Author Archives: dialogosstudies

Is the guideline of building all doctrine on necessary rather than possible inferences a good guideline?

How does this guideline apply to three specific situations of the past where the church changed its interpretation of some passage of scripture? (E.g. the Earth moving around the sun; whether slavery is permitted or should be prohibited; whether it is OK for Christians to charge modest interest on loans.) How do you believe thisContinue reading “Testing This Guideline Against Three Cases”

A co-author of the Grand Rapids East Report states: A significant number of people made in God’s image are not clearly male or female (and those definitions have changed across cultures and time), so exegesis of Scripture related to gender roles starts from a very complicated premise; so I approach that exegesis with a spiritContinue reading “Are A Number of People Not Clearly Male or Female?”

Affirming scholars point to the hermeneutical principle of considering the good, or the harm, that is caused by different interpretations. Affirming scholars would argue that the interpretation of Romans 1 and other passages given in the CRC Synod’s 1973 Report (i.e. that same-sex inclination is not a creational variant but is a result of theContinue reading “GRE Report: The Historic Position is Harmful”

Can a two-page summary document help to maintain focus on the main aspects of the same-sex marriage discussions? If the best argument(s) from both sides are summarized along with a critique of them, will that help to determine which side is biblical? Check out the executive summary document and share your thoughts.

This came up as a proposed comment in the blog. Rather than post it there it was decided it really should be sent as one of the emails where everyone will be able to see it. Pastor Bill White: Recently I was part of a conversation with several LGBTQ Christians, a couple of whom are conservative andContinue reading “Should Congregations Register With Church Clarity?”

The following is part of an email received recently from Pastor Bill: I read this blog today from a friend and I thought of you – https://www.theflamingyeats.com/the-blog/2019/3/11/turning-the-corner. Susan is married to Lindsay, a former Cru staff worker; both were key leaders in their evangelical churches. I found this blog so interesting because it highlights that inContinue reading “LGBTQ – Good Fruit and Bad Fruit”

Pastor Bill White recently sent the following account: “We had 14 LGBTQ people in worship on Sunday (I was curious afterwards, so I made a list). Since we have a small congregation, I spoke with each of them. Some are traditional and some progressive in their theology. Three were brand new. One of the new women sharedContinue reading “Should the church welcome LGBTQ people?”