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Thought, word and deed: sin as doing or not doing
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Jesus died because many people decided that his death was expedient for their personal agendas. Many of them would have said that it wasn't a personal thing; the crowd, for instance, had been persuaded that it was much more important to get Barabbas out of jail than a wandering preacher. Some of them wouldn't have known who Jesus was. The Jewish establishment, terrified of Rome, had no wish to seem favorable towards someone who could be characterized as an insurrectionist. Even so, the priestly Saduccees were destined to disappear when Rome finally rolled over the feisty insurrectionists who survived Jesus and brought about their own destruction later.
We look at people who commit crimes; they dominate the media. You can find programs about them running all day on Saturdays on some stations. Some of these people are very clever; others are stupid and think that their community is stupid as well. Paradoxically, they think that everyone but themselves is a fool and can be deceived--until the police arrive.
Then there are those who sin by omission--this is often the stuff of movies and television drama. Although I never saw "The Sopranos," much was made of the fictional character of Carmela Soprano, the ultimate enabler who knew full well that her husband was a filthy character, but who ignored that and did what she saw as her duty as a wife. This is the sin of omission at its worst. Of course a wife might not be able to stop her husband's actions, but she consents to them when she goes to bed with him every night.
The Church in America has committed a gross sin of omission by standing aside from the affirmation of gay rights. Are gay Americans citizens? Are they people? Are some of them Christians? I don't see the problem here; in fact, there may not be a legal entity known as "gay rights." Gay rights are human rights.
I know they will quote Scripture proof texts. Such quotes are among the "hateful texts" that have been used for centuries to nurture the worst in us. But as Bishop Spong writes in his Manifesto, the debate is over, empirically speaking.The issue has been decided. Society has moved on and the voices of hate are getting fewer. Eventually they will die out and the Church will be renewed as the love of Christ embraces us all.
Just as Rosie O'Donnell said on the steps of the state building, America is based on liberty and justice for all--not for some. Before the present day the Church stood aside on racial justice for the most part; they opted out of the Peace Movement for the most part. People who say today that the Church is irrelevant are basing their position on this history. How many Christians left the Church over these issues is something we will never know.
And then we have Rev. Phelps and his hate movement. This is the sin of commission--active promotion of bigotry towards a target group. The Catholic church covered up a sexual abuse scandal that bridged generations and encompassed thousands of victims. Bishops who knew that certain priests were pedophiles or sexual predators obstructed justice to protect their image.
The ballot initiative in California that took away rights from gay people was financed and spearheaded by the Utah Mormons. The Catholic church led the fight to take rights away from gays in Maine. How far down the ladder do you go? How much harm do you want to do to your churches just to vent your hate? How many believers went into exile over this? We will never know, but just so you know, if you're looking for Rev. Phelps' "fag church," the doors of the Episcopal Churches of Tucson are wide open to you and everyone.
For more info: Search and read Bishop John Shelby Spong's Manifesto for yourself. Watch the movie, Milk starring Sean Penn; or find his documentary Witch Hunt.
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