  Zimbabwean shares Scripture with gays/lesbians Mainline church representatives decline to discuss it  By Parker T. Williamson The Presbyterian Layman Monday, December 14, 1998 HARARE, Zimbabwe - The World Council of Churches padare (Shona word for "meeting place") on gay and lesbian issues was led by two homosexual leaders who summarized their research on sexual orientation, recounted a sexual orientation history from the homosexual point of view, and divided the participants into small groups to share their gay/lesbian experiences. The first to speak was a lesbian woman who said that she and two gay men had conducted "extensive research," inquiring if gay and lesbian people could change their orientation. "After many months," she said, "we concluded that we couldn't find anyone whose orientation was actually changed." No information was shared on the researchers' sample or the questions asked by researchers. No statistical data were presented. Instead, the point was made that "unless we stop saying people can change, we can't get on with liberation. When gays and lesbians are diminished, all are diminished."
Next a Norwegian gay man addressed the group on the history of homosexuality from the homosexual point of view. He said that homosexuality was an ancient phenomenon. "It was practiced openly in the Roman world," he said, "so early church leaders were well aware of it." Yet, he argued, their writings say very little about it, presumably because the subject was not a priority for them. The practice was widely accepted and no one made an issue of it. The speaker said it was not until the Middle Ages that homosexual relations were called a sin. There were no marriages in the middle ages, he said, except among the upper classes where the institution was established in order to ensure the transfer of property. Later, the romantic era changed the foundation of marriage from economics to love, and in the industrial period, familial associations developed. "In this situation," said the padare leader, "gays and lesbians came to see themselves as outlaws. But we learned to hide our lifestyle from heterosexuals, accept ourselves, and find community with others who shared our sexual orientation. These struggles finally led us to organize within our communities, and now gays and lesbians are coming out. We are here at the WCC today, not as persons on the outside looking in, but as people on the inside coming out." Small group sharing Following these two speeches, participants were divided into small groups to "share our stories and our experiences of homosexuality in the church." One small group included representatives from Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, Southern Italy, the United Kingdom, and the USA. With one exception, all members of the group were homosexuals or they were heterosexuals who declared themselves strongly committed to the "normalization" of homosexuality in church and society. Two Americans dominated the discussion. Robert E. Koenig, who identified himself as a Presbyterian/United Church of Christ minister, praised the pro-gay position of the UCC and confessed that Presbyterians "still have a lot of work to do." Bryan Greeves, an Episcopal minister from the USA, said he was "ashamed of what happened at Lambeth" when Anglican bishops from around the world issued a strong statement condemning homosexual activity.
After an extended period in which homosexuals in the group shared stories describing the pain of exclusion, Roselyn Manika, a Zimbabwean woman who had entered the circle carrying her Good News Bible, requested permission to speak. "I am very confused here. When I became a Christian I was taught that the Bible is the Word of God. I was taught to follow what the Bible teaches, and I want you to show me what the Bible says about this subject. How do you read the Bible and do all these things that you are talking about?" Manika's question stopped the discussion cold. After extended silence, Grieves said, "We're not here to talk about that. I don't want to talk about it." A woman in the group who said she was "a lesbian in a partnership" said, "I don't know about the Bible, but this issue that we are here to discuss is a power issue. We have to discuss the dominance of heterosexuals … their control of us. Why should heterosexuals tell us that their way is right?" Man and woman together But the woman from Zimabawe was not to be put off. "In the Bible, it is always man and woman together. Here, I open my Bible … where do you find it different? Where does man and man, and woman and woman come from? Show me this in the Bible." Koenig responded: "Obviously the Bible came out of a different time. The important thing that Jesus lifted up was that people should support one another." "But here, look at this - how you say it? - Genesis" insisted Manika. "Here is Adam and here is Eve. God made them for each other. God did not make two men …" "I think you take this too literally," said Koenig, "You need to take into account the cultural context." Who speaks for Africa? A white male from the Netherlands suggested that the group not regard Mrs. Manika as a true representative of Africa. "I think we need to be careful not to speak of all of Africa," he said. "After all, South Africa was the first country in the world to make same-sex marriages legal." At this point the group turned to various psychological explanations for "heterosexism." Some suggested that it comes from "fear of the other." Others equated it with hatred. One woman identified herself as "a theologian who is interested in deconstructing human sexuality issues." She said she was trying to discover "the origin of the normativity of heterosexuality and then in deconstructing it." Koenig suggested that in light of the population explosion, there ought to be a greater appreciation of homosexuals. "Nowadays," said the Presbyterian/United Church of Christ minister, "homosexual relationships are to be preferred to heterosexual ones because they don't increase the population." Scripture causes problems Grieves returned to Mrs. Manika's concern: "On this Bible question, I would hope that Scripture would not be used as a basis. That's a real concern that I have. The Bible can be used to support anything." Koenig joined his Episcopal colleague: "He's right. The Bible is against usury. And that's the basis of the whole capitalist system." At this point, padre leaders blew the whistle and their small groups were brought back together. There were testimonies as to how good it was to have this time of sharing feelings and experiencing one another's pain. "We are one small group in this assembly," said the lesbian leader, "and we want this issue to be brought into the agenda of the WCC." A woman in the group identified herself as the WCC's "official listener," and she assured those present that their concerns would be presented at WCC hearings later in the week. Following that assurance, the padare was dismissed. |
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