Former pastor Joshua Harris apologizes to LGBTQ+ community, announces he is no longer a Christian

MANILA, Philippines – Former pastor Joshua Harris has announced that he is no longer a Christian, apologizing specifically to the LGBTQ+ community for “contributing to a culture of exclusion and bigotry” through his writing and preaching.

After announcing his separation from his wife, Harris took to Instagram on July 27, to say that he has “undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus.”

“By all the measurements that I have for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian. Many people tell me that there is a different way to practice faith and I want to remain open to this, but I’m not there now,” he said.

Harris also said that for the past few years, he has been repenting “of my self-righteousness, my fear-based approach to life, the teaching of my books, my views of women in the church, and my approach to parenting to name a few.”

He also specifically apologized to the LGBTQ+ community for what he has previously written about and preached as a pastor.

“I regret standing against marriage equality, for not affirming you and your place in the church, and for any ways that my writing and speaking contributed to a culture of exclusion and bigotry,” he said.

“I hope you can forgive me.”

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My heart is full of gratitude. I wish you could see all the messages people sent me after the announcement of my divorce. They are expressions of love though they are saddened or even strongly disapprove of the decision.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ I am learning that no group has the market cornered on grace. This week I’ve received grace from Christians, atheists, evangelicals, exvangelicals, straight people, LGBTQ people, and everyone in-between. Of course there have also been strong words of rebuke from religious people. While not always pleasant, I know they are seeking to love me. (There have also been spiteful, hateful comments that angered and hurt me.)⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ The information that was left out of our announcement is that I have undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus. The popular phrase for this is “deconstruction,” the biblical phrase is “falling away.” By all the measurements that I have for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian. Many people tell me that there is a different way to practice faith and I want to remain open to this, but I’m not there now.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Martin Luther said that the entire life of believers should be repentance. There’s beauty in that sentiment regardless of your view of God. I have lived in repentance for the past several years—repenting of my self-righteousness, my fear-based approach to life, the teaching of my books, my views of women in the church, and my approach to parenting to name a few. But I specifically want to add to this list now: to the LGBTQ+ community, I want to say that I am sorry for the views that I taught in my books and as a pastor regarding sexuality. I regret standing against marriage equality, for not affirming you and your place in the church, and for any ways that my writing and speaking contributed to a culture of exclusion and bigotry. I hope you can forgive me.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ To my Christians friends, I am grateful for your prayers. Don’t take it personally if I don’t immediately return calls. I can’t join in your mourning. I don’t view this moment negatively. I feel very much alive, and awake, and surprisingly hopeful. I believe with my sister Julian that, “All shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”

A post shared by Joshua Harris (@harrisjosh) on Jul 26, 2019 at 12:04pm PDT

Harris is the author of the popular Christian relationship book I Kissed Dating Goodbye, which takes a conservative biblical view on marriage and relationships. In the book, he encourages Christian youth to practice sexual abstinence, and depicts homosexuality in a problematic light.

The book, which has been circulated and taught among young Christian singles all over the world, was written in 1997. Since then Harris has acknowledged the problematic aspects of his book, and, in a statement, apologized to those who have been hurt or misguided by the ideas in the book.

He then said that they will discontinue the publication of the book. – Rappler.com