When Religion Butts Against Society

     This week there was a bit of a brouhaha when Eugene Peterson, the author of the the popular book The Message, which is a modern rendering of the Bible much like the old Good News Bible but a bit better and less slangy, said in an interview that he would officiate at a wedding between two homosexuals.
     The result, as can be imagined was a lot of ash throwing and clothes rending by the evangelical community and a lot of, "Hey! we're cool with Peterson! We're on our way to being 'all that' with the Southern Baptists and Holy Rollers and Mennonites and such. Where's my wedding dress and where's his wedding dress?"
     Then, a couple of days later Peterson retracted what he had said about officiating at a marriage between a same-sex couple. He said that his first statement was the result of, to put it bluntly and not as prettily as he did, pretty much being pushed into a corner and made to feel that if he didn't express the opinion of what he saw as the larger society (and this view is questionable) he would come across as hateful and all that nonsense. Some of the evangelical world decided to give him a pass because he's an old geezer, and other because he wrote the only version of the Bible they know. And the gay crowd have gotten the vapors as if they had been betrayed by a long time champion.
     Here's the deal from Bloody Nib Manor. Peterson is an old man. He wrote a version that is very popular for some reason. He wants to be popular and liked. He does not live in the world of everyday Christians, he lives in an academic world. He thought (because he wants to be liked and approved of and honored among his fellow egg-heads) that if he said that same-sex marriage was okay and Biblical he would gain the approval of his fellow eggheads and be thought forward thinking. Instead he discovered that his fellow eggheads didn't even hear what he said and that the people who had bought his books did and they weren't happy. So, he followed the money and said that he was misunderstood and that he does not agree with same sex marriage. And then all the evangelicals were happy and they all went to the seashore.
     If you are listening to or following a preacher or teacher who is looking for the approval of his fellow eggheads instead of his Lord that guy is pretty much the worst of used car salesmen. And if that same person instead follows the money that he can make from his yakking he is even worse. He's almost a wizard in the Old Testament sense.
     Regarding homosexuality, there is a right and a wrong in the Bible. There is a right and a wrong in both the Old and New Testaments.. You may not like it. You may not like the prohibitions against adultery, pride, coveting, and so on. And modern society may have made these sins good. How else to explain the Kardashians and sports and music culture, but the fact of the matter is that according to the Bible sin is sin and we are all sinners and should mourn our various sins while celebrating our salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
     We should not celebrate or honor our sinful behaviour lest we infect our weaker brother (or sister) with our sin.
     Unfortunately Peterson, in his first interview, did just that. His words about his officiating at a same-sex marriage will live forever and a day on the Internet. What he said may not be recorded in the Lamb's Book of Life, but it will be recorded in the pink Internet.