Our Open Beliefs
From Rev. Randy Williams:
Since you are accountable to God for yourself, we maintain that you must have freedom to work out your own beliefs. We don't have to agree with each other to be in worship together, to encourage each other, to care or serve together. This freedom is so strong some have said that the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) doesn't believe anything. This is not true. We believe that Jesus is our Savior and Lord. We believe Jesus loves you. We believe that Jesus wants us to care for each other. We believe that wants us in relationship with each other.
Some of us take the Bible literally at Glen Oak. Most don't and that's okay.
Let me tell you my story:
Once, I was re-reading the Christmas story from Matthew 1:18ff. There Joseph is upset because Mary is pregnant and he is not the father. The Hebrew scripture in Deuteronomy 22 explains that Mary should be stoned to death. Joseph would have done this if he had taken the scriptures literally. This would have killed her and the unborn baby Jesus. But Joseph was a "just" man and he knew that killing Mary and her unborn child would not honor God. Then it dawned on me, this story indicates that our very Christian faith depends on a nuanced understanding of the Bible. Wow!
Paul in the New Testament Book of Romans and other places is very condemning of homosexuality. Jesus, however, never dealt with the matter. All people need to have a sense of self-worth, be valued and loved as a child of God. Churches should support all adults and youth and not judge. So, I believe that homosexuality can be a viable Christian life-style.
The Bible is a collection of writings. many sought to make sense of their faith in the present moment when they wrote. Others of faith saw benefit in preserving, sharing, studying and teaching these writings. Working out my faith requires me to do so in dialogue with the Biblical text, but I am the one responsible for what I believe.
Since you are accountable to God for yourself, we maintain that you must have freedom to work out your own beliefs. We don't have to agree with each other to be in worship together, to encourage each other, to care or serve together. This freedom is so strong some have said that the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) doesn't believe anything. This is not true. We believe that Jesus is our Savior and Lord. We believe Jesus loves you. We believe that Jesus wants us to care for each other. We believe that wants us in relationship with each other.
Some of us take the Bible literally at Glen Oak. Most don't and that's okay.
Let me tell you my story:
Once, I was re-reading the Christmas story from Matthew 1:18ff. There Joseph is upset because Mary is pregnant and he is not the father. The Hebrew scripture in Deuteronomy 22 explains that Mary should be stoned to death. Joseph would have done this if he had taken the scriptures literally. This would have killed her and the unborn baby Jesus. But Joseph was a "just" man and he knew that killing Mary and her unborn child would not honor God. Then it dawned on me, this story indicates that our very Christian faith depends on a nuanced understanding of the Bible. Wow!
Paul in the New Testament Book of Romans and other places is very condemning of homosexuality. Jesus, however, never dealt with the matter. All people need to have a sense of self-worth, be valued and loved as a child of God. Churches should support all adults and youth and not judge. So, I believe that homosexuality can be a viable Christian life-style.
The Bible is a collection of writings. many sought to make sense of their faith in the present moment when they wrote. Others of faith saw benefit in preserving, sharing, studying and teaching these writings. Working out my faith requires me to do so in dialogue with the Biblical text, but I am the one responsible for what I believe.