The Blaze – by Billy Hallowell
World Vision, a prominent evangelical Christian charity that conducts humanitarian efforts around the globe, announced this week that it will begin hiring married gays and lesbians at its U.S. branch, so long as they are committed followers of Jesus Christ.
The policy change still requires World Vision’s more than 1,100 U.S. employees to be abstinent outside of marriage, though it broadens employment possibilities for gay Christians looking to work in the faith-based nonprofit realm.
World Vision U.S. President Richard Stearns told Christianity Today Monday that the move is intended to create and foster unity among believers, though he said it should not be viewed as an endorsement of same-sex marriage.
“Changing the employee conduct policy to allow someone in a same-sex marriage who is a professed believer in Jesus Christ to work for us makes our policy more consistent with our practice on other divisive issues,” Stearns said. “It also allows us to treat all of our employees the same way: abstinence outside of marriage, and fidelity within marriage.”
Stearns said the organization did not cave to outside pressure to reach the decision, nor is it abandoning its stance on traditional marriage.
“This is not an endorsement of same-sex marriage,” he said. “We have decided we are not going to get into that debate. Nor is this a rejection of traditional marriage, which we affirm and support.”
At the center of the policy change is the notion that denominations continue to splinter and disagree over the Bible’s stance on same-sex marriage. Since so much disagreement abounds, World Vision has chosen to step out of the debate and to allow churches to make decisions for themselves on the divisive matter.
By opening employment to gays and lesbians, church autonomy is being honored, Stearns said.
“Denominations disagree on many, many things: on divorce and remarriage, modes of baptism, women in leadership roles in the church, beliefs on evolution, etc.,” he told Christianity Today. “So our practice has always been to defer to the authority and autonomy of local churches and denominational bodies on matters of doctrine that go beyond the Apostles’ Creed and our statement of faith.”
While the organization is painting the issue as relatively unremarkable — one that merely broadens employment eligibility — World Vision’s size and scope has distinguished it a leader for other faith-based nonprofits to follow. World Vision brought in more than a billion dollars last year and is one of the top 10 charities in the U.S.
Stearns also recently wrote a letter to the organization’s staff explaining the change-of-heart, noting that World Vision spent numerous years praying about how to handle the issue of human sexuality.
In it, he said the organization’s core values and mission haven’t changed and that all employees must still embrace Jesus Christ as God’s son who died for humanity’s sins.
Read more about World Vision’s policy change here.
(H/T: Huffington Post)
I think they’ve decided to be less exclusive because they’re losing too many customers.
Even if you’re not catholic, news of the Pope getting his kicks by chopping up kids has to have an effect on the whole religion.
That’s why it’s important to tell people that the Vatican’s been infiltrated and subverted. They need to know that it’s a Jew that’s sacrificing the kids, and not a real pope, any more than Obama is a real president.
I had supported World Vision, I had adopted a child, we wrote back and forth, etc. the reason I quit, you were instructed not to tell them detail about your life in America, so you would not hurt their feelings. Well I would go to write a letter and draw a blank, I live in America, I use computers, modern conveniences, but yet I cannot talk about them. I quit, and now I am so glad I did. I had sent her pens, sticky notes, hair barretts, etc. but after the first 3 letters of what is your favorite color, etc. there was nothing to say. Again a money making scheme, all of these “non-profits” are BS.
If you are a christian and believe in G-D and the bible, then you cannot support homosexually, it is against what is read in the bible.
“…it will begin hiring married gays and lesbians at its U.S. branch, so long as they are committed followers of Jesus Christ.”
There’s an oxymoron if I ever saw one.
“So our practice has always been to defer to the authority and autonomy of local churches and denominational bodies on matters of doctrine that go beyond the Apostles’ Creed and our statement of faith.”
Therein lies the reason you are of Satan, not Christ. A TRUE Christian’s practice has always been to defer to the Bible – God’s word, NOT man-made traditions, which was the problem Jesus had with the Pharisees.
Of course, they were worshipping Satan at the time, so that was the main problem.