Someone I Love is Gay

A guide for family and friends of gay and bisexual Christadelphians

These pages are for Christadelphians with family members, ecclesial members, and friends who are lesbian, gay, or bisexual. Same-sex relationships have always existed, and while once the standards of the World were strongly opposed to them, now the pendulum has swung in the opposite direction. Worldly standards, be they restrictive or permissive, are rarely good guides to Biblical standards, but the World’s current acceptance of same-sex relationships can make things difficult for Christadelphians who have maybe never encountered someone lesbian, gay, or bisexual before. For many Christadelphians, same-sex relationships are a completely alien thing.

These pages only touch on what the Bible says. If we ask “What does the Bible say about same-sex relationships?” without an understanding of what same-sex relationships are, then we will probably come to the wrong conclusions. If we are not aware of our own feelings, particularly our own negative feelings, such as fear, then those feelings will also tend to lead us to wrong conclusions, even the most level-headed of us. This booklet serves to help understand these things so that any further thoughts or study will be clearer. For more detailed resources for further study, see Further Reading.

Each of these pages begins with a reading from the Bible, and ends with some exercises. The readings and exercises are to help you think about your own feelings and to help you understand what it means to be lesbian, gay, or bisexual.

It is probably a good idea to pray before and after reading this booklet. I suggest saying the Lord’s Prayer, but you may also find the following short prayer useful.

Father in Heaven,

I thank you for the love that surrounds me, and I thank you that loves and trusts me enough to tell me something very personal and important. Many people can find this upsetting, Father, but give me the wisdom to react with Christ-like understanding of what this means and what your Word says.

In the name of Jesus Christ,

Amen.

Next page: Some definitions

Andrew McFarland Campbell

Extracts from the Authorized Version of the Bible (The King James Bible), the rights in which are vested in the Crown, are reproduced by permission of the Crown’s Patentee, Cambridge University Press.

A guide for family and friends of gay and bisexual Christadelphians

Contents