On the car ride over I was nervous. I wasn't sure how many, if any, people would recognize me and what I should say if they asked "And what brings you here?" But I decided that I would use the simplest and most honest reply possible: "I'm searching." I assumed that reason would be acceptable and expected as the main goal, I assume, of most spiritual establishments is to provide an object (tangible or not) that just such a seeker may come to discover.
No one asked me what brought me to Millington Baptist Church. My reply was left unused.
My boyfriend and I entered MBC right on the dot for the second service at 10:45 Sunday morning. On the steps outside I ran into a couple that my parents are friends with and they informed us that the sermon they had just attended had been "very good." Inside, we slipped into the middle of a pew rather anonymously and the worship began shortly after. Five men played guitars, keyboard and drums and sang their hearts out with eyes closed. It sounded to me like the entire congregation was joining whole-heartedly. The joy of singing was sincere and palpable. I don't know if it was lack of sleep and the really warm temperature of the church, the pure enjoyment I get out of seeing music appreciated or the spirit of God Himself... but there were a few seconds during that worship time that some tears tried to escape from me.
Whatever magic was happening there ended almost as soon as Pastor Robert began his sermon.
The topic of that Sunday morning, January 9, 2011, was Sexual Immorality. I started my exploration of an impolite dinner conversation topic with a church that chose to explore the only other topic that is MORE Taboo. Needless to say, I must, for review's sake, reflect that this was not very inviting to a Newcomer. To be fair, Pastor Robert made it clear from the get-go that he was aware of the harshness of his forthcoming words. But, to paraphrase, he said that as the Bible is very clear on its views on sexuality, he will be clear too.
Pornography, sex outside of marriage and homosexuality were the major offenses discussed.
This is nothing new to the religiously initiated.
Just one verse from the Bible that is just that clear:
1 Corinthians 6:9-10
Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders ... will inherit the kingdom of God.
The sermon at MBC utilized a powerpoint presentation to demonstrate the turn our society has taken toward the debauched. Percentages of young people either exposed to or exposing others to "sexting" was displayed in bold text. The percentage of the population of different generations (from WW2 to whatever whoever has decided to call the youngsters these days) that believed pornography ought to be outlawed was shown in a graph which clearly portrayed the rapid decline of sexual morality in our culture. What Pastor Robert was encouraging of the congregation was to remain pure in an impure world. The church itself hosts a recovery program for sex addicts.
My ears really truly closed as soon as Glee was brought up as one of the top examples of how degenerate we have become. One of the most popular characters is homosexual and another claims to have slept with every boy in the high school. But in the show, it's clear that this claim is an insecure joke and certainly not a good thing. I could go on about Glee. Cause you just don't mess with that.
But all joking aside, I do understand that the Bible takes a clear stance on what is appropriate sexual behavior and what is not. I do not blame Pastor Robert and MBC for sticking to what they believe. In fact, I commend them for having a tremendous amount of nerve. But I think they're very, very wrong, specifically when it comes to homosexuality. I have several gay friends. Ones who have been tortured by it, ones who have accepted it.
But not one of them would tell you that it was a choice.
You can choose to become a murderer and you can choose to become a thief. You can choose what shoes you want to wear for the day and what you'll eat for dinner. But you cannot choose your hair color or height. You cannot choose your natural born talents. And you Cannot choose your sexual orientation.
I understand that a lot of religions have this view of homosexuality and what they consider to be other sexual impurities. Personally, I cannot adhere to any such view. But I will try to be objective based on other aspects of the experience since each establishment's individual attitude can widely vary.
While I disagree with the sermon I listened to on Sunday, I do recognize that MBC's attitude was moderate. It was neither warm and loving nor viciously damning. It was firmly in the middle. The belief is that continuing to live in sin will ultimately lead to death. But coming clean (publicly, so as to have others who would keep you on track) and changing with the help of God would bring new life.
And new life is encouraged.
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