Rev. Gregory A. Boyd of Woodlands Hills Church near St. Paul, MN has repeatedly rebuffed the advances of Christian theocrats who wanted to use his church as a staging ground for things the Christian right has become well know for such as the drive to deny homosexuals equal rights and to restrict the reproductive rights of women.
Though no liberal, Boyd opposes abortion and considers homosexuality not his gods “ideal”, Rev. Boyd is a refreshing break and it’s nice to see one of the mega-churches standing up to the theocrats within their ranks.
[link]… By the time the dust had settled, Woodland Hills, which Mr. Boyd founded in 1992, had lost about 1,000 of its 5,000 members.
But there were also congregants who thanked Mr. Boyd, telling him they were moved to tears to hear him voice concerns they had been too afraid to share.
It’s not surprising that they would leave in light of what appears to be a series of sermons wherein he speaks against the founding beliefs of the religious right:
In his six sermons, Mr. Boyd laid out a broad argument that the role of Christians was not to seek “power over†others  by controlling governments, passing legislation or fighting wars. Christians should instead seek to have “power under†others  “winning people’s hearts†by sacrificing for those in need, as Jesus did, Mr. Boyd said.
“America wasn’t founded as a theocracy,†he said. “America was founded by people trying to escape theocracies. Never in history have we had a Christian theocracy where it wasn’t bloody and barbaric. That’s why our Constitution wisely put in a separation of church and state. “
“I am sorry to tell you,†he continued, “that America is not the light of the world and the hope of the world. The light of the world and the hope of the world is Jesus Christ.â€Â
H/T: Pandagon: Agreeing with the religious conservatives…
