It is amazing to me that I can still be surprised by the clever ways that we humans can devise to get around the plain teachings of God's Word in order to accommodate our in (and we all do!). So, of course, some time ago, when I first encountered the idea that one can be both a practicing homosexual and an evangelical Christian; I was surprised. (I think that may just have been preparing me for my next encounter which would be with the animal rights people who think that Jesus was vegetarian and Peter was a fisher of seaweed before he was a fisher of men, but that is another story!).

This book does a great service in outlining the history (in brief) of the gay rights movement, and the author gives some very personal insights into his own struggle with homosexuality and gay theology. Many of us, including myself, just want to get into the Biblical meat of the matter without really understanding the history of the people and movements that we are investigating; however, this tends to depersonalize the subject. The author does a good job of keeping the perspective that while we may disagree with the theology, the people who may hold these views may be our neighbors, our friends, and our family. But, while maintaining this view of the people, he does not hesitate to bring out the errors of a theology that not only denies that homosexuality is a sin, but claims that it is a gift from God to celebrate. Does "woe to you who call evil good and good evil" sound familiar? This is a serious issue as an even a casual reader of the Bible cannot help but notice that God takes particular issue with sexual sins.

The author goes on to provide his argument that places much of the blame for the growing success of this movement on the steps of the "orthodox" Church. He asks where are the church-based and sponsored homosexual support groups? Why is this particular sin so stigmatized over other sexual sins? Why do some many Christians resort to cheap arguments and stereotypes? And in asking these questions, he is right. Which of us sinners does not want acceptance and understanding in combating our sin? After presenting this point, he shows that the fruit of the Church's (and society's) acceptance of this aberrant theology will be a denial of Biblical authority; disobedience to God; sexual exploitation of children (not because of a supposed connection between pedophiles and homosexuality, but because of the pedophiles' inevitable exploitation of the strides gained by homosexuals); and the further denigration of the family unit.

He provides some interesting insights into the cultural arguments for the acceptance of homosexuality, and the studies which supposedly prove a biological homosexual predestination. Do's and don't for dealing with people involved in this theology are also discussed including an interesting "mock" conversation on the Biblical verses on homosexuality with a "gay Christian."

The one disappointment that I did have with the book is that it did not get into heavy detail in the Scriptural arguments, instead focusing much more on the things outlined above. However, after completing the book, I see that providing a minute Biblical analysis of the verses pertinent to homosexuality was not the author's goal as he recommends two other works which more than handle that area. While that may have been my initial disappointment, this book did cause me to examine those other areas which I may have skipped over before in my haste to get to the Biblical data; so for that, I have been blessed. Thus, this book is highly recommended for those just beginning to get acquainted with the "gay Christian" movement, providing the history and social arguments for and against homosexuality, and a basic foundation for the Biblical arguments. Unless you are really interested in delving very deep into this subject, this book will be sufficient to answers the questions and issues posed by this movement with compassion and respect.