes into the black churches to pander to us anyway.

The frightening thing is that despite the black community's strong religious ties, the Republican party doesn't seem to try and reach us on that level. If we all have Jesus in common, then shouldn't the Republican candidate be able to come in the black church and talk about family values too?

I have been a diehard Dem since I could vote but my desire to be FOR GOD in every aspect of my life is conflicting with having to choose a candidate from the Democratic party who supports things that are contrary to God's Word.

If the Obama concert in Columbia on Saturday night was any indication, many in the pews of black churches feel the same way. The crowd of 2,000 clapped, waved their hands and roared in support of Donnie McClurkin when he defended himself to the crowd:

Don’t call me a bigot or anti-gay when I have suffered the same feelings. Don't call me a homophobe, when I love everybody.  Don't tell me that I stand up and I say vile words against the gay community because I don't.  I don't speak against the homosexual. I tell you that God delivered me from homosexuality.

A recent poll conducted by Winthrop University showed that 74% of South Carolina African-Americans believe that homosexuality is "unacceptable."

The thing that I find most disturbing about all of this is the excoriating and attempted suppression of someone's thoughts and opinions.  Gay rights advocates sought to silence and punish Pastor McClurkin for his sincerely held belief that homosexuality is a choice, not a genetic certainty.  Science hasn't even come close to answering the question of whether or not homosexuality is genetic, yet it is getting to the place where if you even mention the "choice" argument you are labeled a hater.

It is in this difficult environment that the church must find the middle ground where we reach out to gay people with genuine love, compassion and the lack of condemnation that Jesus displayed to the woman caught in adultery while staying true to the Bible.  It is like being between the proverbial rock and the hard place.

Comments

[terris riley]

I was once in Barack Obama's favor at one time. In light of his recent views, I am not so certain that of whether I will remain with him. In my opinion, I believe it boils down to this: choosing the lesser of two evils. It appears that Obama may be 'bending' in his true beliefs for the sake of votes. I believe that being gay is a choice and that people are not 'born' that way. I do not hate gay people--neither does God hate gay people. He loves gays just as much as he loves a murderer or a thief. What God hates is the sin--not the sinner. The thing that is so interesting to me is that the leaders of our nation refuse to take a stand--for fear of ridicule. It doesn't matter what color you are--sin is sin. Who, in our nation, will take a stand without bending their beliefs? Will the church take a stand? The bible tells us that we have to love each other--but we don't have to love and condone each other's sin. Occassionally, I get caught up in a "good gossip" conversation. That would make me a "gossiper". Sometimes I don't like to submit to my husband--which I am required by God to do. Does this mean God does not love me? No, God still loves me, He does not love what I am doing. If I'm going to please God--I must decide once and for all that I will not gossip any more and that I will do it for GOD and GOD alone--not to please man. If I am going to please God, I must take a stand and be willing to deal with the consequences of my decision. It really hurts to see public Christian figures who bend for the sake of man's approval. Does the presidency mean that much to him--that He would knowingly defy the desires and principles of God--just to advance himself in a world that will soon pass away?
This is just my two-cents worth!

[ms playwrite]

There is a place and a time for everything under the sun. I believe the time for declaration is now. In a time when everything and everybody are so wishy-washy, not one way nor the other. We are instructed to hate sin, and love one another, where right now neither seems to be noticable by man's standards...because our standards have dropped to an ultimate low, especially within the Christian community, to a point of almost being discussting. Homosexuality is a sinful nature, we all know that of coarse, that's not even the question, the problem is that no one wants to be the one to address it...like having a big living and breathing elephant in the room and nobody says a word. Homosexuality is running ramped in our churches and no one wants to offend anybody, but the Bible says that our life will be an offense to those who oppose Jesus the living Christ, so as a Christian to me there doesn't seem to be an option...just use the way of love, like Jesus did for you in your ignorance of sin, Amen!

I agree with ms. two cents