College Faith

#40: Finding the “Middle Way” in the LGBTQ+ Conversation

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My guest today is Rick Mattson, a national apologetics specialist and evangelism coach with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. He often does open “Q and A” sessions on college campuses in which he is asked for insights on how to understand LGBTQ+ issues in ways that embody both truth and love. We discuss some of what he shares on this important topic.

 

In this podcast we discuss:

  • How LGBTQ issues come up in his conversations, and why it’s close to his heart
  • The importance of the larger narrative of Scripture in understanding human sexuality and flourishing
  • The relation of this issue to the Trinity
  • How both the physical and spiritual ramifications of the Fall are often neglected in this conversation
  • How to understand the idea that “God made me this way”
  • How to understand the idea of a “gay Christian”
  • Advice for Christian students with same-sex attraction
  • The modern shift toward “expressive Individualism” underlying much of this conversation
  • Finding the “middle way” between extreme views of human sexuality
  • The centrality of spiritual disciplines in healthy friendships and sexuality
  • How we frame conversations to open further LGBTQ discussions
  • The importance of having appropriate expectations for our relationships
  • How to not be bullied, or be bullies, in LGBTQ conversations
  • What the loving thing to do is in specific situations regarding roommates or gender non-conforming dorms
  • How to think about attending a gay friend’s wedding
  • How to think about the use of preferred pronouns
  • A strategy to think through various other LGBTQ-related issues
  • How the church can better prepare students to think through these issues
  • How parents can better prepare students to think through these issues
  • The hardest question he gets on this question on campus

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    Resources mentioned during our conversation:

    • Rick Mattson’s website
    • Rick Mattson, Faith is Like Skydiving: And Other Memorable Images for Dialogue with Seekers and Skeptics
    • Rick Mattson, Witness in the Academy: A Guide for Graduate Students, Faculty, and Those Who Minister With Them
    • Rick’s blog posts on “LGBT+”
    • Carl Trueman, Strange New World: How Thinkers and Activists Redefined Identity and Sparked the Sexual Revolution
    • Carl Trueman, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to the Sexual Revolution
    • Summit Ministries
    • “A Practical Guide to Navigating University Culture,” John Stonestreet on the College Faith podcast
    • World View Academy
    • “Why Christian Students Must Understand Their and Other’s Worldviews,” Mike Schutt on the College Faith podcast
    • “How to Choose a College,” David Wunder on the College Faith podcast
    • Impact 360
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      College FaithBy Stan W. Wallace
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