Erin Kikkert states: "I realise that my views and ideals may not be popular with other Christians and I don't want to give the wrong view or lead anyone astray, but I also don't want to isolate myself from my Christian community. However, I don't have a problem with gay marriage."
Apparently this is a view that an increasing number of Christians "from the pew" are expressing, whereas the professional Christians, the denominational leaders are up in arms, stating that marriage is between one man and one woman. The Australian Christian Lobby last night released a Statement from 20 Australian Christian Church leaders to this effect and calling on the Australian Labor Party not to change their position on marriage. (acl.org.au)
Joshua Hinds is a High School Chaplain on the Gold Coast (which with the Sunshine Coast has the highest church attendance figures in the nation). Joshua Hinds said yesterday, that "this subject" among high school students and his own peers (late 20's early 30's) is by far the most discussed subject of any social issue by a country mile and its not be any means a one way street.
Well-Being Australia chairman Mark Tronson (60) says that the views of Erin Kikkert among his peers are by no means of one mind either and so it has been fascinating to talk to Erin Kikkert, an evangelical Christian with Bible College training under her and her husband Anthony's belt.
An initial issue for Erin Kikkert
Erin Kikkert explained: "I do not feel that gay marriage will compromise the integrity of my own marriage or even the plan that God has for marriage and I believe this for a number of reasons. I believe that I am married on two levels - I am married in the legal sense of the word, which entitles me to recognition for my marriage from other people and under the law. It is a legal acknowledgement of my relationship to my husband.
"I am also married before God. I don't need a legal piece of paper or document to be married before God. That is a commitment that is part of my faith and on our wedding day, my husband and I made a commitment to God that we would be married. That bit happened in our hearts, between us and God. There is no piece of paper that signifies that commitment.
Erin Kikkert differentiates these two different commitments as in her own words: "one is purely legal - recognised by law. I think the verse in the Bible about giving to Caesar what is Caesar's and giving to God what is God's, is relevant here. We are not changing God's word, nor God's intention for marriage. We are simply changing a law of this world, of which the Bible says we are not citizens and also says that we are free of the law.
"For this reason, I have a great deal of difficulty coming up with a good answer to give a same sex couple when they ask why they should not be afforded the same legal rights, human rights, as what I have. And to be honest, I have yet to read or hear a decent answer from any Christian who has been asked this question.
Erin Kikkert further says that her concern at the moment is that she sees a lot of Christians trying to maintain control.
"We are trying to tell other people how to live their lives. Christ calls us to love, not to control. I don't think the message of love is shining through at all at the moment. What people are seeing of us is that we are trying to control and I think that is doing more damage to our representation of God here on earth, than allowing same sex couples to marry ever could.
Freedom is another issue for Erin Kikkert
Erin Kikkert says the other issue that comes into play here is freedom. Erin stated that we live in a country that allows us the freedom to worship God without fear.
"We can talk about Him, we can meet in public places and worship him. We have amazing freedom. I think we need to respect this freedom by allowing others the same freedom to choose how they will live. Controlling how freedom is expressed is all well and good while the outcomes go in our favour, but if we don't uphold this right to choose, we may very well find the shoe on the other foot one day, where our religion is dictated to us.
Erin Kikkert is very concerned about the nature of control as it can be a very dangerous thing.
"To try and control government from a religious standpoint in a society that allows and embraces many different religions, is playing with fire. We also rely on this freedom to a large to degree to share God openly and freely with the people around us.
"The thing that stops non Christians from knowing God, is not their choice of sexuality, but rather not accepting what Jesus has done for them. I think it is important to maintain our freedom to be able to share the word freely about God, and also maintain that we love other people unconditionally. At the moment, we are sending a lot of terrible messages about Christianity because it looks like we are just trying to control what people do and they don't see love from us at the moment, they see control. I also think that people who are homosexuals can also be Christians.
Rarely is anything in this world "God's ideal"
Erin Kikkert says that gay marriage is not God's ideal plan, but all Christians do things that are outside of God's ideal plan.
"So I don't believe that controlling whether same sex couples are able to marry under the law or not, will change any of that. However, the messages we are currently sending to the wider community is not a message of love, and that is having a great deal of impact, but not in the way we would hope.
"I don't believe that we live in a black and white world. God created this world for better things and if the world had remained as God had intended it, I believe issues would be black and white. However, due to this world not being as God intended, we live with a lot of grey areas. There is never going to be a perfect solution for anything because there are not perfect people. We really have to do the best with what we have ... and that is God's grace to guide us and show us how to love others.
Erin Kikkert says that she won't be out there petitioning for same sex marriage, but if (or more likely when) it happens, I don't believe it is the end of the world.
Her thoughts only
Erin Kikkert says that she is open to discussion about the issue and ask others to read what she has written as her thoughts only.
"I don't want to lead anyone to the wrong conclusions, but I guess I have some ideas I wanted to put out there. If nothing else, at least to give a different perspective."
Mark Tronson explained that Erin Kikkert is not the only Baptist who feels very uneasy about the tenure of this whole debate. Melbourne Baptist Minister Matt Glover has also come out publicly in support of gay marriage. (www.smh.com.au)
This will be a debate that will go on says Mark Tronson. There is clearly different views within evangelical Australia on this subject. Many Australian evangelicals in his view concur with the "pastoral sentiments" that Erin Kikkert has expressed, but nonetheless feel very uneasy that their Christian heritage within the boundaries of "national law" are somehow being undermined.
Dr Mark Tronson is a Baptist minister (retired) who served as the Australian cricket team chaplain for 17 years (2000 ret) and established Life After Cricket in 2001. He was recognised by the Olympic Ministry Medal in 2009 presented by Carl Lewis Olympian of the Century. He has written 24 books, and enjoys writing. He is married to Delma, with four adult children and grand-children.
Mark Tronson's archive of articles can be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/mark-tronson.html