In 2005, Reverend Oliver White stood in front of his congregation in the United church he had founded 22 earlier, and announced his support for same-sex marriage. Within weeks two-thirds of his membership had left, and, you can imagine what happened to the offerings. But Rev. White, an activist in the Civil Rights movement, refused to back down from a position he felt was not only morally correct, but also clearly supported by the gospel. As he explains in an interview with Atlantic magazine:
“People are very selective about what they want to believe. And unfortunately, people do follow pastors who haven’t read enough. I tell people that Jesus did a whole lot of things that were contrary to laws that people seem to want to follow today. For example, on the Sabbath day, Jesus did a little healing. That got him in trouble. Jesus hung out with women, and many were prostitutes. That got him in trouble, too. But people have these preconceived views that won’t go away.”
His is not a unique position in the church, but what’s significant is Rev. White’s refusal to back down from what he felt was right even when he began losing members, even now as the church is on the brink of closing altogether. That’s the moral courage demonstrated by Jesus in the gospel, and the lesson we hope our youth learn today: when you are doing what is right, you can’t expect to make everyone happen all the time. In fact, if everyone is happy, then you know that you are probably not accomplishing very much. But that’s the courage part of the moral equation.
You can read a full transcripts of his interview with a writer at Atlantic magazine here:
http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/06/why-one-black-minister-is-risking-his-church-to-support-gay-marriage/258078/
“People are very selective about what they want to believe. And unfortunately, people do follow pastors who haven’t read enough. I tell people that Jesus did a whole lot of things that were contrary to laws that people seem to want to follow today. For example, on the Sabbath day, Jesus did a little healing. That got him in trouble. Jesus hung out with women, and many were prostitutes. That got him in trouble, too. But people have these preconceived views that won’t go away.”
His is not a unique position in the church, but what’s significant is Rev. White’s refusal to back down from what he felt was right even when he began losing members, even now as the church is on the brink of closing altogether. That’s the moral courage demonstrated by Jesus in the gospel, and the lesson we hope our youth learn today: when you are doing what is right, you can’t expect to make everyone happen all the time. In fact, if everyone is happy, then you know that you are probably not accomplishing very much. But that’s the courage part of the moral equation.
You can read a full transcripts of his interview with a writer at Atlantic magazine here:
http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/06/why-one-black-minister-is-risking-his-church-to-support-gay-marriage/258078/
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