…we were surprised when former CT editor David Neff on Facebook praised Campolo\u2019s move. As he put it in an email to me clarifying his comment, \u201cI think the ethically responsible thing for gay and lesbian Christians to do is to form lasting, covenanted partnerships. I also believe that the church should help them in those partnerships in the same way the church should fortify traditional marriages.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
At CT, we\u2019re saddened that David has come to this conclusion. Saddened because we firmly believe that the Bible teaches that God intends the most intimate of covenant relationships to be enjoyed exclusively by a man and a woman. We\u2019ve stated this view explicitly in many editorials, and it is implicit but clear in many of our feature stories.<\/p>\n
Still, many of our readers become alarmed when a prominent evangelical leader says otherwise. Add the changes of mind to the legal juggernaut sweeping through the land to legitimize gay marriage, and the orthodox can become demoralized. They fear that history will sweep all of us into this view eventually.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s not at all certain that the rapid cultural shift in America on gay marriage will be mirrored in the Christian church. North American and European Christians who believe in gay marriage are a small minority in these regions, and churches that ascribe to a more liberal sexual ethic continue to wither.<\/p>\n