Safehaven Worship Service

23 November 2003

Claim the Blessing

By Rev. Yap Kim Hao

After I preached my previous sermon here on "The God We Trust," one member waited and came up to me when I was standing alone and told me that he appreciated what I said and was particularly helped by the expression that sexual orientation is a blessing and not a curse. I am glad that he was affirmed. I sense the responsibility I have in preaching to say that word that ministers to people with need. When I was meeting with the members of one of the cell groups I detected the varying opinions concerning whether sexual condition is a sin. One the straights wanted so much to support the gays but he finds it somewhat disconcerting when considering gay sex. Is homosexuality a sin? The majority of public opinion outside is that it is and that is the case and that is very much within the different religious faith communities. This is the dominant view and we are burdened with it and it is hard to come from under it. That set me thinking about the whole idea of God's blessing and God's curse. There are many situations recorded in our Bible and how do we interpret them when we read about blessings and curses. Let us examine the issue of work, sex and marriage.

I play some golf after retirement and it looks like I may have less time to do so now. But someone gave me a small placard saying "Work is for people who don't know how to play golf." Work here is contrasted with play. Or there is the saying "Work is the curse of the drinking class." Or "The worst day of fishing is better than the best day of working." If you work and do not have time to do what you enjoy like playing and drinking and fishing then it is a curse. When you are have problems in your workplace and feel stressed, disgusted, and disappointed then work must be a curse for you too.

You can even quote Bible verses. In the story of the Fall of Adam the Lord God said to Adam: "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it.' cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth; and you shall eat the plants of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust and to dust you shall return." Genesis 3:17-19

Because Eve was an accomplice in human sin, woman was cursed too:

To the woman he said:" I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you." Genesis 3:16

Women are to bear the pain and inconvenience of monthly menstruation and excruciating childbirth. They have to work in submission to their husbands and keep silent in church. That is why the faithful male Jews thank God each morning for not being born a woman.

According to this Garden of Eden tale men and women toil and sweat because of the sin of Adam The ground is cursed by God the plants will grow among the weeds and you are doomed to work until you die and return to the earth as dust.

But there are also Bible verses which reveal a different view. But earlier in the Creation stories we read that God created the heavens and the earth and all living thing that moves upon the face of the earth. "And God said: Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed which is upon the face of all the earth, every tree with seed in its fruit; and you shall have them for food…and God saw everything that he made, and behold it was very good." God is a worker and made man in the image of God to work and commissioned man to till the garden and to keep it." All this is ordained by God if you will before the fall of Adam.

In the New Testament book II Thessalonians 3 we read of Paul's teaching "If anyone will not work, let him not eat. For we hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work. Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work in quietness and to earn their own living."

II Thessalonians 3:10-13.

God intended for us from the very beginning to work. Work is not a curse that God has placed upon us because of Adam's sin. We need to interpret the story of the Garden of Eden not in its literal form of the naked Adam and Eve and the encounter with the snake. It is one of the Creation myths conveying the truth of freedom that God has given to humankind to choose between good and evil. We also interpret the Creation Story to say that God has given us work to do on this earth. The world did not come to us as a complete product and we just sit in idleness. Look at all the progress that has been made in this created world from its primitive beginnings and to this present stage of human and community development. What would have happened if we all squat around in idleness and watch the days go by. We are co-creating with God for a new heaven and new earth - a new future, a new creation. Work is a blessing and not a curse.

Let us turn to the question of sexuality. Is sex a curse or a blessing? Here I am treading on treacherous territory and slippery slopes. Since when have you heard of a sermon on sex. Adam was ashamed of himself when he found he was naked and he had to hide from God when in the story of the Garden of Eden, God appeared to him. We are always too embarrassed to talk about sex and my daughter is having difficulty answering the questions relating to sex that her twin sons are asking her. She is trying to refer them to their grandfather.

Generally humankind is shy about nakedness and the first sign of civilization coming out from primitive life is to cover the nakedness. So we have the figment of the fig leaf. Within the Christian story the church's view of sexuality can be traced also to the influence of Greek culture and philosophy on the early church. Distinction was made between the body and the spirit and of course the spiritual is more important than the physical - the spirit over matter. The ancient Greeks believed that the spirit was divine. They believed the spirit is trapped in a human body when they were on earth. They saw the body as a prison which imprisons the spirit. The conflicting relationship between body and spirit produced a great deal of neurotic behavior then and continues to breed it today.

The attitude of the Greeks is in sharp contrast to the theology of the body which is present in the Old Testament. Listen for a moment to the Song of Solomon, an Old Testament book we read very rarely in worship. "Behold you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful. Your eyes are doves, behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats... your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth is lovely. Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate behind your veil....Your two breasts are like two fawns...Your lips distill nectar, my bride; honey and milk are under your tongue….You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you." Song of Solomon 3. Sounds like pornographic material. The Old Testament teaches us to love the human body.

