Reflecting reality or denying it?

Another dollop of thanks to Newsweek. In response to the response to their article on the religious case for gay marriage they have posted online the case made by two theologians. For gays is Bill Wylie-Kellerman a United Methodist pastor serving in St. Peters' Episcopal Church in Detroit (not sure why a Methodist pastor is serving in an Episcopal church). Against is Dr. Barrett Duke, vice president for public policy and research at the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, an agency of the Southern Baptist Convention, which addresses how Christianity should be applied to life. I don't think the debate addressed the issue of how much religious doctrine should influence public policy. The whole thing is rather long, so I'll have to read it later. If it is more than the usual I'll post about it later.

Instead, for the moment, here is a summary by Timothy Kincaid, who is part of a blog that examines (and debunks most of) the scientific studies featuring gays. Kincaid starts by saying he is biased. He is gay and comes from the third generation of a fundamentalist preacher family. As for his own take on the bible he says:

I have come to see Scripture in a different light. I now find it less of a rule-book and more of a composite of wisdom about man’s efforts to know the Divine. I now find Christianity less about how I can bring my life into compliance with the arbitrary dictates of a Divine Despot and more about how to commune with God and incorporate Him into my life and a guide on how to interact with His Creation.

Which pretty much matches my views. So Kincaid summarizes the debate this way:

It seemed to me that Wylie-Kellerman holds a view of God, faith, and Scripture that reflects the reality of the world around him, while Duke unquestioningly seeks to deny that which does not conform to his preconceptions and to shape his world to conform to his doctrines.