Bishop’s Note: August 16, 2018 – The “Jerusalem Declaration” on Christian Marriage & the Proper Place for Sexual Intimacy

 Bishop Eric Menees

We continue our exploration of the Jerusalem Declaration (the full text of which can be found here:

https://www.gafcon.org/resources/the-complete-jerusalem-statement).

This week, we look at point eight: Christian Marriage & the Proper Place for Sexual Intimacy.         

We acknowledge God’s creation of humankind as male and female and the unchangeable standard of Christian marriage between one man and one woman as the proper place for sexual intimacy and the basis of the family. We repent of our failures to maintain this standard and call for a renewed commitment to lifelong fidelity in marriage and abstinence for those who are not married.

In the “Jerusalem Declaration,” we affirm what we’ve always understood from scripture, tradition, and reason — that Christian Marriage is to be between one man and one woman for life, and that it is only within this covenantal relationship that sexual intimacy belongs. 

Sadly, many believe that our affirmation of a traditional Christian moral ethic on sex is the sole reason for our leaving the old denomination and the new reformation that is sweeping the globe. That is just not true! This crisis has been brewing for nearly 100 years, as scholars and seminaries began to adopt a “higher criticism” model of biblical interpretation which, in essence, stated that all scripture is myth. If we work from that conscious — or unconscious — position, then it makes perfect sense to place an individual’s desires and self-identity as the highest priorities. 

It is in the supplanting of God with the Self that the so-called “sexual revolution,” “no fault divorce,” and the “self-identity movement” have all taken root in our culture and around the world.

Fifty years ago, Pope Paul VI addressed the Sexual Revolution in his encyclical Humanae Vitae. Paul VI wrote that “human beings — and especially the young, who are so exposed to temptation — need incentives to keep the moral law.” He went on to predict that the Sexual Revolution would lead to “increased marital infidelity and a general lowering of moral standards. Men may forget the reverence due to a woman and... reduce her to being a mere instrument for the satisfaction of his own desires…” (www.breakpoint.org/2018/07/breakpoint-humanae-vitae-and-artificial-contraception)

Sadly, Paul VI was correct in his prediction. And equally sadly, we in the “Mainline” denominations have — for years — bought into the lie that the scriptures are simply myth, as opposed to being the authoritative Word of God, and have contributed to the decline by our silence. Sexuality and divorce were seen as hot button issues that could easily offend; so the response was, “Let’s just keep quiet.” What great harm was done in that silence!

Brothers and sisters, we can be silent no more! It is for this reason that we in the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) have reaffirmed the traditional doctrines regarding marriage and sexual intimacy. We rejoice in the beautiful and wonderful gift of fidelity to God, His Word, and His Church through fidelity to our spouse and — if single — abstinence and self-control, to both honor God and His created order.

I pray you all a very blessed week!