The Song of Solomon is a collection of poetry that describes the man both as shepherd and king courting a woman. The Jews interpret this book as God's love for Israel and the Christians regard this song as Christ's relationship to His followers. It also shows Christ's love for the Church. Still the imagery is acceptable even though it refers to the Church or Christians. We are reminded of God's love for us and who we are as a human person.

The reason why we don't read the Song of Solomon, in worship is due to the church's tragic history regarding human sexuality and that we are simply ashamed of such imagery, such words, such love - ashamed of our bodies.

The church and our culture have engendered within us a fear, even a dislike, of our bodies and sexuality. To the extent that we are able to develop new attitudes about ourselves, we are healthier, happier and more holy women and men.

Sexuality is a good gift from God. Sexuality is that yearning for relationship and not only for creation. It is a blessing. God created and intended it for expressing love and for pleasure, not indiscriminate use. Our sexuality understood correctly does not need to be feared. We praise God that He created us sexual. We also realize that it is a mystery.

A church recently developed a Religious Declaration on Sexual Morality for all gays and straights and carries this paragraph: "Our culture needs a sexual ethic focused on personal relationships and social justice rather than particular sexual acts. All persons have the right and the responsibility to lead sexual lives that express love, justice, mutuality, commitment, consent and pleasure. Grounded in respect for the body and for the vulnerability that intimacy brings, this ethic fosters physical, emotional and spiritual health. It accepts no double standards and applies to all persons, without regard to sex, gender, color, age, bodily condition, marital status or sexual orientation...God rejoices when we celebrate our sexuality with holiness and integrity."

When we regard sexuality as a blessing we are saying that it is God's gift. Certainly the mystery of sex is that sexual impulses are deeply embedded in our very being. We did not manufacture or cultivate it for pleasure. It is a vital and essential part of our lives that God has implanted within us. It is not something that we have solicited, earned or deserved from God. It was in there when life began. It is a gift from God and therefore a blessing.

The Church has a difficult history in dealing with the question. Sex comes through as something bad. The way to sublimate sexual feelings is celibacy. St. Augustine believed that the less one was driven toward sex, and the less pleasure he received from it, the more sure he could be of his sanctification. St. Thomas Aquinas believed that the sexual act was only for procreation. If intercourse was engaged in for any other reason, it was sinful. But St Peter himself was married since the Scriptures made mentioned of his mother-in-law. By the Middle Ages, the holy life is deemed to be celibate and celibacy was promoted..

There were also other than religious grounds for the requirement of celibacy for the priests. Married priests were not always the paragons of virtue for there were sexual immoralities. Some even have mistresses. Married bishops and priests lived like feudal lords and owned large tracts of land given to the church. The priesthood was passed on from father to son as an inheritance and that included land. The church gained economic power when they owned and controlled church properties and land. Along with it came political power when mandatory celibacy was introduced.

Oddly enough Paul in his teaching did not advocate celibacy. His advice "to the unmarried and widows I say that is well for them to remain single as I do. But if they cannot exercise self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to be aflame with passion." I Corinthians 7:8-9.

Marriage is generally regarded as a blessing. Claiming the blessing is actually a movement and consequently a code word for those who are campaigning for same sex marriages. The irony is that while increasing numbers of straights are co-habiting and deliberately so, it is the gay community who are clamouring to be legally married.

At the same time we must admit that all have the option to choose to be celibate, live in single blessedness. It must be a voluntary act. Voluntary abstinencce from sexual relationships is a courageous choice and should be admired and respected. Men and woman of faith in the clergy do make the sacrifice of their sexuality as a pure and pious act to God, and that deserves to be recognized as such. To them it is the sacrifice they make for the sake of their religious vocation and they sense it is a calling of God.

But sexual abstinence cannot be imposed on an entire class of people, simply because of their sexual orientation. Celibacy cannot be the answer if there are lingering doubts that homosexuality is a blessing

How then do we see ourselves. Do we see ourselves as the world sees us and do we see ourselves as God sees us. This takes a certain measure of faith and understanding. The world is harsh and cruel on this issue. This is reflected in the kind of statements that were made over the consecration of Bishop Gene Robinson.

The Devil has clearly entered our church," said Archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi of Kenya, who has announced that his church will have nothing to do with the Episcopal Church U.S.A., which sanctioned the election of Bishop V. Gene Robinson, who was consecrated recently.

Nigeria's Anglicans have been strong in their opposition to the gay movement. "We totally reject and renounce this obnoxious attitude and behavior," the church said in a statement last month. "It is devilish and satanic. It comes directly from the pit of hell. It is an idea sponsored by Satan himself and being executed by his followers and adherents who have infiltrated the church." It is not seen as God's curse. It is viewed as the work of Satan.

These are strong emotive words to characterize the curse. Blessing or curse? It will remain a divided opinion for some time to come.

