About two months ago, I heard from an old friend with whom I had lost touch. Most of what he had to say revolved around his relationship with a man with whom he is now living. It’s the man he started dating after he left the man he left his wife for. It’s all so confusing it has me ending my sentences with prepositions. And prepositions are a horrible thing to end sentences with.
After listening to an update on his love life, I asked my old friend whether he was going to church. He said he wasn’t going anymore. He had left his previous church because they refused to allow gay deacons. He said he and his boyfriend needed a church that is more tolerant. I’m going to recommend that he give The Episcopal Church of the Advocate in Carrboro, North Carolina a try.
Until a couple of days ago, the Advocate website (http://www.ouradvocate.org) had a list of the members of its vestry, which included Frank Lombard. But after Lombard was arrested for allegedly trying to peddle his five year old adopted son on the internet – for virtually unlimited sexual abuse by a stranger – the Advocate updated its site. The church that says “We affirm, and welcome to our community and worship life, people of every kind of household and every stage of life and faith and doubt” is apparently excluding Frank Lombard.
After the news of Lombard’s arrest broke, I located his Face Book page so I could send him an interview request – but certainly not a “friend” request. For those not familiar with Face Book, it allows one to fill out a little “About me” line below one’s profile picture. Mine says “I never dated Sarah Palin. But I did sleep at a Holiday Inn Express.” Until shortly after his arrest, Frank Lombard’s read “Fan of Gene Robinson.”
For those who do not remember, Gene Robinson is the Episcopal Bishop who caused massive uproar in the church just a few years ago. He was not only openly gay but also admittedly non-celibate long before he came up for ratification as a bishop at the Episcopal convention. The vote for ratification was 62 to 45 in his favor causing serious division in the church.
It is impossible to know exactly why Frank Lombard considers himself a “fan of Gene Robinson.” Maybe he was just a fan of his because Robinson made it easier for Lombard – an openly gay man – to become a part of the vestry at The Episcopal Church of the Advocate. Or maybe Frank Lombard was more ambitious than Gene Robinson.
Frank Lombard stands accused of molesting a five year old. Is this arrest thwarting an effort by Lombard to promote tolerance of pedophilia in the Episcopal Church?
More specifically, Frank Lombard stands accused of molesting his five year old adopted son. Is this arrest thwarting an effort by Lombard to promote tolerance of incest in the Episcopal Church?
Finally, Frank Lombard stands accused of telling a stranger he could rape his five year old adopted son. Is this arrest thwarting an effort by Lombard to promote tolerance of rape in the Episcopal Church?
Readers of my column, even those from the San Francisco area, will be quick to point out that pedophilia, incest, and rape are more repugnant morally than homosexuality. But where does one draw the line?
In 2003, many defenders drew a line (read: manufactured a standard) by saying that Jesus never specifically condemned homosexuality in the New Testament. But there is a huge problem: Jesus never specifically condemned pedophilia, incest, or rape in the New Testament either.
After my friend told me that any church he joins must allow gay deacons I asked this question: When you chose to cohabitate with your boyfriend did this also impose on the church a demand that they allow cohabitating deacons?
The question can be worded another way: Is it the role of the church to shape the culture or to merely reflect it?
That Frank Lombard was arrested on the day of Michael Jackson’s death is highly symbolic. Christians need to take a break from worshipping this culture and the idols it produces. We need to take a closer look at the man in the mirror.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Please also see:
· Adams’ previous column, Little Boy Blue Devil,
· And this news article which includes a MUG SHOT
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Mike S. Adams was born in Columbus, Mississippi on October 30, 1964. While a student at Clear Lake High School in Houston, TX, his team won the state 5A soccer championship. Mike Adams graduated from C.L.H.S. in 1983 with a 1.8 GPA. Mike Adams was ranked 734 among a class of 740, largely as a result of flunking English all four years of high school. After obtaining an Associate's degree in psychology from San Jacinto College, Mike Adams moved on to Mississippi State University where he joined the Sigma Chi Fraternity. While living in the fraternity house, his GPA rose to 3.4, allowing him to finish his B.A., and then to pursue a Master's in Psychology. In 1990, Mike Adams turned down a chance to pursue a PhD in psychology from the University of Georgia, opting instead to remain at Mississippi State to study Sociology/Criminology. This decision was made entirely on the basis of his reluctance to quit his night job as member of a musical duo. Playing music in bars and at fraternity parties and weddings financed his education. Mike Adams also played for free beer.
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Upon getting his doctorate in 1993, Adams, then an atheist and a Democrat, was hired by UNC-Wilmington to teach in the criminal justice program. A few years later, Adams abandoned his atheism and also became a Republican. He also nearly abandoned teaching when he took a one-year leave of absence to study law at UNC-Chapel Hill in 1998. After returning to teach at UNC-Wilmington, Adams won the Faculty Member of the Year award (issued by the Office of the Dean of Students) for the second time in 2000.
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After his involvement in a well publicized free speech controversy in the wake of the 911 terror attacks, Adams became a vocal critic of the diversity movement in academia. After making appearances on shows like Hannity and Colmes, the O'Reilly Factor, and Scarborough Country, Adams was asked to write a column for Townhall.com.
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Today Mike Adams enjoys the privilege of expressing himself both as a teacher and a writer. Mike Adams is also an avid hunter and reader of classic literature. Mike Adams published his first book, Welcome to the Ivory Tower of Babel, in 2004. His second book, Feminists Say the Darndest Things: A Politically Incorrect Professor Confronts "Womyn" On Campus, was published in 2008.
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