Theology/Bible

Mark Driscoll Takes a Whack at McLaren Too

Well, if you thought Doug Wilson’s firebombing of McLaren was severe (see previous post), you haven’t seen anything yet. The cussing pastor Mark Driscoll is also outraged at McLaren’s non-stance on homosexuality. The lambaste appears on the same blog that hosted McLaren’s original essay.

“A Rant by Mark Driscoll” – Out of Ur

I cannot endorse the coarseness of Driscoll’s response, but it is significant because it represents a division between two Emergent leaders over this very pressing issue.

7 Comments

  • Susan

    I’ve read the Mclaren article and the Wilson blog. I don’t really even know what “Emergent” means since I am just a regular church member. I was initially sympathetic to how McLaren began the article, but, as a Christian, I was shocked to read this portion of it:

    “Frankly, many of us don’t know what we should think about homosexuality. We’ve heard all sides but no position has yet won our confidence so that we can say “it seems good to the Holy Spirit and us.” That alienates us from both the liberals and conservatives who seem to know exactly what we should think. Even if we are convinced that all homosexual behavior is always sinful, we still want to treat gay and lesbian people with more dignity, gentleness, and respect than our colleagues do. If we think that there may actually be a legitimate context for some homosexual relationships, we know that the biblical arguments are nuanced and multilayered, and the pastoral ramifications are staggeringly complex. We aren’t sure if or where lines are to be drawn, nor do we know how to enforce with fairness whatever lines are drawn.”

    What?? A pastor who doesn’t know what to think about this issue? I may not be a theologian, but I can certainly figure this one out without his help. I appreciate his wanting to be sensitive to people who struggle with these issues- of course we should all be this way & treat all those different from us with dignity and respect, but since when did this have to occur without having a conviction on this issue?

    I thought the scriptures were to shape our theology. What should seem “good to the Holy Spirit and us” should be what the scriptures say. I know that we all have complex lives and difficult situations to deal with, but it seems that this complexity is muddying the water for McLaren- I would love to be proven wrong here. It seems that you shouldn’t forsake biblical truth just b/c a situation is complicated. Maybe that’s not what he is doing, but it seems that all of the complexity of life is causing him to be moved by the “winds of doctrine”.

    Why can’t we be doctrinally sound AND sensitive, caring, loving, etc… They don’t have to be divorced from one another. Also, I don’t appreciate the insinuations that one can’t have a conviction about a biblical truth without being compared to a Pharisee, which is what it seems has been said in the previous posts. That is ridiculous. Having a conviction on an issue from the scriptures doesn’t mean that a person isn’t loving, kind and welcoming to those who feel differently- of course we are to love like Christ loved and reach out to everyone.

    So, emergent, not emergent, whatever all of that means– just please teach the Bible. We need it- we need the TRUTH spoken to us each week. Out of that truth should flow love for our fellow man- if we are being called by you to love Jesus and be conformed to His image. How could we not love others when we are taught of our own sin and the price that Christ paid? Maybe this is what the real problem is- too many “how to have a better life” sermons and no real exposition of the scriptures.

  • Luke Britt

    Susan, good comment.

    I must say, I like Driscoll even though he comes off as crass.

    I also must say that I think his comments were “nicer” than Wilson’s.

    “This is all just gay.”

  • Kevin P. Larson

    Denny, Driscoll doesn’t like to call himself “Emergent” any longer. I don’t think anybody that hosts John Piper and speaks at Bethlehem deserves that label. I wish more people would cuss McLaren out. If Driscoll’s “emergent,” I am, too, and I’m proud to be so.

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