Tag: Nashville Statement

Latinos For Tennessee Defends Nashville Statement Endorsing Traditional Marriage

Wendy Wilson
Tennessee Star

  Latinos For Tennessee is defending the Nashville Statement, a declaration by Christian evangelicals that upholds traditional marriage and maintains that homosexuality and transgenderism are sinful. Tommy Vallejos, the group’s board chairman, says the swift backlash against the statement is “outrageous.” The statement was approved Aug. 25 at a meeting of evangelical leaders in Nashville and was named for the city in keeping with a historical Christian practice of naming doctrinal statements for the places where they were written. Nashville Mayor Megan Barry, a progressive Democrat, spoke out against the statement, tweeting that it “does not represent the inclusive values of the city & people of Nashville.” Three Nashville progressives started a counter statement that says, “God does not need you to change.” The Nashville Statement has also drawn criticism from some Christians who attend conservative churches who say it was too harsh and not helpful to the discussion of LGBT issues. A Sept. 9 news release from Latinos For Tennessee noted that the Nashville Statement reiterated “a set of beliefs and principles that are shared by millions of Americans and the majority of Tennesseans, according to some polls.” Vallejos, who is a pastor in Clarksville and a Montgomery County commissioner, said…

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Union University Faces Backlash From Alumni Over Faculty Signing Nashville Statement

Wendy Wilson

  More than 400 Union University alumni have signed a letter of protest over the president and three faculty members signing the Nashville Statement, an evangelical declaration that upholds traditional marriage and describes homosexuality and transgenderism as sinful. Union University is a Southern Baptist school in Jackson, Tennessee. The letter of protest illustrates the challenges faced by conservative religious institutions as they seek to continue being an influence at a time when progressive ideas are becoming entrenched in the culture. Signed by recent graduates as well as some who graduated decades ago, the letter calls the Nashville Statement “a declaration of bigotry and condemnation that is a far cry [from] the faith, hope, love, and acceptance we were taught was the hallmark of the faith of Union University.” The Nashville Statement was approved Aug. 25 at a meeting of evangelical leaders in Nashville and was named for the city in keeping with a historical Christian practice of naming doctrinal statements for the places where they were written. Many of the initial signatories were Southern Baptists. The Union University alumni letter takes issue with various aspects of the Nashville Statement, including a section that says faithful Christians cannot agree to disagree about homosexual behavior…

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Progressives Draft Statement To Counter Evangelical Nashville Statement Supporting Traditional Marriage

Wendy Wilson

  Three Nashville progressives have created a left-wing alternative to the Nashville Statement, a declaration signed by evangelical Christian leaders that upholds traditional marriage and describes homosexuality and transgenderism as sinful. Corey Pigg (pictured above, left), Melissa Greene, and Matthew Paul Turner drafted The Accurate Nashville Statement and are collecting signatures from around the city and across the nation. “On behalf of those that are religious – we want you to know that you are created in the image and likeness of God (however you define it) – and that there is nothing wrong with you,” reads part of the brief statement. “God does not need you to change. God loves you just the way you are – no matter where you land on the spectrum of the LGTBQIA+ continuum. There is great diversity expressed in humanity through our wide array of unique sexualities and gender identities.” Greene is a former Christian recording artist who performed with the group Avalon and until recently was pastor of worship and arts at GracePointe, an evangelical church whose membership plummeted when it endorsed LGBT inclusion in 2015. Greene recently co-founded a spiritual community called Imaginarium. On his Facebook page, Pigg describes himself as an “INFJ Ex-Missionary. Jesus Mystic.…

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National Review Writer David French Criticizes Nashville Mayor Megan Barry for Rebuking Evangelical Statement on Traditional Marriage

Wendy Wilson

  National Review senior writer David French has sharply criticized Nashville Mayor Megan Barry for her comments denigrating the Nashville Statement, a declaration by Christian evangelical leaders supporting traditional marriage and calling homosexuality and transgenderism sinful. In a tweet Tuesday, Barry said the statement is “poorly named and does not represent the inclusive values of the city & people of Nashville.” The statement was approved Friday at a meeting of evangelical leaders in Nashville who named the declaration for the city in keeping with a historical Christian practice of naming doctrinal statements for the places where they were written. French, who lives in Columbia, Tennessee, 45 miles south of Nashville, was one of more than 150 conservative evangelicals who signed the Nashville Statement. French wrote in a column Wednesday that it is unreasonable for Barry to claim that orthodox Christian beliefs are “incompatible with the ‘inclusive values’ of a city that’s located in the heart of the Bible Belt.” “The Southern Baptist Convention has a headquarter building right in downtown Nashville,” French said. “You can’t drive five minutes in Nashville without seeing a church that’s teaching exactly the values and beliefs contained in the Nashville Statement. Is Barry’s position that they should change their ways, shut up, or…

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Mayor Megan Barry Slams ‘Nashville Statement’ Backed By Many Evangelicals Who Support Traditional Marriage

Wendy Wilson

  Nashville Mayor Megan Barry on Tuesday criticized the Nashville Statement written and signed by evangelical Christians to show support for traditional marriage and maintain that homosexuality and transgenderism are sinful. The document was approved Friday at a meeting in Nashville of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW). The meeting was hosted by the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commision (ERLC) during its annual conference. Barry, a progressive Democrat, tweeted that the statement and its name reflect poorly on Nashville because the declaration “does not represent the inclusive values of the city.” The @CBMWorg's so-called "Nashville Statement" is poorly named and does not represent the inclusive values of the city & people of Nashville — Megan Barry for Congress (TN-7) (@MeganCBarry) August 29, 2017 In 2015, when she was a Metro councilwoman and a mayoral candidate, Barry officiated the first same-sex wedding in Nashville just hours after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the 14th Amendment extends the right to marry to same-sex couples. Denny Burk, president of CBMW, wrote on the organization’s website that naming the statement for the city of Nashville follows historical practice. He said: There is a long Christian tradition of naming doctrinal…

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