Discerning Ethics: Diverse Christian Responses to Divisive Moral Issues
Foreword by Mark Labberton
Edited by Hak Joon Lee and Tim Dearborn
Discussions on social media have ceased being fun!
Jumping in and sharing your perspective on an issue could be the fastest way to reduce the number of “friends” on your list. Voices shouting to be heard, unfriending and blocking as a tool, and the polarization that follows have become a part of our daily experience as we scroll through our favourite social networks. Let’s admit it, we have all done this.
The days of discussing our ideas and thoughts, making our points, hearing counterpoints, and learning from each other while sharing a coffee or a meal at a table with friends and family all seem to be part of memories of times past.
In my youth, I thought winning an argument meant having more Bible verses to back me up than those presented by my friends. People remained friends even with our differences of opinion. Those were fun discussions, win or lose.
It seems nearly impossible to have such discussions anymore. In fact, the computer algorithms used by social media systems tend to segregate us by showing us more of the things that we might agree with and automatically blocking most of those that differ. The Apostle Paul refers to his critics saying, “[T]hey are only comparing themselves with each other, using themselves as the standard of measurement. How ignorant!” (2 Corinthians 10:12, NLT). Unfortunately, we have become like them and our social media interaction becomes one of blocking our opponents and only listening to those who agree with us.
Although this is sad when it happens to our congregants, it is especially disastrous when leaders cannot have healthy and honest discussions.
In this context and as a professor of Christian and Pastoral Ethics at Institut Biblique du Québec, I have discovered a book I believe every Christian spiritual leader should read: Discerning Ethics: Diverse Christian Responses to Divisive Moral Issues.1 Its importance is not derived from the fact that it has all of the “right” answers (i.e. the ones that I agree with) but rather because it is a book that evaluates emotionally charged issues by creating discussions around a variety of possible answers held by Christian leaders and groups. This is a chance for us to participate in discussions in a respectful Christian fashion.
The book takes a conversational approach rather than being a dry academic discussion or a loud shouting match. The editors have set the tone for contributors from various Christian streams of thought and life. They have provided a structure that creates a fair and uniform approach to every topic. Each chapter includes six sections: 1) Real Life (case study or narrative), so the issue is viewed with a human face and not just theory. 2) Real World Context that shows how this relates beyond one cultural group or country. 3) Range of Responses is the meat of the chapter and includes at least three or four different perspectives on the issue within the Christian community. Importantly, these positions are presented in such a way that those holding these various ideas would concur that the presentation of their position is fair and not just setting them up for attack. This also includes how these positions are arrived at. 4) The Author’s Own Response demonstrates how the author interacts with these positions. This is not presented as the correct response but as the author’s response and reasoning. 5) Discussion Questions are given so that the reader or a group working through these issues can reflect and continue the discussion. 6) Additional Resources should you wish to study that topic in more depth.
This is a unique method for presenting ideas for consideration and discussion. It also reminds us that those who differ from us may actually be just as fervent in their love and service to Jesus and may also desire what is best, just like us. It also provides some help for us to either continue the discussions with others or to think through these issues again personally.
As a professor of Christian ethics, I find that students often want me to tell them the right answer. However, Christian ethics is the study of how to arrive at ethical positions that are truly consistent with our beliefs and lives as followers of Jesus. I could give them a list of “right” answers to memorize. That would take 30 minutes to present and a couple of hours of memory work. But then they would be limited to my list and would have to trust that my opinions are always right. Both of those things are dangerous since I know I am not always right! Through long years of ministry and study, I have modified some of my earlier positions. The goal of teaching ethics is to give tools to the students so they might be able to use them when confronted with a new issue or context needing evaluation and answers. However, we may have failed to help them be open to books that are not in our library or voices that are not in our choir.
This book also accomplishes something else which is really important to me. It helps us see that there are more real ethical questions than just sexuality.
As a young minister, I served at the PAOC National Office in the mid-80s. It was at the time when we were becoming aware of and engaged in social issues. Rev. Hudson Hilsden was appointed to establish and chair a Department of Social Concerns to focus on current social issues and help mobilize our Fellowship to respond. This was an excellent step, and he did great work. However, I raised the concern that we were responding to issues but had not integrated these things with our underlying theology. We needed a basis for our responses that went beyond our opinions on any particular issue. My suggestion was well received; we established a committee to study the theology and philosophy of social concerns, and as is general practice, the instigator was sentenced to serve on the committee!
At our first meeting, we were given the parameters for the work of the committee (not from the chair) and told that we would be studying ethical and social issues such as Sunday shopping, homosexuality, divorce and abortion, but not issues such as unemployment, poverty, warfare or nuclear disarmament. I was personally shocked since these restrictions meant we could consider only items that were related to sexual ethics and their societal implications (apart from Sunday shopping). The topic of ethical and biblical lifestyle has a much broader impact than these few issues! I highly respect that this current generation of youth and young leaders in our Fellowship are not shy about discussing this broader range of topics, which are of great concern to God and which we find throughout the pages of Scripture.
The authors of Discerning Ethics have not tried to make an exhaustive list but have presented topics in several major categories. 1) Ethics of the Globe (Climate Change, Poverty and Income Inequality, Urban Degradation, and Immigration). 2) Ethics of the Body (Access to Health Care, Abortion, Transgender, and Homosexuality and Sexual Identity). 3) Ethics of Violence (Violence Against Women, War, Nonviolence and Just Peacemaking, Gun Violence, and Mass Incarceration). 4) Ethics of Formation (Racism, Disability, Social and Entertainment Media, and Public Education).
There is not enough room to highlight all I have learned on these issues. But we need to recognize that the authors raised all these issues as an expression of God’s will and concern. If we wish to live out the principles of the kingdom of God in our world, we need to seek answers to these questions. I am truly thankful for this book and its contribution to my life.
It is time for us to move beyond shouting at each other on social media so we can have honest, open, biblical and Christian discussions about the hard issues facing us today. Perhaps we can learn from one another and formulate ethical approaches to these issues, honouring God and drawing the larger Christian community together.
David Boyd has served in ministry with his wife, Lina, since 1977. He has led three theological schools, works in five languages, and continues to be involved in cross-cultural ministry.
This article appeared in the January/February/March 2025 issue of testimony/Enrich, a quarterly publication of The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. © 2025 The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. Photos © istockphoto.com.
- Hak Joon Lee and Tim Dearborn, eds., Discerning Ethics: Diverse Christian Responses to Divisive Moral Issues (IVP Academic, 2020).