Rick Warren was on CBS This Morning on Tuesday to promote the re-release of The Purpose Driven Life, when the subject turned to gay marriage. Here are some of Rick’s thoughts:
“Gay marriage is a very personal question… I have biblical views regarding what marriage is about. I am not in favor of redefining marriage, I’m not. It’s not illegal to have a gay relationship, so it’s not a big issue to me.”
“I happen to believe that life begins [at] conception – but that’s not the law. Nobody is leaving the country. We have a wide spectrum in America, and we have to work for the common good…”
“I don’t happen to believe in everything that my gay friends believe, but when they want to end AIDS, I’m a co-belligerent with them. We have given millions of dollars to fight AIDS from around the world, and we have worked with both gays and straights. I can work with an atheist, I can work with a Mormon, Muslim, Buddhist, Jew – and that’s one of the issues we have to work on.”
“The problem is that tolerant has changed its meaning. It used to mean ‘I may disagree with you completely, but I will treat you with respect. Today, tolerant means – ‘you must approve of everything I do.’ There’s a difference between tolerance and approval. Jesus accepted everyone no matter who they were. He doesn’t approve of everything I do, or you do, or anybody else does either. You can be accepting without being approving.”
Finally, here’s some video from last night’s Piers Morgan show with Rick Warren. Guess what? They also got to the topic:
Thoughts?
Todd
I thank God for Rick Warren’s reasoned and biblical responses. He does not apologize for the biblical authority or standards. At the same time he does not come across as mean and hateful. God help Rick continue to speak the truth in love in the many places where he has been given a platform.
Rick Warren said many years ago: “Acceptance does not necessarily mean approval”.
I agree. We can accept others for who they are but that doesn’t we approve of how they live.
I’m gay, and married, and I completely agree as well. Well said, Rick Warren.
I disagree with some Evangelical theology but I love my Evangelical friends, and they love me.
Thankfully, we’ve discovered that we can share values and have meaningful relationship without sharing theological perspective.