The Practical Parson

 This Past week, a member of the Kansas City Chiefs' (American football) team was invited to give a commencement speech at Benedictine College in Kansas.  Speaking to fellow Roman Catholics in the graduating class and gathered, he addressed what he saw as problems with society today; which reflect his beliefs and the values which the Roman church has always held.   While at any point in history prior to 2008 this may have gone unheralded and of no great importance; suddenly to the leftist agitators in the United States, Harrison Butker has become the icon of everything wrong with the Christian faith and conservative values, almost overnight.  The most disheartening part of the entire ongoing saga is not so much the reaction to anything the man actually SAID in his speech; but that the entire "progressive" world is loosing its collective mind over what media outlets have proclaimed he MEANT by what he said.   In short, those screaming "racist, misogynist" etc. ab

 So the General Conference of the United Methodist Church decided this past week, that they would lift the church's ban on openly gay clergy, broaden the church's definition on marriage, and extend to deacons the right to baptize and consecrate the elements of Communion.  Quite the few days they had, no?   While the traditionalist world is loosing its collective mind over the 'gay clergy' matter, they overlook simple facts that make the situation worse than it truly seems.  There have always been gay clergy in every church, and there always will be; because it is not something that people simply, actively choose for themselves.  No, what is worse is what is done WITH who and what one may be in this life.  Rather than simply expressing "we are clergy and gay" and going back to worshiping the Lord in the traditions handed to them; the UMC has decided that it needs to change everything in order to make a pronounced statement about their acceptance of gay clergy.