In an article posted at Civil Beat, four Protestant leaders in Hawaii have objected to evangelist Franklin Graham’s message:
Recently, Franklin Graham, the son of evangelist Billy Graham, was in Hawaii on a 50-state tour to pray at state capitols. His message was to vote for candidates who claim “Biblical values.”
Unfortunately, much of what we hear from candidates and in the news that claims to be speaking for Biblical values is an intolerant and xenophobic reactionary response to societal and global change.
The diversity of religious expression, the complexity of human sexuality and changing gender roles are not threats to Christianity and to our relationship with God. Jesus was constantly challenging the status quo of society, constantly reaching out to those who were poor and marginalized.
… From our Christian perspective, we accept that culture is always evolving. The cultural norms and mores of the Israelite people during the time of the Old Testament and that of the time of Jesus in the New Testament were not the same; nor are they the same today. A constant, however, is that God is still speaking, and the degradation, abuse and vilification of any part of God’s creation is sinful.
The article lists four authors:
- The Rev. Charles C. Buck, conference minister for the Hawaii Conference of the United Church of Christ
- The Rev. Murray D. Finck, bishop of the Pacifica Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
- The Rt. Rev. Robert L. Fitzpatrick, Bishop of Hawaii
- The Rev. Sehee S. Han, Hawaii district superintendent of the California Pacific Conference of the United Methodist Church
For more information: God Is Still Speaking is a campaign begun by the United Church of Christ in 2004 that explains its belief in continuing revelation.