Westminster Congregational - U.C.C.

"Progressive Traditions - The Pacific Northwest Inlander, June 4-10" ...
What part of "Go and sin no more." does Ms. Johnston not understand. Based on what she said in the article homosexual behavior, in her opinion, is not a sin. What Bible do they use? The California Pick and Choose Bible? Homosexual behavior is a sin. Period, no if's and's or but's. As far as the rest of us minding our own business well that's not going to happen. We have the right to defend our faith. The Christian Church is full of sinners of all types. Homosexuals, thieves, murderers, adulterers, child molesters and many other types. He who is without sin please stand up!

There is only one human that was never sinful and he is in Heaven. We Christians are foul able, corruptible and in most ways just like non-believers. What sets us apart is our faith. It's a complete faith, not a pick and choose faith. There is no gray area with God. It's all black and white. The U.C.C. must have tossed out the Old Testament, Matthew's Gospel and most of the letters that Peter, Paul and James wrote. How can they classify themselves as believers when they don't have all the pieces needed? No non-believer can begin to comprehend that faith even by reading the Bible. They miss the point. This is not a physical faith but a spiritual faith. The physical is sinful by nature. I'm sure your thinking, 'wait a minute the Bible says...' but you forget that it's easy for non-believers to quote the Bible. Non-believers take passages out of context or use specific passages as weapons that they cannot begin to understand. As a Christian I expect this to happen because the Devil knows the Bible better than any human.
Has Ms. Johnston actually read what her "Church" believes? (See http://www.ucc.org/beliefs/) Here is what it says,

"The United Church of Christ embraces a theological heritage that affirms the Bible as the authoritative witness to the Word of God, the creeds of the ecumenical councils, and the confessions of the Reformation. The UCC has roots in the "covenantal" tradition—meaning there is no centralized authority or hierarchy that can impose any doctrine or form of worship on its members. Christ alone is Head of the church. We seek a balance between freedom of conscience and accountability to the apostolic faith. The UCC therefore receives the historic creeds and confessions of our ancestors as testimonies, but not tests of the faith. Linked on the right of this page are some of those testimonies."

The key phrase here is "...the Bible as the authoritative witness to the Word of God...", again which Bible? It wasn't Adam and Bob or Eve and Jill in Genesis. Lets take a look (New International Version). Genesis 2:18 "The LORD God said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.'" Suitable helper, someone compatible with Adam. Let's see if Bob shows up...

Genesis 2:19-24 "Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, 'This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, for she was taken out of man.' For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh."

So how does a "Holy Union" between two people of the same sex exist? It doesn't. The Gay community wants the label "Marriage" so that they can have their lifestyle accepted as normal. If it was just a question of the same rights under the law then a Civil Union law would suffice but that doesn't make them normal.