Does Duck Dynasty’s Phil Robertson Speak for Us?

I waited a while before weighing in on the recent brouhaha over Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson’s crude remarks on homosexuality. Considered too offensive to be ignored, A&E network suspended him, only to relent a week later. The political conservatives called it a violation of Robertson’s free speech. Conservative Christians claimed it was persecution.

Having grown up in the wake of early fundamentalism, I learned, unfortunately, that being a Christian was more about “do’s” and “don’ts” than love and grace. In the last few decades, the church has tried to redefine itself away from those legalistic eccentricities. But when it comes to homosexuality, there seems to be a regressive emphasis on “don’t”—creating a perception that certain types of sinners are not acceptable.

Evangelicals face a unique challenge: stand against the winds of modernity, yet love all people as Jesus did. How can we foster an atmosphere where we can hold biblically intelligent, lovingly sensitive discussions, to help our siblings in Christ who self-identify as gay or lesbian. If we do not, they will think that Phil Robertson, a self-proclaimed redneck from Louisiana, speaks for the rest of us.