Would Joel Osteen Officiate a Mormon Wedding?
Joel Osteen's recent interview with Sally Quinn of The Washington Post revealed some interesting things. Joel clearly conveyed a biblical position on whether or not he would officiate a same-sex wedding. He said he could not in "good faith" do such a thing. The Bible repeatedly identifies adultery, homosexual behavior, and sex before marriage as sinful practices.
In this same interview, Joel was not so quick to draw a line in the sand regarding the religion of Mormonism. He said he doesn't know if it's "the purest form of Christianity." Well here is one of many ways Joel could find out. He could investigate why there are so many secrets that lie behind Mormon weddings. When a marriage takes place in a Mormon temple, non-Mormon relatives of the couple are not allowed to attend. Even Mormon relatives who do not hold a "temple recommend" may not attend the ceremony. Why all the secrecy and why all the emotional abuse of relatives? If Joel Osteen had a daughter who married a Mormon, Joel and his wife would not be able to attend their own daughter's wedding ceremony in a Mormon temple. What's up with that?
The fact that Joel would not be welcome inside the temple to even attend a Mormon wedding, let alone officiate it, should be enough to convince him that Mormonism is a far different religion than his own. Or Joel could just go online to www.irr.org and read about "Mormons in Transition." Many Mormons over the years have discovered why they need to leave that religious organization which has so many secrets. This website for the "Institute for Religious Research" would clear up Joel's fuzzy thinking when it comes to Mormonism.
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Joel will likely be interviewed again regarding Mormonism and same-sex marriage. If he sticks to his guns on same-sex marriage and then corrects his definition of Mormonism, he will present a message that is consistent with Scripture. It simply looks like he has yet to really investigate the religion of Mormonism. It's time for Joel to do a little research on the topic.
Human sexuality as well as Mormonism both fall under "Christianity 101." These issues are not complicated. The Bible addresses these matters very clearly. God made man. God made woman. God made sex for man and woman. God sent His Son to save us. God is Three Persons in One God. And so on. These are very basic Christian teachings.
Joel Osteen is reaching a lot of people through his ministry. Surely he wants all of them to know the real Jesus. Once he learns about the "Jesus" of Mormonism, (and the "Jesus" of the Jehovah's Witnesses for that matter), he will no longer be able to plead ignorance on the matter. It seems to me that Mormon weddings and the Mormon religion in general should be at the top of his reading list this week.
Once he is enlightened on the subject, Joel would not in good faith be able to officiate a Mormon wedding even if the Mormons made an exception for him to do so. Joel will want to continue to operate in good faith in the way he approaches same-sex marriage, as well as the way he learns to discuss the topic of Mormonism. Good faith requires enlightened understanding in order for it to be truly good in God's eyes.
