Jeremiah 7:8–10 (ESV) “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations?
On 8/20, one of our Pastors, Scott, on his Facebook page, called attention to an article, posted at LifeSiteNews.com regarding a conference to be held in Baltimore on Aug. 17 of this year. The article’s headline read: “Academic conference seeks to normalize pedophilia.” You can read the article for yourself at the following link.
http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/academic-conference-seeks-to-normalize-pedophilia
It was not the conference itself which prompted me to further action. The truth is, I expect to see more and more of this kind of thing as time goes on. Once Biblical norms for sexual activity (or any other kind for that matter) are abandoned, all behaviors are either accepted or rejected as normal in society by virtue of that Society’s own whims. “Normal” becomes defined as whatever seems acceptable at the time to any group willing to stand up for it. Beyond that, some other “norms” simply seep in over time – un-championed but simply tolerated until no longer even drawing attention.
A respondent to Scott’s post queried whether or not this “news” was verifiable by some other source. I wondered the same and Googled a group mentioned in the article called “B4U-ACT” who were central participants in this conference. Among their stated concerns in dealing with “minor-attracted” people, are: “We believe that persons who are sexually attracted to children can be contributing members of their communities and that they deserve to be treated with respect. All clients should be treated in a caring, non-judgmental, and respectful manner. We see minor-attracted people as whole human beings, not as dangerous criminals or “deviants.” Therefore, we advocate the use of supportive therapeutic goals, assumptions, and approaches. Clients voluntarily seeking treatment should not be pressured or coerced to accept treatment modalities that they find objectionable.”
The LifeSiteNews article goes on the say: “On their website B4U-ACT classifies pedophilia as simply another sexual orientation and decries the “stigma” attached to pedophilia, observing: “No one chooses to be emotionally and sexually attracted to children or adolescents. The cause is unknown; in fact, the development of attraction to adults is not understood.” The group says that it does not advocate treatment to change feelings of attraction to children or adolescents. ” B4U-ACT appears to be active in advocating that that “minor-attraction” (pedophilia to most) no longer be classified as a mental disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – DSM.
The argument is that such is simply one more sexual orientation which ought to be understood rather than corrected. Just like homsexuality – or any other sexual attraction outside of heterosexuality.
Once again, Scott’s respondent raised an issue, and objected to minor-attraction being classified as a mental disorder too. You may find it surprising that I agreed with him. But not for the reasons he might have thought – nor you. So I post my response to him in full to further the discussion. I’ve no doubt we need to go even further – especially in view of the growing move within Evangelical Churches to no longer treat homosexuality as a sin – but to embrace it and let people remain in bondage to a soul-damning lifestyle under the guise of being “right with God”. These issues are NOT going away.
My response with slight modifications for use here: Dear _______ – What may surprise you, is that I wholeheartedly agree with the decision to remove and declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder in the DSM – though most likely not for the same reason(s) you may. And, I would say the very same for those who are currently classified as “minor-attracted”.
As you noted, I would be guided by Biblical reasons in treating the topic – and find that classifying homosexuality as a “mental disorder” in the first place, removes it from the Biblical category of a moral disorder.
Now let me be clear – homosexuality is not the catch-all bugaboo that many have made it out to be. All of us (from the Biblical worldview) are born with sinful tendencies of all kinds. Sin in each of us surfaces in a remarkable array of expressions. Homosexuality is but one of countless ways sin shows itself, and is neither the worst of all sins, unforgivable nor unconquerable in those whose disposition runs that way. Some are born with tendencies toward anger, others toward theft, still others toward unfaithfulness in marital relationships, uncontrolled sex drives of all kinds, pride, arrogance, greed, faithlessness – you name it. I have no doubt some are born with homosexuality at the very fore of their sinful nature, even as others are born with a predominate feature to their particular tendency. The point Biblically is that we need to: a. recognize the race-wide problem of sin, and, b. what God has done in Jesus Christ to address that problem – so that we might be reconciled to Him. And this, the Bible teaches is the Cross.
I have no doubt that many will battle against the wrong bent of homosexual tendencies all of their lives (even after they become Christians) the way the prideful will battle their tendencies all of their days. But the good news of the Gospel is that God accepts Jesus’ death on Calvary in our place so as to be able to deliver us from the just wrath our sin deserves – and then places His own Spirit within Believers to give us the impetus to begin to walk in freedom from those tendencies rather than remain mastered by them.
For the Christian – the mere tendency is no longer a condemned state. He (or she) can fully own their particular sin(s) as truly part of themselves, while fully accepted by God as they grow to be freed from them. But we must make no mistake here – Jesus did not die to leave us IN our sins, but to deliver us FROM them.
Jeremiah 7:8–16 (ESV) “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations? Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself have seen it, declares the Lord. Go now to my place that was in Shiloh, where I made my name dwell at first, and see what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel. And now, because you have done all these things, declares the Lord, and when I spoke to you persistently you did not listen, and when I called you, you did not answer, therefore I will do to the house that is called by my name, and in which you trust, and to the place that I gave to you and to your fathers, as I did to Shiloh. And I will cast you out of my sight, as I cast out all your kinsmen, all the offspring of Ephraim.
“As for you, do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them, and do not intercede with me, for I will not hear you.
Ephesians 5:11–14 “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” 
