THE GIGLIO
IMBROGLIO -- The public inauguration of a new Moral
McCarthyism
Posted on Jan 11, 2013 | by R. Albert
Mohler Jr.
This article
was originally posted Thursday, Jan. 10.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP) -- A new chapter in America's moral
revolution came today as Atlanta pastor Louie Giglio
withdrew from giving the benediction at President Obama's
second inaugural ceremony. In a statement released to the
White House and the Presidential Inaugural Committee, Giglio
said he withdrew because of the furor that emerged yesterday
(Jan. 9) after a liberal watchdog group revealed that almost
20 years ago he had preached a sermon in which he had stated
that homosexuality is a sin and that the "only way out of a
homosexual lifestyle ... is through the healing power of
Jesus."
In other words, a Christian pastor has been effectively
disinvited from delivering an inaugural prayer because he
believes and teaches Christian truth.
The fact that Giglio was actually disinvited was made clear
in a statement from Addie Whisenant of the Presidential
Inaugural Committee:
"We were not aware of Pastor Giglio's past comments at the
time of his selection, and they don't reflect our desire to
celebrate the strength and diversity of our country at this
inaugural. Pastor Giglio was asked to deliver the
benediction in large part because of his leadership in
combating human trafficking around the world. As we now work
to select someone to deliver the benediction, we will ensure
their beliefs reflect this administration's vision of
inclusion and acceptance for all Americans."
That statement is, in effect, an embarrassed apology for
having invited Louie Giglio in the first place. Whisenant's
statement apologizes for the Presidential Inaugural
Committee's failure to make certain that their selection had
never, at any time, for any reason, believed that
homosexuality is less than a perfectly acceptable lifestyle.
The committee then promised to repent and learn from their
failure, committing to select a replacement who would
"reflect this administration's vision of inclusion and
acceptance."
The imbroglio over Louie Giglio is the clearest evidence of
the new Moral McCarthyism of our sexually "tolerant" age.
During the infamous McCarthy hearings, witnesses would be
asked, "Are you now or have you ever been a member of the
Communist Party?"
In the version now to be employed by the Presidential
Inaugural Committee, the question will be: "Are you now or
have you ever been one who believes that homosexuality (or
bisexuality, or transsexualism, etc.) is anything less than
morally acceptable and worthy of celebration?"
Louie Giglio, pastor of Atlanta's Passion City Church, also
is founder of the Passion movement that brings tens of
thousands of Christian young people together to hear Giglio,
along with speakers such as John Piper. They urge a rising
generation of young Christians to make a passionate
commitment to Christ. In recent years, the movement also has
sought to raise awareness and activism among young
Christians on the issue of sex trafficking. It was that
activism that caught the attention of both President Obama
and the Presidential Inaugural Committee.
Note carefully that both the White House and the committee
were ready to celebrate Giglio's activism on sex
trafficking, but all that was swept away by the Moral
McCarthyism on the question of homosexuality.
Two other dimensions of this story also demand attention.
First, we should note that Louie Giglio has not been known
lately for taking any stand on the issue of homosexuality.
To the contrary, Giglio's own statement withdrawing from the
invitation made this clear:
"Due to a message of mine that has surfaced from 15-20 years
ago, it is likely that my participation, and the prayer I
would offer, will be dwarfed by those seeking to make their
agenda the focal point of the inauguration. Clearly,
speaking on this issue has not been in the range of my
priorities in the past fifteen years. Instead, my aim has
been to call people to ultimate significance as we make much
of Jesus Christ."
A fair-minded reading of that statement indicates that
Pastor Giglio has strategically avoided any confrontation
with the issue of homosexuality for at least 15 years. The
issue "has not been in the range of my priorities," he said.
Given the Bible's insistence that sexual morality is
inseparable from our "ultimate significance as we make much
of Jesus Christ," this must have been a difficult strategy.
It is also a strategy that is very attractive to those who
want to avoid being castigated as intolerant or homophobic.
As this controversy makes abundantly clear, it is a failed
strategy. Louie Giglio was cast out of the circle of the
acceptable simply because a liberal watchdog group found one
sermon he preached almost 20 years ago. If a preacher has
ever taken a stand on biblical conviction, he risks being
exposed decades after the fact. Anyone who teaches at any
time, to any degree, that homosexual behavior is a sin is
now to be cast out.
Second, we should note that Pastor Giglio's sermon was, as
we would expect and hope, filled with grace and the promise
of the Gospel. Giglio did not just state that homosexuals
are sinners -- he made clear that every single human being
is a sinner, in need of the redemption that is found only in
Jesus Christ. "We've got to say to the homosexuals, the same
thing that I say to you and that you would say to me ...
It's not easy to change, but it's possible to change," he
preached. He pointed his congregation, gay and straight, to
"the healing power of Jesus." He called his entire
congregation to repent and come to Christ by faith.
That is the quintessential Christian Gospel. That is
undiluted biblical truth. Those words are the consensus of
the church for over 2,000 years and the firm belief held by
the vast majority of Christians around the world today.
The Presidential Inaugural Committee and the White House
have now declared historical, biblical Christianity to be
out of bounds, casting it off the inaugural program as an
embarrassment. By its newly articulated standard, any
preacher who holds to the faith of the church for the last
2,000 years is persona non grata. By this standard, no Roman
Catholic prelate or priest can participate in the ceremony.
No evangelical who holds to biblical orthodoxy is welcome.
The vast majority of Christians around the world have been
disinvited. Mormons and the rabbis of Orthodox Judaism are
out. Any Muslim imam who could walk freely in Cairo would be
denied a place on the inaugural program. Billy Graham, who
participated in at least 10 presidential inaugurations, is
welcome no more. Rick Warren, who incited a similar
controversy when he prayed at President Obama's first
inauguration, is way out of bounds. In the span of just four
years, the rules are fully changed.
The gauntlet was thrown down yesterday, and the ax fell
today. Wayne Besen, founder of the activist group Truth Wins
Out, told The New York Times yesterday: "It is imperative
that Giglio clarify his remarks and explain whether he has
evolved on gay rights, like so many other faith and
political leaders. It would be a shame to select a preacher
with backward views on LBGT people at a moment when the
nation is rapidly moving forward on our issues."
And there you have it -- anyone who has ever believed that
homosexuality is morally problematic in any way must now
offer public repentance and evidence of having "evolved" on
the question. This is the language that President Obama used
of his own "evolving" position on same-sex marriage. This is
what is now openly demanded of Christians today. If you want
to avoid being thrown off the program, you had better learn
to evolve fast, and repent in public.
This is precisely what biblical Christians cannot do. While
seeking to be gentle in spirit and ruthlessly
Gospel-centered in speaking of any sin, we cannot cease to
speak of sin as sin. To do so is not only to deny the
authority of Scripture, not only to reject the moral
consensus of the saints, but it undermines the Gospel
itself. The Gospel makes no sense and is robbed of its
saving power, if sin is denied as sin.
An imbroglio is a painful and embarrassing conflict. The
imbroglio surrounding Louie Giglio is not only painful, it
is revealing. We now see the new Moral McCarthyism in its
undisguised and unvarnished reality. If you are a Christian,
get ready for the question you will now undoubtedly face:
"Do you now or have you ever believed that homosexuality is
a sin?" There is nowhere to hide.
--30--
R. Albert Mohler Jr. is president of Southern Baptist
Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky
