He compared biblical interpretations of same-sex relationships with those of slavery ”“ a practice once defended by the Church. As opinions on that changed, he suggested, so may the Church’s view on same-sex relationships.
“In spite of all the passages in favour of slavery, when you examine the Scriptures as a whole and the ministry of Jesus in particular, you realise it is about freedom from all that diminishes and dehumanises people. No Christian I hope would today argue that slavery is good, but for nineteen centuries the Church accepted it and defended it. God through His Holy Spirit has led us into the truth of seeing things in a totally different way today and we are rightly horrified when we read about people who have been kept as slaves by others.
“What all this amounts to is that one cannot argue that there is one accepted traditional way of interpreting Scripture that is true and orthodox and all else is modern revisionism, culturally conditioned. Scripture itself is diverse and theological views held in some biblical books are reshaped in the light of experience by other writers”¦.
It has always been thus. Recall the Israelites asked Aaron for a god in keeping with the times and culture and he made them one. Then that strict old literalist, Moses, came down and started throwing holy writ around. Thankfully, Jeroboam came along and revived the practice.
Fortunately for Wales, he is on the way out. Unfortunately for Wales, his (as yet unnamed) successor is not likely to sing a different tune.
“Did God really say?” – Genesis 3:1
So, all he can offer is shallow, patent distortion. In order to distort, obscure, and denigrate the Gospel to such great extent, he must have motivations of greater value to him…
Psa 137:5 If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning.
Psa 137:6 If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.
You can refuse to believe the scriptures regarding marriage and at least be honest about your disbelief. To assert that scripture supports your belief when it does not is deceitful.