by Bishop Andrew Gentry   

Beloved Friends,

I was asked if I would support and attend an all gay church and my immediate response was No! If you said no then the question became would I attend an all straight church and I said that there was no such thing! This response was not counted on being a response so we moved on. Then I was asked if I would attend an all white church and I said Yes. The second part of that question it turned out was would I feel comfortable attending an all Black church and I said Somewhat! Next would I attend an all male church and I said No. This was followed by would I support but not attend obviously an all female church and I said No. The final part of this little inquisition was to explain briefly my answers! LOL (my notation) However I will indeed endeavor to be brief.

For the "church" to be truly the Church it cannot be divided into categories like the culture in which it resides. This is one of the "Signs of Contradiction" that is an inherent part of the "prophetic witness" and must therefore be one of the essentials truths of the Magisterium taught with authority by the Church! There cannot be "slave or free, male or female, black or white or brown or yellow nor gay or straight". The Apostolic Witness itself affirms and confirms this truth both in Scripture and Patristic Tradition.

My answer is based not on political correctness or the lack thereof, not on cultural mores or conventions, not on ideology or anthropology but on the inclusivity of the Gospel of Jesus and the Teachings of the Apostles. There is no higher authority! These divisions are man made not ordained by God or his Church and when she is true to her Bridegroom there is no issue to divide or to settle or to debate.

There is no such thing as "feminist theology, liberation theology, queer theology" or any other theology that is considered peculiar to the times in which we live, not really, for it is the Good News of the Gospel alone that calls for and demands all to be invited to and seated at the Great Banquet of the Supper of the Lord both now in the Time to Come. All others are divisive and counterproductive.

Peace
Bishop Andrew Gerales Gentry