Tuesday, March 03, 2015

SC Seminary: Homosexuality Sinful — Media Outraged

As courts have now imposed same-sex "marriage" on South Carolina, Erskine College, a small private Christian college in Due West, SC, has publicly reiterated the Biblical position on homosexuality a year after two students made their homosexual behavior public.  Erskine offers liberal arts undergraduate studies and a graduate theological seminary.
Erskine College exists to glorify God . . . in a Christ-centered environment where learning and biblical truth are integrated to develop the whole person.
-- Mission Statement (excerpt)

We believe the Bible teaches that monogamous marriage between a man and a woman is God’s intended design for humanity and that sexual intimacy has its proper place only within the context of marriage.
We believe the Bible teaches that all sexual activity outside the covenant of marriage is sinful and therefore ultimately destructive to the parties involved. As a Christian academic community, and in light of our institutional mission, members of the Erskine community are expected to follow the teachings of scripture concerning matters of human sexuality and institutional decisions will be made in light of this position.
-- Statement on Human Sexuality (adopted 2/20/15), Board of Trustees and Student Services and Athletic Committee
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:

Massachusetts Christian College Ostracized by City & Media for Opposing Gay Agenda

Gays and Media Attack Nebraska Christian College for Being Moral

Liberal Media Pounce on Evangelical Liberty University

California Boots College Christian Clubs Across the State

California School Bans Books by Christian Authors

Atheists Force Bible Bans at Colleges Across America

Marquette University Bans Conservative Professor, Like a Terrorist

New York Univ. Strips Students of Gender Identification (Gay Agenda)

Stanford Univ. Hires Anti-Christian Lesbian Ordained Priest

-- From "South Carolina college's statement ignites homosexuality furor" by Patrick Foster, USA TODAY Voice 2/27/15

In March of last year, Drew Davis and Juan Varona, two Erskine volleyball players, were featured in an article published on OutSports, in which the athletes officially came out as gay. Following the article’s appearance, the Division II team went on to the NCCA tournament.

The college has reacted to the flurry of news stories on Twitter, saying “No gay (or straight) students have been asked to leave Erskine College based on the Statement.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "South Carolina college denounces homosexuality after two volleyball players come out as gay" by Marissa Payne, Washington Post 2/27/15

. . . the college, which is aligned with the Associate Reformed Presbyterian tradition, released a strongly worded denouncement of homosexuality on campus that many read to be a behavioral ban. The document, titled “Statement on Human Sexuality,” was submitted by the Student Services and Athletic Committee and adopted by the board of trustees last Friday.

The statement will now be added to the school’s official manuals and used to further make procedural rulings, according to an article posted to Erskine’s official Web site on Thursday.

It is unclear how the newly adopted statement will affect student life going forward; however, Erskine said in a followup statement on Friday that the new language “does not ‘ban’ any individual or class of individuals from attending Erskine.”

Reaction from those outside the college has been mostly negative, as well, with many taking to Twitter to denounce what they see as a step in the wrong direction in a state that has already legalized gay marriage.

In some parts of the country, college accreditation boards are demanding conservative Christian colleges revise what they believe to be discriminatory policies and positions. . . .

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read So-called 'Anti-Gay' Gordon College (Salem, Mass.) Accreditation Threatened

From "Erskine College statement on sexuality attracts national attention" by Kirk Brown, Anderson Independent Mail 3/2/15

According to the board's statement, "Sexual relations outside of marriage or between persons of the same sex are spoken of in scripture as sin and contrary to the will of the Creator."

Erskine spokesman Cliff Smith said Sunday that the national news coverage has inaccurately described the board's statement as a reaction to publicity surrounding two gay athletes on the college's men's volleyball team. Smith said discussions among the trustees regarding the statement on sexuality began before a website called OutSports.com posted a story last year about athletes Andrew Davis and Juan Varona.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Erskine releases statement on homosexuality" by Nathaniel Cary, The Greenville (SC) News 3/2/15

The Board's statement on human sexuality, which is released Feb. 20, denounces the practice of any sex outside of marriage, including homosexuality.

The statement has sparked a flurry of national news stories.

Erskine has 600 undergrad students and 130 graduate students in its seminary and is aligned with the conservative Associate Reformed Presbyterian, which appoints the school's trustees. Erskine celebrated its 175th anniversary last year.

The school said its students are expected to follow scriptural teachings on homosexuality.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

In addition, read Gay Agenda will be Complete when Christians are Muzzled, Say Homosexualists as well as Senator Ted Cruz Says the Gay Agenda Ends Christian Liberty

And read American Decline: Obama's Gay Agenda vs. Christians