Potomac Conference Releases Statement on LGBTQ People

[phkrause]

The Potomac Conference of Seventh-day Adventists has released a video statement (dated 17 May) about LGBTQ people, in response to “some things you may have read on social media.” President Elder Charles A. Tapp delivered the statement, with his team of officers standing with him.

https://atoday.org/potomac-conference-releases-statement-on-lgbtq-people/

[Daryl]

The conference requested that the statement be shown in every church on a Sabbath.

A transcript of Elder Tapp’s statement:

As a Seventh-day Adventist Christian organization, we here at the Potomac Conference believe that Scripture is both our foundation and our guide. With this in mind, we must be clear-minded in the reality of the flock that Christ has given us to shepherd.

The LGBTQ+ community is a population that exists within the conference and the world. They are our members, our neighbors, our friends, and our family. They are our loved ones. While we cannot agree with or endorse individual choices or lifestyles, we also cannot promote individual or political agendas. As we have in the past, we will follow the teachings of Jesus Christ to ensure that we are demonstrating his love to everyone.

Brothers and sisters: showing Christlike love to everyone doesn’t mean we condone their behavior, and most importantly, it does not mean that we condemn the person either. And if we are truly serious about moving beyond the walls as Christians, we must be willing to take a few moments to stop, to just listen—to everyone. Author Ralph Nichols, an expert in the field of listening, says, “The most basic of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood. The best way to understand people,” he says, “is to listen to them.”

Acknowledging where we are in the final hours of earth’s history, we are committed to hold strong to our faith, while remaining steadfast not only in what we believe, but most of all, in Whom we believe. May God bless us richly as we strive to do both.