Matthew Royal reviewed God and the gay Christian by Matthew Vines
Review of 'God and the gay Christian' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Interesting read. His thesis is if gays do not have a choice in who they're attracted to, then Biblical Christianity must change either its views on voluntary celibacy or same-sex marriage.
Two lynchpins of his argument are that homosexuals do not choose their orientation and they cannot change their orientation, although they may change their behavior. The most compelling evidence for this is the failure of the so-called ex-gay movement. Exodus International was a leading organization offering this "therapy" and recently closed its doors and issued an apology to all the people and families it harmed while trying to change the unchangeable. Christians have held strong beliefs about interracial marriage, slavery, divorce and remarriage, which have changed completely as a result of new information and modern culture. Vines believes a similar reinterpretation is happening now as a result of people realizing gays don't become gay by choice or as a …
Interesting read. His thesis is if gays do not have a choice in who they're attracted to, then Biblical Christianity must change either its views on voluntary celibacy or same-sex marriage.
Two lynchpins of his argument are that homosexuals do not choose their orientation and they cannot change their orientation, although they may change their behavior. The most compelling evidence for this is the failure of the so-called ex-gay movement. Exodus International was a leading organization offering this "therapy" and recently closed its doors and issued an apology to all the people and families it harmed while trying to change the unchangeable. Christians have held strong beliefs about interracial marriage, slavery, divorce and remarriage, which have changed completely as a result of new information and modern culture. Vines believes a similar reinterpretation is happening now as a result of people realizing gays don't become gay by choice or as a result of a moral or spiritual failing.
Although he may not convince everyone -- this book comes pretty heavily from a fundamentalist perspective, and may not be entirely satisfying to someone from a Catholic background -- he makes some excellent historical and Biblical observations about views on same-sex relationships, and makes the case for God giving His blessing on faithful, monogamous same-sex marriages.
