In Monday’s edition of the Lantern, there appeared an article written by Martha Knox concerning acceptance of alternative lifestyles. As a conservative Christian student on campus there are very few articles written by Miss Knox with which I agree. But I also completely respect her right to write them. Her last article, however, contains information that is simply not true, and I feel that the student readership of the Lantern would benefit from hearing the correction.

In Monday’s article, Miss Knox attempted to dispute the use of the Bible as a basis for condemning same-sex relationships. Quoting from the article: “Early Christians made the decision to reject old Jewish traditions, that Jesus himself must have followed… because they felt those things were not essential parts of the scripture.” Here Miss Knox was making an attempt to draw a parallel between the abolition of the Laws of Moses to the modern day debate of homosexuality.

The problem with her argument is that her analogy is wrong. Early Christians did not “decide” to reject old Jewish traditions, they were told to do so by God. If you look at the Gospel of Matthew chapter 15, you will see Jesus being tested by the Rabbis concerning breaking the Jewish custom of washing one’s hands before eating. In verse three, Jesus responds by saying: “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?… They (the Pharisees) worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men… Listen and understand. What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him unclean.”

Early Christians didn’t decide to do away with Jewish traditions “because they felt they were not essential parts of the scripture” but rather because they were not part of the new Covenant God was making with his people.

The issue of homosexuality and the Christian church is very important, and I applaud the efforts made by the leaders of Fusion and Christian ministers to address it. But I think it is vital that any use of the Word of God to support or refute the issue be made very carefully, and with utmost attention to the context of the passages. It is clear that Miss Knox failed to take that care with her article.

Eric G. BehnJuniorEngineering