Okay, didn’t manage to get this off right after I saw the interview, but on Friday evening Dateline did an interview with Rick Warren on the “controversy” surrounding his very open support for a bill against gay marriages. I loved that they called him “America’s Pastor”. He’s a bit ‘emergent’ for my preference, I’d prefer John Piper to be America’s Pastor, but I know that’s asking a little too much from our nation at this point.
But Warren is actually pretty uncompromising. In the interview, he never even allowed for the concept that homosexuality might be an un-sinful lifestyle, and even slipped in a little biblical teaching as explanation.
But I loved that he got in a shot at the ‘tolerance’ being pushed by these opponents of his – that his views are ‘intolerant’ because they are different than theirs. I think so many people miss this. Tolerance means not pushing your views on others – but that view in itself is intolerant, because you must push that view on people who hold views that are intolerant, thusly not tolerating their respective views.
I noticed in the editing they tried to force the perspective that she was really “putting it to him” in the form of trying to confront his controversial views, but I really felt like he held his own, and actually (in my mind) in a non-confrontational manner.
And I also want to give out props to Obama for asking Warren to pray for his inauguration – and then not backing down when this uproar popped up. If Obama keeps Warren around, hopefully more of Warren will brush off on Obama than vice versa.
