Jim Pace

A recovering cynic’s take on George Rekers… Part 1 of 3

May 28, 2010 | 1 Comment

Probably, if you are like me, you had never heard of George Rekers… until some pics taken at Miami International Airport on April 13th of this year.

To quote CBSNews.com in their coverage of the story… “he has long played a prominent role behind the scenes in the social conservative movement: A member of the founding board of the conservative Family Research Council, Rekers has authored books on how to ensure that children grow up straight.

A Baptist minister and former research fellow at Harvard University, Rekers has testified against gay adoptions and is on the board of National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality, which “upholds the rights of individuals with unwanted homosexual attraction to receive effective psychological care.”

So, what do we make of ole George?

To me, there really are three questions that matter here.

1) Is he telling the truth?

2) If he is not, what are the implications?

3) Am I free to come to my own conclusions regarding homosexuality or does the bible speak into it?

As for question one, Is he telling the truth? my natural cynical default becomes a real issue.  Now, realize that I am not calling myself a cynic.  The definition of cynic from thefreedictionary.com -if you can believe anything is really free :)- defines a cynic as someone who believes that people are essentially cold, calculating and out for their own selfish interests.  By that definition I would be a recovering cynic.   I would categorize myself as more of a skeptic at this point.  I can doubt things and people pretty easily,but it isn’t my default any longer. I am actually learning how to trust more people, more readily.  That skepticism doesn’t mean I never believe anything that is tough to believe, it just means that to do so I need to feel like I have a reason for overriding my doubt.  My doubt-button is easily pushed, if you will, sometimes helping me to see the truth through misleading stories, and sometimes causing me to question or reject what is actually true, just tough to believe.

Suffice it to say my doubt-button has been pushed on this one.  What is tough here is that, in many ways, this feels like former Idaho Senator Larry Craig’s “I have a wide stance” type of story.  A public figure that is caught in a damaging situation and comes up with an explanation that seems too far-fetched to really be true.  Probably all of our doubt buttons were lit up and blinking over that one.

But that doesn’t mean that everything that is tough to believe is wrong.  It just means it is tough to believe.

Right?

Sure, it could be true. Rekers probably does need some help with luggage and whatnot, but getting help from a travel companion that advertises the ways he can help on Rentboy.com?  I, probably like everyone else, look at that with more than a bit of skepticism.

As a follower of Jesus, and as one that hold the scriptures to be an authoritative voice, I am called by God to believe the best of others.  Jesus challenges me to let my yes be my yes and my no be my no in my interactions with others and to try to believe that they are doing the same with me.  That doesn’t mean I automatically take everyone’s word on everything they say (other sections of the scriptures, in particular several in Proverbs, wisely call that foolishness).  So, I try to give the benefit of the doubt, as much as I can.  My goal has become trying to see the world through God’s eyes.  Trying to look more and more at things from his perspective and realizing, after reading this section of Matthew, how different his perspective and mine really is.

1 One day as the crowds were gathering, Jesus went up the mountainside with his disciples and sat down to teach them. 2 This is what he taught them: 3 “God blesses those who realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is given to them. 4 God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 God blesses those who are gentle and lowly, for the whole earth will belong to them. 6 God blesses those who are hungry and thirsty for justice, for they will receive it in full. 7 God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God. 9 God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God. 10 God blesses those who are persecuted because they live for God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. 11 “God blesses you when you are mocked and persecuted and lied about because you are my followers. 12 Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted, too.

That was one of the first times that I realized that, not only could my take on what I am experiencing not be right, but that I might completely miss that it is wrong.  That my perspective was more about self-protection than about truly interacting with those I am around.

Honestly, it wasn’t until I started trying to live in that way that I realized just how little trust I was willing to give anyone.  How much I expected them to be dishonest with me.  As I have been trying to live in a more trusting way towards others, a few things have happened that I didn’t expect.

I have become more accepting of others, regardless of how much we agree about or how well we get along.  My cynicism caused me to have an almost constant internal sneer towards others.  Internally I pitted myself against them, was always looking for their angle, was waiting for the thing they were hiding to come into the light.  As I have walked away from that, I find I am much more interested in the people I am around.  Much more accepting and open to hearing from them and learning from them.

Now, there have been a number of times that I have been taken advantage of as well.  The process hasn’t always been rosy.  But through those and through a continuing pursuit of God, I have been trying to re-calibrate my skepticism.  Not get rid of all of it, we don’t live in a world that allows that, but to allow it to speak into my decisions when it is right to do so and not allow it to drive almost all of them.

All that being said :), it seems very hard to believe that nothing was happening.  Either way, I am wanting to pray for George Rekers.  Either he has inadvertantly stumbled into a situation that is almost impossible to believe could be truly innocent, and as a result is suffering for something he never did; or he has just had a part of his life and soul that he clearly has been trying to cover be exposed.  Both would be horrible to live through.

For the rest of us, I suggest we should do four things in the midst of all this.  First, remember to be praying for George and in particular, his family.  Second, to allow this to be a cause for pause.  A time to reflect on how skeptical/cynical we are towards those around us.  Third, to seek to live lives that are fully known.  To have at least a couple of people that we have no secrets from.  And fourth, to only use family members as luggage-hefting travel companions. 🙂

Please tell me your thoughts on all this.

In a few days we will discuss what the implications would be for a Christian, reparative therapy advocate to be found to have been involved in at least one homosexual sexual relationship.

Peace, Jim

Categories: Church, Culture, General, life, Mission