What is truth? Compromising for the culture
by Joseph J Horton, Christian Post:
Who better than the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) to report on a conference of Anglican bishops? The BBC is satisfied that the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has brokered a compromise on one of the most controversial issues of the day, namely, which sexual expressions the churches in the Anglican Communion should countenance.
How does one compromise irreconcilably different positions? Archbishop Welby’s solution is that the traditional doctrine remains on paper, but those who flout the doctrine will not be sanctioned. So, everyone is happy?
In a piece headlined, “Lambeth Conference: Welby unites bishops with compromise on sexuality,” the BBC states that the archbishop has “found the formula for now,” which suggests that even the BBC knows the compromise will not stand the test of time. Indeed, archbishops from Nigeria, Rwanda, and Uganda chose not to attend the Lambeth Conference, believing that compromise was inconsistent with the truth-preserving role of the church.
The bishops from these and other African countries support maintaining traditional teaching while those bishops who want to liberalize the church’s teaching are from Western nations. This same geographic divide prevails in parallel debates within the United Methodist Church. It is not unique to Anglicanism. And therein is a significant spoiler alert: the United Methodist Church has begun splitting over such issues. Past compromises to preserve traditional teaching on paper but not in behavior have not unified.
As the BBC explains the situation, the positions of both the African churches and the Western churches can be best understood by understanding the surrounding cultures in which they serve. Thus, the African churches will be most respected by those in their surrounding culture if they maintain traditional teachings about sexuality while the Western churches will have more respect from their cultures if their teaching is liberalized.
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