N.T. Wright has come out, well, if not swinging, at least with his dukes up, and for this we can be thankful. He rightly notes that the recent move by the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church (TEC) in the United States to ordain homosexuals to all orders of the clergy does not stem from the consecration of Bishop Gene Robinson. He sees the floodgates opening in 1996 when a church court acquitted a bishop who had been ordaining active homosexuals.

From my vantage point, just because the floodgates are open, it doesn’t mean that water has to be pouring out. Say for instance you have a church that is happy with homosexuality, wants to see queer marriage accepted, serves communion to anyone with a pulse “spiritually” inclined, but has yet to allow the effeminate guy in the robe to celebrate an open homosexual lifestyle. Is Jesus, you know, the dude with a white robe dipped in blood and that sharp, shiny sword, any less upset than if homo ordination is on the loose? I think not. I’m not really arguing with Wright here, but without an effective process of discipline–along the non-complicated lines of Matthew 18–the floodgates are always open and it’s just a matter of time before the flood is upon us. If 1996 was the year the homo clergy toleration began, when did integrity, courage, and discipline go out the window? Long before that. This point must be understood by anyone who wants to keep a lampstand. Faithfulness (love, courage, boldness, integrity, and more) in little things prevents this sort of circus from ever getting off the ground. I think it was Luther who said that he who refuses to discipline can have a church, but not for long.