Pride

Too much pride will destroy you. Proverbs 16:18 CEV

We tend to see pride as a bad personality trait as immortalised in Proverbs - pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Personally I think the Contemporary English Version is moving in the right direction. The key words being “too much” as a healthy dose of pride – self love is very important to our self esteem. Taking pride in who we are is an integral part of that self love. In loving ourselves we are able to love others. During this season of Pride Festivals it is even more important that we value ourselves and recognise our contribution to the Christian community.

A national daily newspaper has just commissioned a poll to commemorate the Stonewall rites. Captioned The Church 'out of touch' as public supports equal rights for homosexuals, the report announced a revolution in public attitudes with a majority of the public wanting homosexuals to share identical rights to everyone else. It found 61% of the public wanted gay couples to be able to marry instead of civil partnerships, with half believing that gay couples should have equal adoption rights. It was surprised that 51% of the public wanted children to be taught in school that gay relationships were of equal value to marriage with 68% of the public backing full equal rights for gay men and lesbians. Sadly it did not indicate the public’s feelings on other members of the LGBTI community. However, the Report ended with the suggestion that the church, seen as the final bastion of formal discrimination, was out of touch with public opinion.

As a justice issue, the Church has no defence in its refusal to advocate equal rights for all. It is contrary to the spirit that permeated Christ’s ministry and is separate from the theological issue of who is deemed to be Christian and who is not. Civil rights are not awarded according to one’s religious beliefs but on the basis of our common humanity. However, this still leaves this divisive theological issue unresolved. During my sermon on London Pride Sunday, I took as my text Acts 10:9-16 reading the Contemporary English Version.

The next day about noon these men were coming near Joppa. Peter went up on the roof of the house to pray and became very hungry. While the food was being prepared, he fell sound asleep and had a vision. He saw heaven open, and something came down like a huge sheet held up by its four corners. In it were all kinds of animals, snakes, and birds. A voice said to him, "Peter, get up! kill these and eat them." But Peter said, "Lord, I can't do that! I've never eaten anything that is unclean and not fit to eat." The voice spoke to him again, "when God says that something can be used for food, don't say it isn't fit to eat." This happened three times before the sheet was suddenly taken back to heaven.

Despite being told three times, Peter still did not get the message. He was more concerned about upholding the purity codes of his religion, than listening to God. His immersion in Old Testament religious traditions prevented his participation in a new Divine revelation. Here is my contemporary take on that passage in honour of Pride Sunday.

About noon the following day as they were on their journey and were approaching the city, they realised to their horror that it was the day of the Pride Parade. As an orthodox heterosexual Christian, Peter was anxious not to contaminate himself by seeing unclean LGBTI people. Whilst wanting to meet his fellow heterosexual Christians he decided not to take any chances and bolted into the nearest house and dashed up to the roof where he would be alone. Meanwhile his friends scoured the city for fellow homophobic Christians with whom they could share God’s love and justice. Feeling exhausted from all the excitement Peter fell asleep and had a dream in glorious technicolour. A flag, a rainbow flag fluttered down from Heaven being held at each of its four corners by angels that appeared to be in drag. It contained all manner of folk from the Pride Parade; gay and lesbian, straight and queer, bisexual and intersex, transsexuals and transvestites who were worshipping and praising God. Then he heard a Voice, not just any Voice – the Voice saying “Come Peter, join the Pride Parade, show your solidarity and embrace your brothers and sisters in Christ.” “Never” said Peter, “I cannot for its against my religion. I am Christian and they are an abomination.” The Voice spoke to him a second time - “Do not call anyone that I have created an abomination, nor tell me to my face that folk who believe in Me and my son are not Christian and therefore not acceptable to me. I know who belongs to me and who doesn’t” said God angry that Peter was so rigid in his thinking. This happened three times and just before the dream ended, Peter saw himself being arrested by the police for shouting anti gay slogans. God, acutely embarrassed, was also not impressed!

In Christ’s day many thought him ungodly and therefore bereft of God. He serves as our example of how blinkered religious folk can be.

Many of them said, “He is demon–possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?”…[and] the Jews picked up stones to stone him John 10: 20 & 31 NIV

May the Holy Spirit continue to raise your Pride in who you are in Christ.

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