Eight Objections to the HSR

by Dr. Art Jongsma

Statements Against Heterosexual Marriages Only

Statement

The eight objections to the Human Sexuality Report are:

1. The travesty of the HSR began with the unprecedented limiting of committee membership, with no members who agreed with the scientific reports accepting orientation or inclusive interpretations. This is dishonorable.
2. Genesis is not the foundation for limiting relationships to one man and one woman. Genesis is about the origin of sin, not about gender.
3. The Bible is not a book about biological science. There is a spectrum of sexuality . . . not just male and female. It is part of the identity of creation, not the result of sin. To discount science is to counter our Reformed approach to science and theology.
4. It is truly misleading to cite the Heidelberg Catechism as the basis for declaring same-sex relationships are wrong.
5. The superficial dismissal of an alternative interpretation by respected Reformed theologians is shameful. There was no sincere effort to grapple with respected theologians Brownson and Achtemeier etc.
6. This report lacks the grace, humility and pastoral compassion of previous committees that dealt with the topics of divorce and the role of women. It is a stone-cold treatise.
7. Acceptance of the HSR will cause tremendous harm to LGBTQ people. It will cause clinical depression and spiritual turmoil. LGBTQ people will flee the CRC. The meetings with LGBTQ people were a sham. The report itself is a matter of spiritual and emotional abuse.
8. The impact on the denomination of accepting the report as confessional will be catastrophic. Pastors, professors and elders will leave the CRC. It will be like splits that occurred in 1924 with the formation of the Protestant Reformed Church and 1996 with the formation of the United Reformed Church. These are differing views on non-salvation issues with differences based on so few verses.

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Response

Following are some responses:

1. At this point (October, 2021) there is still the opportunity to produce overtures to address this matter. If there is material showing how inclusive interpretations are biblical, it can provide material for synod to consider.
2. It has long been considered to be true that, in addition to teaching about the origin of sin, Genesis also teaches insights on a number of other topics.
3. Dr. Jongsma’s objections include the statement, “It is part of the identity of creation, not the result of sin.” How is this known? Does science teach us that? If so, how does it do that? Does Scripture teach us that? Facts need to be provided to prove this statement.
4. How is it misleading to make that assertion of the Heidelberg Catechism? To show how it is misleading would be very helpful.
5. The HSR does not superficially dismiss Brownson, Achtemeier and others. The report quotes them and gives reasons for not agreeing with them. Jongsma gives no specific examples of this. (Brownson has been covered in detail in other areas on this website, although Dr. Brownson will not discuss his book.)
6. Again, can examples be provided of how the report lacks grace etc.? It is one thing to state that something is the case. It is much more helpful to show examples of where that can be found.
7. For thousands of years it has been the understanding of passages such as I Cor. 6:9-10 that practicing homosexuals in eternity will not be part of the Kingdom of God. What would the greatest possible harm be to LGBTQ people, eternal death or stress experienced here in this life? This question makes it imperative to determine, to the best of our ability, what the Bible in fact teaches concerning same-sex marriage. We need to keep the focus there. The fear of what will happen to the denomination, although a legitimate concern, yet it should not stand in the way of us pursuing what the Scriptures teach.
8. In light of I Cor. 6:9-10, “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? . . . nor men who practice homosexuality . . .” how can this be considered a non-salvation matter?

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As can be seen in a number of the points covered above, the main area where progress will be made in these discussions is to work on the specifics of what the Bible teaches concerning same-sex marriages.