Williams compares gay relationships to marriage
by Jennifer Gold
Posted: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 8:43 (BST)
The spotlight is back on Rowan Williams today after letters emerged in which he says gay relationships could "reflect the love of God" in a way comparable to marriage, according to media reports today.
Dr Williams allegedly affirmed his liberal position on homosexuality in a leaked exchange of letters between 2000 and 2001 with Deborah Pitt, an evangelical living in his former archdiocese in south Wales.
According to media reports, Dr Williams asserts in the letters his belief that parts of the Bible relating to homosexuality were addressed "to heterosexuals looking for sexual variety in their experience" rather than gay people in a relationship.
"I concluded that an active sexual relationship between two people of the same sex might therefore reflect the love of God in a way comparable to marriage, if and only if it had about it the same character of absolute covenanted faithfulness," one letter was quoted as saying.
Dr Williams as a theologian is liberal on the issue of homosexuality but adopts a more conservative position as spiritual leader of the Anglican Communion, which officially regards homosexuality as incompatible with Scripture.
His assertions in the letters have come under fire conservative Anglicans. Canon Chris Sugden, secretary of conservative group Anglican Mainstream, told the Daily Mail: "Clearly the Archbishop is in a conflicted situation, while holding these personal convictions with the job of the Archbishop of Canterbury to uphold the teaching of the Church."
Dr Williams' views "have led him to do nothing to bring any discipline in the Church on this matter", he added.
The head of evangelical group Reform, the Rev Rod Thomas, told the newspaper meanwhile that: "One cannot help but wonder whether his personal views affect the ways in which he tries to resolve difficulties. Instead of leading the Church out of this crisis, we feel the Archbishop of Canterbury is prolonging it because of his personal unhappiness about disciplining a section of the Church with which he personally agrees."
The Archbishop's comments come just days after the conclusion of the once-in-a-decade Lambeth Conference, which reaffirmed the Anglican Communion's official line on homosexuality.
Bishops at the conference, which ended on Sunday, called for an immediate halt to same-sex consecrations and blessings, and the suspension of cross-border interventions.
Dr Williams said at the end of the conference that the Anglican Communion would be in "grave peril" if member churches failed to observe the moratoria.
The churches at the heart of the row are the US Episcopal Church, which ordained the openly gay Gene Robinson as Bishop of New Hampshire in 2003, and the Anglican Church of Canada, where a number of dioceses offer blessings for same-sex unions.
Canadian Bishop Don Harvey told Reuters news agency that he did not believe cross border interventions would end until the Canadian Church put a stop to same-sex blessings. He also rejected the idea of suspending such blessings in new parishes whilst allowing existing ones to continue offering them.
"That will be completely unacceptable to us. That will not be an answer," he said. "I think the Communion is already in grave peril...It's in even greater peril if the same-sex blessings continue."
Copyright © 2009 Christian Today. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
The comments below are readers' personal opinions and are in no way intended to reflect the editorial opinion of Christian Today.
Added: Friday, August 8, 2008, 12:25 (BST)
@Katherine, Manchester
Those in the glbt club are so quick to accuse Christians of being hateful. But look at the language that you use:
“unless they have looked with already formed hatred, narrow-minded bigotry and rotting, horrid, posionous outlooks on 'truth' and 'right'”
In order to fully understand just exactly where God stands on the issue, I strongly suggest that you actually read your Holy Bible. Perhaps you could start with the following:
Genesis 1:26-28, 19:4-7, Leviticus 18:22, 20:13, Judges 19:22-24, Matthew 19:4-6, Mark 7:21-23, Romans 1:24-27, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, and Jude 1:7.
AMPisAnglican, Canada
Added: Friday, August 8, 2008, 12:15 (BST)
@PDev, London
You claim that ”Homosexuality is not a choice, it's influenced by a vast and complex network of genes at birth”. How than do you explain what Dawn, UK was able to accomplish? Where is your science that supports this claim? You wouldn’t happen to be referring to the Kinsey Research – 1948. I would like to hear what you have to say about this:
“Immediately the Kinsey “research” runs into problems. 25% of the sample was comprised of prison inmates, many of whom were incarcerated for sexual offences while, at the time of the study, prison inmates as a whole, let alone being incarcerated for sexual offences, made up less than 1% of the general population. Of these inmates, 25% were further either homosexual or heavily exposed to homosexuality.
The sample was further comprised of “volunteers” who were prostitutes (200 were male prostitutes), pimps, bootleggers, thieves, and hold-up men. And, many subjects were recruited at sex lectures they were attending to deal with sexual problems.”
