Reviews

'Bishop I want you to know that we have become Christians through our Alpha Group. I also want you to know that our son is gay and we have learnt more about the true meaning of love from his experience.' A phone call out of the blue over 10 years ago. It is time for the church to catch up with the experience of its own members. These essays are long overdue. They are rooted in a deep respect for difference and diversity, in mutual and transparent pastoral love, in a fresh and vibrant wrestling with the Scriptures and Christian tradition and they rescue the Church from the real threat that it will be stranded in a culture that belongs to the past. The authors have listened and learnt and are still travelling on. So must we! Rt Rev John Gladwin, former Bishop of Chelmsford As someone who is passionate about the importance of listening to different perspectives in places of intense disagreement, I welcome these honest contributions to the debate about same sex relationships -- regardless of whether they disturb or comfort us. This book invites us to engage prayerfully with the personal stories of fellow followers of Christ; to listen deeply with hearts of love not fear; and to know that God is unchanged whatever our conclusions. Rt Rev Rachel Treweek, Bishop of Gloucester I warmly welcome this book. These contributions seek to help Christians with different points of view in a very difficult debate. The authors seek to explain how sisters and brothers in the church can hold an affirming biblical evangelical view which embraces all LGBTI Christians. I know how difficult, divisive and painful these issues can be. We should all welcome thoughtful contributions like this one as heralds of a new time of respectful dialogue and deeper understanding. Rt Hon Sir Simon Hughes, former MP, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader and Minister of State for Justice and Civil Liberties I had the extraordinary privilege of participating as one of the Diocese's delegates in the 'Shared Conversations'. The most transformative experience for me was the session when we told our stories, of how we each had reached the point of view we were holding in relation to sexuality. The journeys were varied, multi-dimensional, contextual, and deeply faithful. Listening to such personal perspectives where individual faithfulness has lead us to such different places, it left me wondering by what route we might be able to find ourselves in the same place, or at least in places closer by. It also left me realising that was in God's hands not ours. It is for us to listen to each other in faith. Now this powerful collection of stories has strengthened that sense for me: listen in faith, and this is in God's hands. Rt Rev Martin Seeley, Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Until very recently attitudes towards same sex relationships, not least among Christians, were seen by those like myself who study church statistics, to be a 'generational' issue. These were not matters on which adults tended to change their minds. Societal change only took place to the extent that those reaching adulthood differed from the generation they were replacing. Since the middle of the last decade that has all changed. This book collects together a range of examples of such a reassessment of views. In doing so it provides a very timely contribution to the Shared Conversations taking place within the Church of England. It is not the last or only word on the subject, but it is an essential one. Rt Rev David Walker, Bishop of Manchester