Slowly and Secretly Evangelical Colleges/Universities are Welcoming LGBT Students


One of my hobbies is to search the web pages of evangelical colleges/universities to find each one's Gay and Lesbian Support Club (various names). I have never added up the numbers but most of them have such a group listed somewhere in the back pages. Their professional association is also seeing some slippage from the hard-edged positions against gays of a couple of decades ago.

The low-key slippage is in keeping with other big places. For example, the Pope fired a Cardinal recently for an overt statement homosexuality is a sin. The new policy is a.) don't officially change the church's position but b.) stay silent about it. Many will get the impression the Catholic Church has loosened it opposition when it has not. This is a win win.  

Universities need students to pay the bills. The majority of students today have no prejudice against their gay friends or gay marriage. The dilemma for Presidents in Christian is how to attract gay-supporting students while holding on to donors and parents who pay big bucks to send their children to campuses where they are not tempted by sin. 

The answer is to put out the welcome mat. But when pressed by alumni, assure that their institution still teaches that homosexuality is a sin. If that is only taught in one obscure place on campus and nowhere else it will work fine. If the President comes to the campus gay group and welcomes those students a good impression is left there. 

Years ago while traveling my car radio picked up a impassioned discussion among representatives of Christian institution about pregnant female students. One after another of the representatives said the policy of their place was to immediately kick out the pregnant student. One, however, said the policy at his place was to keep and give assistance to the student. "Otherwise, she and her friends will get abortions whenever a pregnancy comes along." The other campuses were silent. It seemed all too complicated--easiest to just kick out the young woman.

Conservatives, Christian and non Christian, like simple answers. That is why simple answers do so well in politics. On Christian campuses things are not always simple. 

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