Where did they go?

You may have noticed that some of my posts on the topic of homosexuality have been deleted. I had made the mistake of naming someone in them, and when read in the cold light of day they were offensive to the person concerned and it was not right for them to remain. My apologies have been given, and seem to have been accepted.

In one of those posts I promised some feedback from my discussions with that person on the application of ‘One Flesh’ to homosexual relationships.

My correspondent’s conviction was that her relationship was a living example of ‘one flesh’, and that the principle does indeed apply to homosexual relationships. She was ‘married’ [she used those inverted commas – I think because of local legal reasons?] by her Christian Pastor, and she describes her partner as her wife.

She claimed to not be a theologian and for that reason did not attempt to back it up with chapter and verse. Which is OK – in my own experience the inner conviction sometimes comes first and the academic theology has to catch up later. And I suppose that my own conviction has also been for some time that gay marriage is OK, and my posts wrestling with the theology have been part of that catch up. And there are still some points to clear up. I am still looking for the academic theology to support my 'one flesh' conviction. No doubt some conservatives will argue that the experience of one woman is not a sufficient basis for a doctrine, and you have a point, but I'm working on it.

But I suppose, overall, I am a convert!

And if a raving homophobe like me can radically change my views, and over a two year period move from writing angry letters to parliament against the Sexual Orinetation egulations and come to a point where I endorse the idea of gay weddings in church, then I lay down the challenge to other readers of my blog.