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Stating opposition to LGBT will only drive people away from religion

LETTER | As a devout, born-again Christian, I read various news reports quoting Pakatan Harapan de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim urging religious people from all faiths to state their opposition towards the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, with a great deal of sadness.

Is it possible to have any winners from a war against LGBTs, who have been targeted relentlessly for the past few months? I can imagine that a hostile attitude will only result in even more hurt people who would never want to have anything to do with Christianity.

The Bible commends those who are peacemakers and bridge-builders.

In the greater Christian world, there has been an increasing amount of conversation on how Christians can be more compassionate, welcoming, even accepting towards LGBTs.

The National Council of Churches in India (NCCI), representing half of the Christian population in India, has been consistently speaking against injustice towards LGBTs. The NCCI was one of the louder voices in calling for Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code to be repealed.

They were quoted as saying, “We appeal to churches to sojourn with sexual minorities and their families ministerially, without prejudice and discrimination, to provide them ministries of love, compassionate care, and justice.”

The Communion of Churches in Indonesia echoed this in a pastoral statement in 2016. They affirmed that LGBT isn’t a disease, a disorder or a form of evil, and the dignity of LGBTs should be championed.

Quoting a translation of the statement, “The Church as an inclusive institution and God’s family should learn to accept LGBTs as an integral part of our union as the Body of Christ. We should provide them with opportunities to grow as people who are well-rounded physically, mentally, socially and spiritually.”

Just recently, the third largest mainstream Christian denomination in Australia, the Uniting Church, began allowing LGBTs to marry. The Azusa Pacific University, a conservative Evangelical Christian university has just begun allowing LGBT relationships on campus.

The Church of Wales’ leadership decided a few days ago that their current stance towards LGBTs is unacceptable and they are finding ways to be more inclusive.

It is understood that Christianity isn’t a monolith, and while there are an increasing number of Christians who accept LGBTs, there are those who don’t. And there are those, laypeople and pastors alike, who want to welcome LGBTs but are afraid to speak up for fear of a backlash.

Regardless of our opinions about LGBTs, I believe that we Christians can find common ground in love, compassion, hospitality and kindness. I believe we can agree that these aren’t “super liberal” values, but they are “super Biblical” values.

Let us be known as a people who the hurting and downtrodden feel safe to be with.

Blessed are the peacemakers.


The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.

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