The Question of Lust part I

There's no way that this blog entry won't be read by anyone without the word "awkward" jumping to one's mind. This is, in some ways, a deeply personal reflection of myself. However, it's my firm belief that having transparency when speaking on my walk with Christ is an absolute necessity with regards to sharing my meditations on doctrine and life as a Christian. With that out of the way, let's focus on the subject of this piece. 

We can't escape sex in our world. It permeates everything. Not that this is a relatively new thing. Christians and conservative thinkers, in particular, like to paint our culture as having only recently gotten sex-obsessed. The origin of said social illness is frequently attributed to the Sexual Revolution of the 1960s. Free love and all that sort of thing. Aren't we kidding ourselves, here? Did we suddenly forget about the Roaring Twenties? How about the fact that back in the days of American colonization one in three Puritan women were pregnant prior to getting married? Or that prostitution is commonly referred to as the world's oldest profession? Civilization, at large, has always been keen on indulging their lusts.

As someone of the hairier sex, I can certainly relate. I have never had any inclinations or addictions toward pornography, as I've always viewed it as a devaluing toward women and sex. And while I've always found it to be a despicable, I'm still one to struggle with lust as a vice. I've gone through periods throughout my life where it's been an issue, be it with masturbation or cynicism and despair toward attraction and its relationship to love.  It's been my faith that has kept me going through these types of problems. Which is why it's interesting when the body of Christ has its moments of division when discussing lust and sexuality.

The two things that immediately provoke thought in me are Pope Francis's ever-unveiling views on homosexuality and a letter by Dr. James Dobson addressing masturbation.

The Pope's reaction toward a question speaking to homosexuals within the Roman Catholic Church elicited a mixture of positive and negative rhetoric. "Who am I to judge?" he'd said. The Vatican quickly explained that Pope Francis was stating his unwillingness to put one type of sinful temptation over another in terms of its intrinsic evil. For many Christians, myself included, this was taken as a very spiritually mature viewpoint to express and was an effective step toward showing the Church as something focused on healing in Christ and not a body that would allow legalism to interfere with His work. God wants all of His children to accept the gift of salvation, regardless of what sin they might fall prey to.

More recently, Pope Francis spoke about the contributions that homosexuals within the Church can bring and, once again, that they should not be discriminated against because of their particular struggle. This particular statement, however, gives me mixed feelings.

I reiterate that my struggle with sin makes me no more or less worthy of hell than any other of my fellow man. I absolutely deserve damnation and there's nothing I can or could do to atone for my evils. That Christ is willing to forgive me and anyone else is what makes Him such a loving and wonderful God. However, we must be willing to repent of our sins and accept His offer to save us. Repentance does not take away our desire or nature to sin, submission does. Admitting that we are slaves to our sins and that we cannot escape our evil. Only allowing Christ in us can we move forward. We may struggle our entire lives with certain sins, but continued submission and repentance to Christ will always bring us closer to Him. This is where I take issue with Pope Francis's recent comments.

I most definitely agree that anyone and everyone within the body of Christ has something to contribute and add to His kingdom. Where I take issue is how he goes about identifying Christians that share same-sex attraction. It gives me less the impression that Pope Francis is saying that all Christians, all sinners, are of value to the Church and speaks more like those living in sexual sin (specifically homosexuals) have carte blanche to continue what they are doing as they bring their gifts to the table.

I'll use an example. I've read articles that bring up the question of whether or not one can be a "Gay Christian". As much as this might be interpreted as a silly case of semantics, I think the wording is very important. There's a difference between calling one's self a "Gay Christian" versus a "Christian who struggles with same-sex attraction".  The former implies that they accept their same-sex attraction as a part of their identity and that they view it as permissible.  The latter says that they are a follower of Christ that admits to having trouble with sexual sin. Their homosexuality is not their identity, but it is their vice. Therein lies the distinction.

I'm not about to declare that Pope Francis is in the wrong with his statements. I think that he's being a very compassionate man who legitimately wants to further the kingdom of God in places where many feel unwanted or jaded with the Church. My reservation, perhaps, pertains more to his lack of clarity. I really wish that he would just make a public declaration of his views and address any lingering questions that are of concern to Roman Catholics and Christians outside of their church. Pope Francis needs to answer the question of lust. I want to know if he believes same-sex attraction is a sin of lust. I'd like to know if he's going to lead the Church in the focus to teach that life with Christ means being willing to let go of everything, to realize that our sins are not who we are. Our sins, our weaknesses, are what reveal God's strength. There is no sin in our lives that is wholly inescapable if we are willing to let go and ask God how to live the way He desires. The pope needs to stress the perspective that God is not denying us something good, but offering us something so much better. We need only have a little faith and trust in Him. That goes for all of us.

 L. Travis Hoffman-

11/19/2014