Or are you referencing Simon LeVay Research – August 1991, or the National Institute of Health “Fruit Fly Study – 1995”, or possibly the Bailey & Pillard Study of Twins, or the Dean Hamer Genetic Linkage Study – 1993, or finally the Hormonal Studies. All of these are seriously flawed. Check it out for yourself at
http://www.mts.net/~lwinslow/Writings/Article%20on%20HOMOSEXUALITY.htm
AMPisAnglican, Canada
Added: Friday, August 8, 2008, 11:19 (BST)
This is one of the reasons that I left the Church of England, liberal theology, no strong stand on the word of God in some parts of the C of E church family as can be seen in this division that has happened, fence sitting, political correctness, etc. I moved to a word of God, fundamental, pentecostal denomination church. Maybe if your reading this you might have to rethink your idea of what 'church' means and do you find God in it when you attend? As for homosexuals in the church, remember the sheep and the goats, or the wheat and tares (weeds). Blessings
Philip Treagus, Reedy Creek, Australia
Added: Friday, August 8, 2008, 11:08 (BST)
I know Evangelicals, of which I am one, are not renowned for paying attention to the original Bible languages, but it isn't rocket science to discover that the two Greek words 'arsenokoites' and 'malakos', imported into some modern English translations of the Bible as meaning 'homosexual', don't actually mean that at all. Even if they did, singling out homosexuality for special treatment is not only unfair, but misses Paul's point completely.
Having done that elemetary homework, I fully understand why Rowan Williams believes the Bible doesn't forbid all same-sex relationships.
Surely, he MUST be faithful to what he believes Scripture genuinely teaches, and not be swayed by what men try to tell him it teaches, even if these men are the Evangelical establishment.
Jethro, Dunblane, Scotland
Added: Friday, August 8, 2008, 8:02 (BST)
To Katherine from Manchester (below):
No, the truth to me is not discrimination, or ignoring people, it is not to be a bigot. But it is the Word of God - which clearly states homosexuality is a sin!! Just as all of us have sins. This doesn't mean the church preaches to "ignore and discriminate" against every sinner (which would mean ignore everyone). No we should clearly teach sin as sin...and love that sinner despite of their sin, just as the Lord overlooked our sin. But then we do so in the hope that the sinner will repent and never commit that sin again. This hope of the TRUE church does not mean we are bigots, and it also does not mean we should compromise with sin and hide away from it - but boldly declare sin as sin!
And to Anthony Weaver (below):
I do not pose a guess that homosexuality is a sin as it is "unnatural". I know homosexuality is a sin as God has told us so - in the Bible! This is not an issue about whether the person is "procreating" or not. It is simple - God says homosexuality is a sin, and yes anything that goes against God is unnatural, and even though all of us have these different "unnatural" ways about us (since the fall of man), which is why mankind is in so much pain, yet man should work as hard as he can to follow God's will to restore the true world! Which will be one of no pain and evil. How can we build such a world? By faith. Faith to know God's love and follow God's commands.
I for one have faith enough not to twist the word of God, and obey the clear TRUTH contained in the Bible - homosexuality is a sin.
Daniel Foster, London
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 21:12 (BST)
If you sit on the fence for too long, you will eventually fall off. Dr Williams has tried to please all sides in this debate, but these letters will surely mean that any reconciliation is unlikely to take place. His position as Archbishop is looking more untenable with every day that passes. Is it stupid to suggest that the Anglican Church should pay more attention to God's Word, and less to those in the world who believe in equality and political corectness.
Gordon, Bridgend, Wales
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 21:12 (BST)
I assume that Mr.Daniel Foster believes that homosexual genital activity is sinful because it is "unnatural", i.e.it is not ordered towards procreation.I cannot see how there could be any other grounds for holiding them to be sinful.
To use Roman Catholic language,such acts are "intrinsically disordered",to use the natural law argument from the Scholastics.
To hold that all genital acts must be open to the possibility of procreation is a perfectly logically consistent position.It is the position taken by Pope Paul VI in his 1968 encyclical "Humanae Vitae",,,,,BUT,
can I ask whether Mr.Foster has ever at any time used any form of contraception?
If he has done so, that he has indulged in sexual activity which is not open to the possibility of procreation..........
To sum up, he will have engaged in activity which,in the case of gay men,he calls "sinful".
