“The Church and
Same-Sex Marriage: Two Perspectives”
A coalition
of local groups will sponsor a public forum entitled, “The Church and
Same-Sex Marriage: Two Perspectives,” at Bridgewater College’s Cole Hall
on Tuesday, November 12th, at 7 p.m.
This
structured dialogue will present the community with two different
pastoral perspectives on same-sex marriage. The event is being hosted by
Bridgewater College’s Pre-Law Society and co-sponsored by Eastern
Mennonite University’s Center for Interfaith Engagement and The Valley
Family Forum.
The
traditional position—that the Church should only endorse marriage
between a man and woman—will be presented by Dr. John Sloop, who served
as Senior Pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Harrisonburg for the
past 27 years. The view that the Church should also endorse same-sex
marriage will be presented by Rev. Daniel Robayo, who was ordained in
1988 and is the current Rector of Harrisonburg’s Emmanuel Episcopal
Church.
While
the session will bear some resemblances to a traditional debate, its
organizers prefer to call it an “encounter.” The encounter is designed
to foster mutual respect and a deeper understanding of the two
perspectives rather than to produce a “winner.” For instance, after both
perspectives are presented, each participant will be asked to restate
the other’s perspective to the other's satisfaction. There will also be a
time for the two participants to entertain questions from the audience.
Eastern Mennonite University’s Barry Hart will moderate the encounter.
Hart is a professor of Trauma, Identity and Conflict Studies at EMU’s
Center for Justice and Peacebuilding.
This
will be the first of two encounters dealing with cultural issues
surrounding same-sex marriage. The second, tentatively scheduled for
next spring, will feature public policy experts discussing the question
of whether civil marriage should encompass committed same-sex couples.
These
encounters are the product of the newly-created “Community Dialogue
Project,” which seeks to bring liberal and conservative elements of the
community together to discuss important cultural issues at a deeper
level and with greater civility than is typical in today’s polarized,
partisan environment. The Community Dialogue Project includes John
Fairfield, Research Fellow at EMU's Center for Interfaith Engagement;
Rita Dunaway, Vice President for Public Policy at Virginia Christian
Alliance; David Brubaker, Associate Professor with EMU’s Center for
Justice and Peacebuilding; and Tim Frost, Facilitating Pastor at
Covenant Presbyterian Church.
A pdf of a publicity poster is here. For more information, please contact The Community Dialogue Project at CommunityDialogueProject@
For more information, please contact John Fairfield at contact me at (540) 271 4008; jhn.frfld@gmail.com, or Rita Dunaway at (540) 830-1229; rita.dunaway@gmail.
