Collideoscope

Posted by: Denelle

This past weekend I saw a story on GMA Weekend that caught my attention. And I think is incredibly relevant for all of us.

A church in Carlsbad, CA was set to vote Sunday on whether to accept a new member. Nothing too strange at first glance, so why all the media attention? The new potential member is a convicted sex offender. Clearly this causes major concern for the members of the congregation, the church board and on some levels, for Christians everywhere.

The man told the stunned congregation that he'd been convicted twice, that he'd served his time, and that he now wanted to join a faith community as a way of reintegrating into society.

"It ripped us apart. It was devastating," Shockley said about the impact the upcoming vote has had on his small, tight-knit congregation. "We were looking a church split right in the eye."

Parishioners with children are rightly and justifiably concerned about the safety of their children but they are also concerned with putting into practice and standing by their belief in forgiveness. Interestingly, some of the strongest proponents for allowing the man to become a member are those who were abused as children.

"To have said no to this request, for me, would have been like giving the person that abused me in my childhood power over how I could act and how I could live out my beliefs," said church member April Bird.

As part of the vote, the church is requiring that the man would be accompanied by an adult at all times and would not be allowed to have any contact with children. Is it enough? If it's not acceptable what happens when they turn him away? Every church has child members, what happens if no one will accept him? The Bible instructs us to "forsake not the assembling of yourselves together." In the midst of all the controversy, the pastor of this church has made a very wise comment surrounding all of this:

. . . the debate is a necessary one if the church is going to keep up with the times. "The reality is that sex offenders are among any population of people," he said. "We're coming to grips with the reality."

Unfortunately he is right. There are people out there who have done unspeakable things but who's sins are covered, forgiven and forgotten by the Lord. But things are not that easy for those of us who are human. You want to be forgiving, but people backslide and make mistakes and would you be willing to put your child at risk? While I am not a parent, I can't help but be leery of this situation. This man was TWICE, not once, but twice, convicted as a sex offender.

Yet we are supposed to be like Christ and if Christ forgave him then we should have no problem with forgiving him as well. And if we set a precedent of turning these people away, when they are brave enough to admit what they've done in the past, then we set ourselves up for the possibility that the next time someone with these issues wants to join a church they will do so without any mention of their crimes and that potentially leaves every body's kids at an even greater risk.

The final vote by the congregation?? They accepted him as a member.

What would you do?