The former Chief Rabbi,Lord Jacobovits, held the same views on gay sex as the Catholic Church,but because he had seven children, I suspect that there was never any contradiction between his beliefs and his own married practice.
Anthony Weaver, London
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 19:24 (BST)
Well, there it is! There are many scriptures that expressly forbid homosexuality in any form! So much so, God had to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, apart from forbidding the practice in Israel.
As far as we gentile Christians are concerned, we are grafted into the True Vine and, although we live in the Age of Grace, the Law is not done away with, but fufilled in Jesus. We have access to forgiveness for sin, through the perfect sacrifice of Jesus, but it does not mean we should actively sin (Romans). If we do, we have an advocate and propitiation in Heaven (1 John), when we repent, even 7 x 70 times, but NOT a right to sin. And to ascribe God's love to SIN is a false doctrine (and a distraction from the Gospel).
Williams needs to stand down for the good of the Anglican Communion, and let someone else who can lead, who has their ear and heart open to the Word of God and the leading of the HOLY Spirit, not the ones who are disseminating a false gospel.
True Christians, the Church is not any one denomination, but the one whom the Lord has chosen. But pray for the ones who are caught up in the false doctrines of any church denomination, for God's forgiveness for them and their release from the shackles they are in - demonic ones! Amen!
Chris Maguire, Ventnor, IoW
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 17:11 (BST)
How dare you?how dare you William??
Please go and leave this church...you are adding another heresy...
I am so surprised... it seems you don't know the bible!!!!! even kids can easily identify this clear fact!!!!
God is my strength, Japan
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 17:03 (BST)
Sorry kids, if homosexuality and scripture are incompatible then its scripture that's wrong. Homosexuality is not a choice, it's influenced by a vast and complex network of genes at birth, meaning that God himself is creating homosexuals. Love is beautiful. Bigotry, intolerance and clinging to antiquated, outdated and bronze age ideas from a millenia ago is something else.
PDev, London
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 16:58 (BST)
It is unbelievable how the Anglican Church finds itself with Rowan Williams and Bishop Schori in the USA, as two of their top leaders. These are people who have again and again revealed their unwillingness to remain true to Scripture, and to simply inject their liberalist agendas into their teachings to suit their modern world view, without regard to the Church Doctrine since the days of Christ. Shame on them, and God help the Anglican Communion with these two in charge of its two most influential regions.
Tim Bestion, Ipswich, UK
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 15:36 (BST)
Jesus Christ came to set the captives free. I was captive by a spirit of homosexuality and had some relationships. When I realized in scripture this is a sin and abomination to God I repented genuinely before God. I sought healing and deliverance. I had a spirit of homosexuality cast out of me and I now live happily married in a heterosexual christian marriage with a beautiful daughter. If you are really willing the truth will set you free and you can live of this sin. The church needs to offer more spiritual healing and deliverance instead of condoning and blessing these relationships.
Dawn, UK
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 15:17 (BST)
Daniel Foster - What is 'truth' to you? Is it right that gay people should be ignored, discriminated against and/or victimised because they are attracted to people of the same sex? Homophobia is unquestionably wrong in any society; but it is especially disgusting in a liberal and democratic country.
Rowan Williams is one of the best things to happen to the C of E and if people listen to him, the Anglican church may be among the first of the Christian factions to drag itself out of the past. So people are gay - does that really matter at all? Of course a gay partnership is like a straight partnership. Homosexual people are equally able to love, I ask again - is it right that they should be punished for being in love with someone of the same sex?
Christianity is fundamentally about love. Whether you take the Bible, collection of stories that it is, literally or not - the teachings of Jesus Christ are the antithesis of homophobia and narrow mindedness. I do not believe that anyone who has been interested in Jesus Christ or looked at his teachings in any way, could believe otherwise unless they have looked with already formed hatred, narrow-minded bigotry and rotting, horrid, posionous outlooks on 'truth' and 'right'.
Katherine, Manchester
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 12:22 (BST)
If there was any doubt before, it has now been completely eliminated. Williams is a false prophet!
How dare he suggest that any part of the Holy Bible is for some people, and not applicable to some others. Has he completely forgotten the words of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, from Matthew 19: 4-6.
AMPisAnglican, Canada
Added: Thursday, August 7, 2008, 10:04 (BST)
What is Rowan Williams saying!!? What a complete load of rubbish. How dare he compare the love of God to sin. I for one am outraged and am seriously giving regard to my attendance at any Church of England church again, seeing as it is led by someone so far away from the truth!
Daniel Foster, London
