Being a “Reconciling in Christ” congregation of the ELCA means that Castle Church openly and unambiguously affirms persons and couples of all sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions.
Simply: we believe that people are people. And God loves people.
We await a time when saying this will be enough and no one group will have to be specified. But we also understand that more sometimes needs to be said in light of where the culture is at. While we try to be a “forward-thinking” group, the real reason why we welcome our LGBTQ brothers and sisters does not have to do with some new understanding of our tradition but a very old one.
We are rooted deeply in a tradition that starts at a tomb in Jerusalem, a tomb that was once sealed off like a dark, lonely closet. Only death could reside in a tomb like that. But against all expectation, that tomb burst open with a life that could not be contained. This is the life that makes others come out of their own tombs and binds them together so powerfully, that they start to forget the distinctions that had so often split them into warring tribes and factions.
When asked about what sorts of marriage arrangements should be considered “Christian,” Martin Luther once said, dismissively, “So many lands. So many customs.” He saw clearly that the life which enlightens everything changes the game. We are no longer having the same conversation about culturally bound rules, guidelines, and living arrangements. Grace has given us way more important things to worry about.
Distinctions like race, nationality, class, gender, legal and religious status, and (we insist) sexual orientation (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:11) are now cause for celebration rather than fear as the risen Christ breaks down more and more “dividing walls of hostility” (Eph. 2:14) between people. This new life, that is being breathed into the world, pushes outward from Jerusalem, to the surrounding countryside, to Samaria, and continues today to the ends of the Earth (Acts 1:8).
For us to exclude anyone from this joyful movement because of the unique traits of their person, would be a vain effort to seal up the tomb again. We have no interest in doing that. This life cannot be contained. It cannot be put back in the closet again. Amen! Amen! Amen!
Simply: we believe that people are people. And God loves people.
We await a time when saying this will be enough and no one group will have to be specified. But we also understand that more sometimes needs to be said in light of where the culture is at. While we try to be a “forward-thinking” group, the real reason why we welcome our LGBTQ brothers and sisters does not have to do with some new understanding of our tradition but a very old one.
We are rooted deeply in a tradition that starts at a tomb in Jerusalem, a tomb that was once sealed off like a dark, lonely closet. Only death could reside in a tomb like that. But against all expectation, that tomb burst open with a life that could not be contained. This is the life that makes others come out of their own tombs and binds them together so powerfully, that they start to forget the distinctions that had so often split them into warring tribes and factions.
When asked about what sorts of marriage arrangements should be considered “Christian,” Martin Luther once said, dismissively, “So many lands. So many customs.” He saw clearly that the life which enlightens everything changes the game. We are no longer having the same conversation about culturally bound rules, guidelines, and living arrangements. Grace has given us way more important things to worry about.
Distinctions like race, nationality, class, gender, legal and religious status, and (we insist) sexual orientation (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:11) are now cause for celebration rather than fear as the risen Christ breaks down more and more “dividing walls of hostility” (Eph. 2:14) between people. This new life, that is being breathed into the world, pushes outward from Jerusalem, to the surrounding countryside, to Samaria, and continues today to the ends of the Earth (Acts 1:8).
For us to exclude anyone from this joyful movement because of the unique traits of their person, would be a vain effort to seal up the tomb again. We have no interest in doing that. This life cannot be contained. It cannot be put back in the closet again. Amen! Amen! Amen!