I seriously wonder why the homophobic Christian is so threatened and judgmental. I suspect their view of the Bible and its authority are being questioned and their theological foundations shaken to the core. They cannot cope with the differences of theological interpretation admittedly based on the teaching of the same Bible. The conflicting views on the use and authority of Holy Scripture are difficult to reconcile. The Bible can certainly be seen as condemnatory of homosexual practice. Both sides admit that they have different interpretations of the related passages. For some the literal word of the bible is all that is required to form their judgment and opinion. They ignore the historical and cultural situation. They believe that the final truth of God is found in the Scripture is God's self-revelation. They do not account for the human factor. The divine revelation has to be received by fallible human beings even though they are divinely inspired. Other Christians submit that the Bible also call us to recognize human barriers and prejudices erected to exclude others from their religious community - Gentiles, Samaritans, lepers, ritually unclean persons, women, left-handed people, racial minorities and people who committed suicide. The church's rejection of gay people is just one more prejudice that the Bible's authority is quoted to justify their actions. We have to reject a literal interpretation of the Bible. But we must revere the Bible but not worship the Bible as an idol. We cannot set it aside as irrelevant. We all use selective passages in this debate. The proper way to use the Bible is thus in dispute. We are more concerned with the Word that was made flesh Jesus Himself than in every single alphabet, word and passage of Scripture. Christ urges inclusion and ministry to those who live in the margins of society.

A couple of days ago I went to the Trinity Theological College library and stumbled across a book, "Christianity, Social Tolerance and Homosexuality: Gay People in Western Europe from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the Fourteenth Century" by John Boswell. He is the Professor of History in Yale University and published this social history in 1980 after ten years of research.

It was an important book and won the 198d1 American Book Award for History. One of the reviews identified the view of Boswell that "intolerance of homosexuality was not an essential feature of Christianity itself, but only became the dominant attitude after twelve hundred years of Church history." Roman society regarded homosexuality as an ordinary part of the range of human eroticism.

It was in the latter part of the 12th century that virulent hostility erupted. This spread to the theological and legal writings. Gays were included in the minority groups of Jews, heretics and witches who were victimized. It was the time of the Inquisition where people were forced to become Christians.

There was the confusion between popular prejudice and religious belief. The negative attitude towards  the minority was a matter of power and control of the majority. Religion was being used to justify personal animosities and prejudice. Scripture passagers were being quoted by the homophobic.

The Genesis story of Sodom is an issue of hospitality which was breached. It was not a question of sex and if it is seen as sex it is that of gang rape by the men both young and old. It is strange to read about Lot's offer of his own daughters as bribe to the men.

Leviticus is about a holiness code written 3,000 years ago. It was ritualistic cleansing. It includes not only sexual laws but prohibitions against working on the Sabbath, wearing of garments of different fabrics, tattoos, eating pork or shell fish. Many of these we abandon today.

Paul in teaching the Corinthians did not specifically exclude gays from the kingdom of God. The particular word homosexual was a late translation in 1958. King James Version version of the passage describes those people as effeminate and abusers of themselves with mankind. Paul was condemning the Roman custom of married men hiring effeminate young boys for sexual pleasure. Homosexuality as a term was coined only in the late 19th century by German psychologists and introduced into English by John Addington Symonds in his writings in 1891.

Romans 1:26-27 deals with pagan rites. The Roman temples had fertility gods and goddesses and part of their worship is to have drunken orgies with temple prostitutes to honour their gods. It is not related to homosexuality. It had to do with the monotheistic belief in the one God.

John Boswell came to the conclusion that the source of anti-gay feelings among Christians must be sought elsewhere other than the Bible.

Bishop Theuner in his sermon preached at Bishop Robinson's consecration said that he read all four Gospels in its preparation. He came to the understanding of the whole life and the total ministry of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

"Our Lord's attention was entirely directed to the outcast and the marginalized; the poor, the halt, the lame, the blind, lepers, women, people possessed with demons, prostitutes, tax collectors, Roman soldiers, Samaritans, Syro-Phoenecians , thieves"

They are not in the highways but the byways of life. They live not along the main streets but the back lanes of life. They were pushed to the margins of church and society and they need to be brought back to the center of life.

Any Biblical interpretation has to come to terms with Christ's commandment to love all of God's people - so-called saints and sinners. There is to be reverence for life and nothing human can be alien to me. The true Church has no outcasts. The Christian community must be Christ-like and be inclusive and able to accept diversity.

What is our task now? Our task, first and foremost, is to live as people of faith, to live in celebration of God's grace, to live as people shaped radically by the gospel, to live with trust in God, to live as people in hope in God, to live to love the way God loves us and to love all people.

Once we perceive our lives as being blessed, we can become a blessing to the world. Our blessings are meant to be shared, not hidden or covered up.

By our lives we become a blessing to others. You have zest in your life. Share your enthusiasm and your joy. In all your interactions share the blessing you have received, with the blessing of what and who you are. You experience the God of love and compassion where others only see despair and suffering around them. You perceive God's presence where others see only know God's absence. Live and act so that they may experience God's blessing as well. You are blessed. Claim your blessing. Be a blessing.