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<\/a>Fr. Thomas Hopko has done the Church a great service with his book “Christianity and Same-Sex Attraction argues Dn. Brian Patrick Mitchell, a Deacon in the Orthodox Church of America. He is faithful to the moral tradition, approaches the topic with compassion towards the person struggling with same-sex attraction, and teaches how struggling with the passion can become a means of sanctification and movement towards greater communion with Christ, and affirming the possibility that healing exists for the same-sex attracted person.<\/p>\nAlongside these strengths however, also lies weakness. Dn. Mitchell argues that Fr. Hopko has also inadvertently opened the door to activists within the Church who want to soften the prohibitions against homosexual behavior by positioning themselves “slightly left of Hopko.” The weaknesses in Fr. Hopko’s approach include 1) narrowing the categories of unacceptable homosexual behavior; 2) discouraging preaching and teaching that is offensive to homosexuals; and (3) condemning Christian resistance to the gay political agenda.<\/p>\n
A portion of Dn. Mitchell’s critique is posted below. You can read the complete article on the Brian Patrick Mitchell blog<\/a>. As always, comments are welcome. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Source: Brian Patrick Mitchell blog<\/a> | By Dn. Brian Patrick Mitchell<\/p>\n In the English-speaking Orthodox Christian world, there is hardly a man of his generation more deserving of the Western title \u201cDoctor of the Church<\/a>\u201d than Protopresbyter<\/a> Thomas Hopko<\/a>, dean emeritus of St. Vladimir\u2019s Orthodox Theological Seminary<\/a> in Crestwood, New York. In his many lectures, catechetical works, scholarly commentaries on controversial issues relating to sex and gender, and frequent podcasts on Ancient Faith Radio<\/a> under the title \u201cSpeaking the Truth in Love<\/a>,\u201d Fr. Hopko has demonstrated such broad knowledge of the Orthodox tradition, such keen insight into the subtleties and mysteries of the Orthodox faith, and such carefulness and clarity in expressing what he knows and thinks as to earn universal acceptance as the proto-pedagogue of the English-speaking Orthodox Church.<\/p>\n Yet despite strong traditional stands on key issues related to homosexuality, Hopko now represents the leftward limit of permissible opinion in the Orthodox Church on homosexuality, such that those who openly challenge the Church\u2019s teaching now describe themselves as slightly \u201cleft of Hopko.\u201d David Dunn<\/a>, who openly declares himself a \u201cpro-gay\u201d Orthodox lay theologian, characterizes his own stand on gay marriage as \u201ca quarter-step to the left<\/a>\u201d of Hopko. Dunn also writes in The Huffington Post<\/em> that he began his \u201choly disobedience\u201d against the Church on homosexuality after reading Hopko\u2019s 2006 book Christian Faith and Same-Sex Attraction<\/a><\/em>. Applauding Dunn in an online comment, Rebecca Matovic<\/a>, another well-known advocate of change in the Orthodox Church, claimed \u201cthere are many, many priests who think about these issues in a loving, pastoral way and increasingly find themselves moving to the \u2018left\u2019 of Hopko.\u201d<\/p>\n If Matovic is right, it would seem that Hopko has inadvertently positioned himself less as the gatekeeper of Orthodoxy than as the head usher for heresy. Indeed, both Hopko\u2019s recent public comments on homosexuality and his 2006 book have opened holes in the Church\u2019s defenses through which the Enemy is now shoving battalions of wrong ideas to confuse and confound the Church\u2019s defenders.<\/p>\n This is a shame, as there is much else that Hopko says that the Church\u2019s defenders could use. In Christian Faith and Same-Sex Attraction<\/em>, Hopko summarily dismisses attempts to reinterpret Scripture and Tradition to make homosexuality acceptable. He writes that God does not make people homosexual; that people are not therefore naturally homosexual as they are naturally male or female, black or white, etc.; and that same-sex attraction is a result of man\u2019s rebellion against God. He calls homosexual sex a \u201cbetrayal\u201d of the love God intends for His people, saying it can never express divine love because it is \u201cincapable\u201d of edifying souls the way heterosexual sex can. He likens acceptance of homosexuality today to the general madness famously prophesied by St. Anthony of the Great. (Saying 25: \u201cA time is coming when men will go mad, and when they see someone who is not mad, they will attack him, saying, \u2018You are mad, you are not like us.\u2019\u201d) He declares that \u201cthose who publicly affirm and promote homosexual behavior (like those who publicly advocate abortion) cannot be sacramental communicants in the Orthodox Church.\u201d He goes even further to state that those \u201copenly propagating teachings and practices contrary to Orthodoxy\u201d may be excluded not just from communion but \u201cfrom church gatherings\u201d to prevent harm done to others, especially the young.<\/p>\n Most controversially, Hopko suggests an understanding of homosexuality consistent with sexual orientation change efforts<\/a> (SOCE), citing the work of British research psychologist and theologian Elizabeth Moberly<\/a>, who theorizes that homosexuality is an attempt to \u201crepair\u201d a lack of childhood affection from persons of the same sex, especially parents. Hopko does not explicitly endorse \u201creparative therapy<\/a>,\u201d the SOCE based on Moberly\u2019s theory, but he does explicitly endorse therapy \u201cto deal with same-sex developmental issues that must be resolved for \u2026 emotional and spiritual healing.\u201d He also leaves open the possibility of sexual orientation change through therapy, saying in an endnote that Moberly \u201cthinks that I can be more optimistic\u201d about the possibility of change. It is for these reasons that Hopko\u2019s book bears a blurb from American psychologist Joseph Nicolosi<\/a>, a leading advocate of SOCE, who in 2006 was president of the National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality<\/a> (NARTH), the organization gay activists most love to hate.<\/p>\n Yet these brave stands on key issues are undermined by Hopko\u2019s efforts to (1) narrow the category of unacceptable homosexual behavior, (2) discourage preaching and teaching offensive to homosexuals, and (3) condemn Christian resistance to the gay political agenda. Let\u2019s see how each of these faults appears in Hopko\u2019s book.<\/p>\n […]<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.aoiusa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/divider-2.png\")
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