November 2, 2014
Jacci and I are grieving. We have experienced many losses in our 31 years together – from family, to friends, to houses and investments. And this is one of the big ones for us. Our 33 year membership in the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship family is over, and we are grieving.
What happened? In brief, Jacci’s employment, and my volunteer status, are over because we are supporters of gay relationships. While InterVarsity has historically been an organization which welcomes and embraces diversity of opinion, our leadership has decided disagreement on this issue is a deal breaker.
While we are very sad, we are not giving anger a place in our process, and we will continue to give our money to this organization. We have always loved InterVarsity, and it feels almost impossible to summarize or describe the benefit we have gained from our association with this organization throughout these 33 years.
My involvement with IV began when I was in college and Jacci was on IV staff at my campus. I was exposed to IV’s marvelous inductive approach to scripture study, and I began to experience the Bible in a whole new way. Then I started attending IV camps and workshops, and I was impressed by the incredible quality of these training events.
After I graduated, I joined IV staff and ministered on the Nevada campus for 11 happy years. Again, the benefit I derived from working for this organization is incalculable. It was a fantastic way to begin my post-college life, and I grew up — and grew as a person — in the process. God deepened my journey with him as I served college students as an IV campus minister.
After I left IV, Jacci continued her volunteer involvement, and she and I continued to work together at the triennial Urbana conferences and other IV events. Then Jacci returned to IV staff 8 years ago, and I got to accompany her to numerous camps and conferences, where we taught, trained, and ministered to students and IV staff. During these last 8 years, I have continued to serve on the Urbana Crisis Team, and I have facilitated prayer ministry with hundreds of students and staff.
And these experiences in prayer ministry have been the sweetest of all. It has been an indescribable journey to have a ringside seat to God’s loving and powerful interventions in the lives of so many. Much of my spiritual formation has been informed and enhanced by these experiences.
So, it’s more than a little ironic that my overall spiritual formation is irrevocably tied to my 33 years of affiliation with IV, and this same trajectory of spiritual formation has now resulted in my confidence in God’s love for the gay community. As I adjust to this irony, I feel mostly gratitude for IV. The American culture is in a state of rapid flux – on the heels of a culture war of unprecedented proportions. IV did not start or participate in this culture war, and in fact, IV has historically been a shining example of a large Christian organization that has steered clear of power politics. But to say now that this culture war is not affecting IV leadership would be profoundly naive.
I want to apologize to all of my Christian friends who feel hurt and saddened upon learning of my support for gay relationships. I love you all more than I can say, and it saddens me to know how I might be hurting you and disappointing you. I feel especially concerned for my gay Christian friends who have chosen the path of celibacy out of obedience to Christ. You have been asked to live with so much courage, commitment, and perseverance — and I wonder if you might feel betrayed. Please forgive me; I did not ask to be a firebrand or a revolutionary, but I cannot deny my calling from God to stand with the marginalized in what I believe is the first great civil rights movement of the 21st century. I do believe I stand firmly on the side of Christ in this battle.
And to the people of IV, I have loved our journey together! You are what make IV such a wonderful organization. THANK YOU for these 33 years, they have been truly great because of you.
So there you have it. Jacci and I have some ideas about what’s next. Firstly, we’ve started a community group for gay Christians, their partners, their families and others who hunger for a place of worship, scripture study, service and community that is inclusive and loving for all. The name of our new group is, Shalom. It’s pretty scary because it feels like we are “starting over,” but we feel confident the same God who has loved us so very well over the past 33 years will continue to guide us and keep us as we seek to love others in his name.