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Pastor Tim Keller has reviewed Matthew Vines’ book and says the author’s main arguments in claiming that homosexuality is not a sin are wrong.
It is difficult to change the minds of evangelical Christians on their interpretation of the Biblical views of homosexuality, but Matthew Vines has at least started the conversation.
Vines, a 25-year old gay Christian activist, met with four highly respected evangelical leaders at Biola University, a conservative, Christian college in California, the New York Times reported.
Children and young adults are grappling with issues of sexuality, and both youth ministers and other church leaders are learning how to help members of the younger generations bridge the gap between what they are feeling and the teachings of Christianity.
Vines is out in front of this movement, urging religious leaders to reevaluate long-held beliefs about the Biblical message on homosexuality. In 2014, he published a book on the topic: God and the Gay Christian: The Biblical Case in Support of Same-Sex Relationships.
For example, in the Bible, Paul states that a sexual encounter with somebody of the same sex is a sin. But Vines (and others in his camp) would argue that Paul, and others from the time period, didn’t have any examples of loving, same-sex relationships, only “exploitative homosexual practices,” reported the Christian Post.
Tim Keller, bestselling author and pastor, refuted some of Vines’ other points as well. Vine has stated that the Bible allowed various forms of slavery, but now slavery is condemned. However, Keller said that there have always been interpretations of the Bible that saw slavery as an evil, so to point to that as an instance of change is erroneous.
While the discussion is open, there are still many questions left unanswered. Evangelicals and other theologians wonder what other Biblical passages might have to be reinterpreted or at least reevaluated if the stance on same-sex relationships and marriage is changed.
Keller also noted the points Vines and others are bringing up were already discussed in the 1980s. However, with the Supreme Court legalizing same-sex marriage and the subsequent coverage in the media, it is likely that this conversation has only just begun.