(Written 6/15/18) Occasionally, I check in with the Christian Post to see what's going on in the world that specifically relates to Christians. And generally, I've never really had any red flags go up about this website ... until now.
A recent article by Stoyan Zaimov, with a title that starts "Christian Lesbian rock star ..." goes on to share this woman's story about being assaulted by a male priest when she was young.
However, I don't think the reason for this article is to talk about the abuse she suffered and her courage in speaking up. I think this is a deliberate attempt to affirm Christian homosexuality. The very fact that they put "Christian" and "lesbian" in the title makes it sound like it's indeed possible to be a Christian and a practicing homosexual who sees no need to change.
And it seems to me that this article paints her in a heroic light, as though she is in the right and should be applauded and emulated, and as though in our compassion for her, we should affirm her lifestyle. And it seems to present the person who challenges her lifestyle in a very unflattering light, as a smug, condemning bully.
What is the purpose of this article? Does it go beyond simply sharing this woman's past abuse and her courage in speaking out? Does it not sound as if it's a deliberate attempt to affirm the homosexual lifestyle, teaching that it's compatible with Christianity and showing that those who disagree are hyper-critical, uncompassionate bullies?
[Update: And here's another one I found by the same author. What is the point here? It sounds like this article is about whether or not the older man is being taken advantage of by the younger man ... but it's sidestepping the issue of whether or not they should even be married. Talk about ignoring the elephant in the room, trying to distract the audience away from the real moral, biblical issue by focusing on a more insignificant one. If you ask me, these articles are simply trying to normalize "Christian" gay marriage and to distract from the real issue at hand.]
From here on out, I will be careful about The Christian Post, at least when it comes to this issue.
[Update October 2019: I have also recently read some articles they are posting about people who left the faith, particularly one with Rob Bell, a well-known pastor who famously walked away from Christianity.
In this article, he explains why he left Christianity. And honestly, I think the title they picked - referring to Rob Bell's reasons for leaving the faith, how he gave it his best shot - doesn't do the article justice. What they should have titled it was "Let Rob Bell Convince You To Leave Christianity Too." (I will not link to the article because I don't think it should have been published the way it was. I think it will do more harm than good.)
I seriously question their reasoning behind posting these articles the way they did. I know they said it's because the church could learn from people who left the faith, their reasons for leaving the faith. And I agree, to an extent.
But to me, it just seems like these articles - with their detailed reasons about why people reject the Bible and Christianity, why they are choosing more humanistic ideas instead - are simply helping to convince and inspire more people to reject Christianity, giving them more reasons to do so.
Maybe if they had included commentaries from people of the faith who point out the erroneous or humanistic thinking that led to those people's reasons for rejecting the faith, then I might see how they can be helpful.
Maybe if they reported the "flip side" too, sharing the stories of people who found hope in Christ when they were deep in hopelessness or Christians who nearly gave up the faith but found reasons to cling to God even when it was really hard, then it would help balance the article and show that there are reasons to still believe, even when it's difficult or doesn't make sense.
Maybe if they had included something biblical to help people understand the eternal consequences of the decisions you make now and why faith really does matter and how we can handle the doubts when they arise, then maybe those people's reasons for leaving the faith wouldn't sound so inspiring, so convincing.
But to leave people with a bunch of "reasonable"-sounding reasons for why people don't - shouldn't - trust the Bible and God, without helping them find a biblical way to view it all ... well ... may as well just give people a push over the edge of a cliff, helping them fall to their deaths.
(I don't know, but maybe God will simply use articles like this to quicker sift the wheat from the chaff.)
Once again, I warn you to be wary of the Christian Post. And any "Christian" source for that matter. Get to know the Bible well, on your own, so that you can be discerning for yourselves when it comes to faith issues.]
[Update July 2020: Back to the homosexuality issue. Another case in point here is their article (written by Jeannie Law) on Jen Hatmaker's daughter coming out as a lesbian. This article sounds quite sympathetic to Jen and to the daughter being homosexual. In fact, it seems to try to make Jen Hatmaker's case for her. The only thing I see against homosexuality or for the Bible's view of it is one sentence about how most denominations adhere to the Bible's stance on it and call it a sin. Yet then it seems to go on and make the case - through Jen's comments - that loving the sinner is not enough, that we need to affirm them too.
Now compare that article to this Christian News one on the same topic, written by Heather Clark (and here's another one which includes Ken Ham's response, but ignore the Spurgeon video on "Regeneration" at the bottom because he is a Calvinist and I believe Calvinism is unbiblical). They present Jen and her daughter's story, but then they go on to give a clear presentation of the Bible's stance on sin. This article tried to treat Jen fairly and with respect, but then it did the faithful Christian thing of making sure to present the Bible's view on sin and our need to repent, even if it conflicted with a person's view on it.
One of these articles (The Christian Post) will lead people deeper into sin and farther away from the Truth ... while the other (The Christian News) will help people out of sin and into Truth, encouraging them to always side with God over men and to never coddle those in sin (which leads to death) but to call others to repentance and eternal life.
It appears to me that The Christian Post is more concerned about offending people than offending God. Very dangerous indeed!
(There are some articles on The Christian Post that call out Jen Hatmaker for condoning sin, but those seem to be from the "Voices" category, opinion pieces from outside contributors, which do not necessarily reflect the views of The Christian Post. Meanwhile, the actual Christian Post reporters write articles like the ones I linked to above.)]
