The Tornado, the Lutherans, and Homosexuality
John Piper posted on the implications of the tornado in downtown Minneapolis that hit the location of the ELCA convention, where they intend to vote on whether homosexuality should disqualify a person from the pulpit.
Any thoughts?
Labels: christianity, culture, homosexuality, Piper, religion, weather
posted by DErifter @ 8/20/2009 09:41:00 PM
4 Comments:
Here's a thought: Boyd had a great response that tears John up one side and down the other.
:)
http://www.gregboyd.org/blog/did-god-send-a-tornado-to-warn-the-elca/
Forgot the link.
It's important to note that Piper didn't say, "God sent the tornado to punish homosexuals" although that's what a lot of people are hearing. What he did say is, "The tornado in Minneapolis was a gentle but firm warning to the ELCA and all of us: Turn from the approval of sin..." (emphasis added)
I think if a leaf falls from a tree, or if the sun shines brightly, and it reminds us to turn from the approval of sin something good has happened.
Boyd is particularly hard on Piper's 5th point, the tower in Siloam falling. Boyd, I think, actually misses the point Piper was trying to make (there). Again, Piper did not imply that the tower in Siloam killed those 18 because of their sin. Jesus's (and Piper's) point was this: "Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish." Piper includes himself, and us, in what he sees as a warning from God, who did, in the form of Jesus, explicitly give that very warning. That a tornado reminded Piper of it doesn't bother me at all.
Piper doesn't only preach repentance during bad weather. And the warning he heard, whether it was a fresh one or just a reminder of the original one, he said "...would cover Minneapolis, Taiwan, or Baghdad." The fact that the approval of homosexuality was on the agenda at the convention makes headlines, but the point is repentance from sin. I welcome the spotlight on it, really.
You've been around a little more lately, are things settling down some for you? Maybe we'll even see another post?
Sorry I didn't get back to this any sooner. Been swamped.
I can see what you're saying, and I even agree that Boyd was a little hard on Piper's 5th point (in all fairness, though, Piper has used that verse out of context on several occasions in the past). But the thrust of Piper's entire article seems to focus almost exclusively on the Lutherans and the homosexual decision (it's even in the title). Though he may not have explicitly said "the gays caused a tornado," he seemed to heavily imply it with his 6-point "interpretation of this providence."
So I still think Piper overstepped his bounds and caused evangelicals unnecessarily bad press; I'm not comfortable with anyone divining tornados unless God has truly given them a word about them.
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