Posted on 01/21/2009 7:52:46 PM PST by SeekAndFind
The Rev. Canon J. Edwin Bacon Jr. from Southern California has made it no secret that he supports gays and lesbians and same-sex marriage. But his recent pro-gay comments on the Oprah Winfrey show have stunned even the popular talk show host herself.
"Being gay is a gift from God," Bacon declared in an episode that aired Jan. 7.
Appearing shocked, Winfrey responded, "Well, you are the first minister I’ve ever heard say, 'Being gay is a gift from God,' I can tell you that."
Bacon's controversial statement sparked a fiery debate on Winfrey's website, leading the talk show host to invite the Episcopal priest back to elaborate on what he meant.
"I meant exactly what I said," Bacon, rector of All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, told Winfrey via video a few days later. "It is so important for every human being to understand that he or she is a gift from God, and particularly people who are marginalized and victimized in our culture. Gay and lesbian people are clearly outcasts in many areas of our life and it's so important for them to understand that when God made them, God said you are good. That is a gift, that is a blessing, that is the original blessing with which every one of us is made by God and loved by God."
One commenter on Oprah.com's message board responded: "I was appalled by the pastor's remark ... how many people did this man of the cloth lead down the wrong road with his comment?"
Another commenter praised Bacon and said it was "freeing" to hear Bacon's statement.
And yet another said: "Though I agree that being gay is not a gift from God, but rather a sexual preference and thus a choice, I also believe in love and acceptance of all, no matter what."
The Episcopal priest has repeatedly proclaimed a message of inclusiveness. In a controversial move last year, Bacon opened his church to perform marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples a week after the California Supreme Court had legalized homosexual marriage in May.
After stirring more controversy on Winfrey's show this month, Bacon has been flooded with calls and emails, some with positive words and some with critical remarks.
Labeling himself as "biblically oriented," Bacon claimed he's going down the road of Jesus, showing compassion and being inclusive, and not the road of condemnation and judgment.
Warren Throckmorton, associate professor of Psychology and director of the College Counseling Service at Grove City College in Pennsylvania, doesn't believe Bacon's comments help in the ongoing debate over the Bible and homosexuality.
"Traditional Christianity teaches that all people are valued by God as bearers of His image," he commented to The Christian Post. "However, moral questions surrounding sexual behavior are matters of great dispute among Christians. Rev. Bacon is less than helpful when he condemns those who disagree with him."
Bacon's comments aired during the third episode of Winfrey’s special series, "Best Life Week."
it’s good to know I am not alone, it really grates me to hear those who say big deal so what or the usual I know a couple and they are nice.
So it’s gone from a sin, to mental illness, to private not so great habit, to just as good as being normal, now to a special “gift from God” which is the most revolting and blasphemous statement I can imagine.
Yeah he's wrong of course; but he shouldn't have to admitt it to his comgregation.
If he has a congregation: they are only there out of choice, and it's obvious they like his message or they wouldn't be there in the first place.
When these self deluded people stand before "Jesus" at the Judgement, they will have to answer for themselves; and blaming this pastor will be a sufficent excuse!
I did not post #24. My account has been hacked.
You account has been deleted.
By the same logic, Paedophiles are a gift from God.
Homos, heteros, and pedophiles are all the way God made them. All equal. All loved.
As such, welcome!
Let’s leave aside biology; that sex is first and foremost reproduction, and that all forms of sexual behavior not primarily optimal to reproduction are technically reproductive disorders.
As such, these conditions are afflictions, not orientations. Magnets have orientations. People have diseases.
So having sex with your own gender, or having sex with a sexually immature member of the species - none of these things should have any weight in terms of how we clinically evaluate either homosexuals or pedophiles as viable members of a community?
Why not? If someone wants to take that lemon and make lemonade, I guess that’s fine. I’d ask however that one sells that lemonade somewhere off of school property.
As long as we are, for the record, defining what is ‘of God’, and what is ‘not of God’, we may as well be as diverse, fair, and inclusive as we can.
I’m serious. If this is what we are going to call ‘apologetics’, then why discriminate? The Bible this gent is reading certainly doesn’t discriminate based on gender, or really even creed?
I’d watch Oprah just to see the guy defend this with Scripture.
I jumped the gun.
Hillarys Nightmare is also a Freeper. He’s also my best friend. We go back to about the 9th or 10 grade back in the ‘70’s. He and his family went to Disney World and I “house-sat” for them, fed the dogs and horses, etc. I logged into the Freep from there using IE since he generally uses Firefox and I didn’t want to mess up his password(s). But when they returned I’d forgotten to log out via his machine.
Today I’d sent him a couple of Freep links via Outlook Express, which we know Windows will want to open using IE, and he made two posts under my name. I realized that too late, of course. Had already sounded the klaxons about being hacked. Had never seen that in all my years of computing and reacted too quickly. When I re-read the second post I recognized his “voice”.
So the Freep wasn’t hacked.
My apologies.
Yours sheepishly,
JoJo Gunn
I jumped the gun.
Hillarys Nightmare is also a Freeper. He’s also my best friend. We go back to about the 9th or 10 grade back in the ‘70’s. He and his family went to Disney World and I “house-sat” for them, fed the dogs and horses, etc. I logged into the Freep from there using IE since he generally uses Firefox and I didn’t want to mess up his password(s). But when they returned I’d forgotten to log out via his machine.
Today I’d sent him a couple of Freep links via Outlook Express, which we know Windows will want to open using IE, and he made two posts under my name. I realized that too late, of course. Had already sounded the klaxons about being hacked. Had never seen that in all my years of computing and reacted too quickly. When I re-read the second post I recognized his “voice”.
So the Freep wasn’t hacked.
My apologies.
Yours sheepishly,
JoJo Gunn
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