Michelle Lesley keeps us informed as to what has transpired since six Christian women published a letter to Beth Moore asking that she clearly state her view on homosexuality, as what she believes has “evolved” over the years. Under immense pressure, Beth has finally come out with a statement! Michelle shares her statement in the timeline. She writes:
Nearly three weeks ago, six Christian women (and nearly 500 subsequent signers) addressed An Open Letter to Beth Moore, asking five questions about her views on homosexuality:
- Do you believe homosexuality is inherently sinful?
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Do you believe that the practice of the homosexual lifestyle is compatible with holy Christian living?
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Do you believe a person who dies as a practicing homosexual but professes to be a Christian will inherit eternal life?
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Do you believe same sex attraction is, in and of itself, an inherently sinful, unnatural, and disordered desire that must be mortified?
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Why have you been so silent on this subject in light of your desire to “teach the word of God?”
Since the discussion of the events and commentary surrounding the open letter have mostly taken place on Twitter, and many who have an interest in these events and comments are not Twitter users, this article is intended to be a timeline outlining the sequence of events, beginning with the publication of the open letter.
Several Christian news outlets, bloggers, and podcasters have reported on the story since the letter was released. For the sake of brevity, most of these have not been included, but if you’re interested, you should be able to find the majority of them by Googling “Open Letter to Beth Moore”. Notably absent in reporting on the open letter issue has been Baptist Press (the news outlet of the Southern Baptist Convention), even though they have been made aware of the situation and routinely publish articles on issues of far less significance.
Additionally, Southern Baptist Convention President, J.D. Greear, LifeWay (which carries Beth’s materials and promotes her and her events, and has removed previous authors for affirming homosexuality), newly installed President/CEO of LifeWay, Ben Mandrell, the ERLC, and ERLC President, Russell Moore have all been made aware of the situation, and none of them have responded. (For those who aren’t aware of the significance of this, read #3 here.)
Here is the timeline of events surrounding the Open Letter to Beth Moore:
Research