Prenatal Sexual Orientation DevelopmentCBF on Sexuality
Vol. IX, No. 1, January 1996
This selection is from a recent (though undated) document [recent as of January 1996] which states, "This packet is printed by the Ethics and Public Policy Ministry Group of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. It is not an official statement of the Fellowship but an educational resource...”
On pages II-16-18 we find: "...a person does not choose to be homosexual or heterosexual. ... The diagram does not imply that any one sexual orientation is more correct, although heterosexual orientation is by far the norm in our society."
Prenatal Sexual Orientation Development
Nonsexual Homosexual Heterosexual Bisexual
“... We do not choose our sexual orientation but rather we 'awaken' to it. ... We are then left asking the question, 'What is normal?' Where does that leave me as a ‘normal' man or woman? The truth is there is no easy answer and the area of sexuality may be too painful or fearful for some to explore."
And on page III-25: "No longer is family defined as a mother, father, son, daughter, dog, and a station wagon. Such definition has changed through time, circumstances, and disintegration. Family may be defined as a basic, primary group of caring relationships within intimate boundaries."
[Editorial Comment: In these quotes from the CBF publication (and from the general tone of the entire document should you choose to procure it) note, first, the absence of reliance upon God’s Word for answers and, second, the moral equality presumed for all types of sexuality. The first two chapters of Genesis put God's creation and His intent as clearly as language can speak. Genesis 1:27-28: "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful and multiply..."
God created Adam and Eve, neither Adam and Steve, nor Eve and Alice. If one believes the Bible is the Word of God, there can be, absolutely no question that God condemns homosexual activity as abominable sin. Romans 1:16-32 alone is inescapable clear, particularly verses 26-27: "For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet."
The authors of this CBF booklet evidently forget that it is not we but God who defines the family, who created two not three or four sexes, that whenever men and women act contrary to God's decrees, to His created order, in actuality we are rebelling against Him. When we reject God's written revelation as our authority, we are setting ourselves up as final authority. We are succumbing to the same temptation the serpent offered Eve in the Garden, "Ye will be as gods, knowing good and evil." We must learn that we are not gods but subordinate, created beings, whose proper role is to glorify God, to obey His commands, and to represent Him faithfully in heart and action to those around us to the end that they may come to know and serve Him also.
Perhaps the CBF booklet serves some positive purpose, for it illustrates dramatically what happens when one rejects the full authority of God's Word: Without His authority we have no solid basis for moral decisions. Even in such extreme cases as homosexuality and the nature of the family we are cast adrift upon a sea of doubt and indecision. We cannot say what is right and what is wrong, for one man's opinion is as good as another's and we have denied God's right to exercise sovereign power.
Of course homosexuals and those with AIDS need care and witness. But just as a doctor who refused to confront a patient with his diagnosis of cancer would be acting cruelly, not compassionately, so a Christian who refuses to confront the unsaved person (homosexual or not) with his sin is acting even more cruelly because the impact of this latter fault is eternal, not merely lasting for the short time we spend here on earth.
If anyone were wondering about the "Cooperative Baptist Fellowship," surely the publication we have been discussing should clarify the CBF's anti-biblical stance. (If you wish to obtain a copy of the booklet, contact CBF, P.O. Box 450329, Atlanta, GA 31145-0329.) TCP]