By Bob Allen
Churches aligned with the Alliance of Baptists are setting aside Sept. 16 for study and worship focused around issues of human sexuality.
The progressive Baptist group formed in 1987 produced resources for worship and Christian formation for this year’s third annual Alliance Sunday centered by a study from New Testament scholar Diane Lipsett titled “Sexuality and the Church: A Conversation about the Bible, Ethics, and Communities of Interpretation.”
The emphasis comes as many churches across the country are for the first time facing real-life challenges like votes on constitutional amendments to define marriage as between a man and a woman.
“With so many divisive conversations happening in the world about marriage equality and with so many communities of faith trying to embark on healthy conversations about sexuality in their congregations, developing Alliance Sunday materials that spoke to this issue seemed truly critical,” said Mary Andreolli, the Alliance’s minister for outreach and communications.
The Alliance first addressed the topic in 1994 with a Task Group on Human Sexuality that encouraged churches to “welcome all persons without regard to sexual orientation or marital status into the life of the congregation” and challenged persons, “whether heterosexual or same-sex oriented, to express sexual intimacy within the covenant context of a committed, monogamous relationship.”
Lipsett, a Canadian-born scholar and member of Alliance-affiliated Knollwood Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, N.C., is author of Desiring Conversion: Hermas, Thecla, Aseneth, published last year by Oxford University Press.
The study resource examines Bible passages often used to debate homosexuality within a framework of principles, such as how often a subject is referenced in Scripture and the passage’s literary form and cultural and historical context. It asks whether such precepts are to be followed literally or are symbolic of a larger principle and how larger theological commitments like love of God and neighbor can guide interpretation of obscure or difficult passages.
Supporting materials include welcoming-and-affirming prayers, litanies, calls to worship and a communion table liturgy. Adult and teen lessons explore what the Bible says about sexuality over against what people often think it means. Material designed for use with elementary children focuses on how to show hospitality to everyone.
Laura Mayo, minister of congregational life at Covenant Church in Houston, and a contributing author to worship materials, said the goal is to move congregations and individuals beyond fears and toward full embrace of Jesus’ call to love neighbor as self.
“In challenging times, we can too easily turn to fear, especially fear of those we perceive as ‘other,’” Mayo said. “Hospitality is not always comfortable, and the more we practice living into God’s love, the more able we are to extend welcome to ourselves and others.”
The resources are being distributed to Alliance members, but are also available on the Alliance website.