Tag the Word!

It’s a Drag…Pastor

Usually, when a pastor is caught in an act that is contrary to his calling, it is because he has been exposed. Circumstances have made it impossible for him to hide his shenanigans any longer but in the case of one American minister, he did it on TV for all to see by performing the role of a drag queen. As it was a docu-series, we are not talking fiction here.

The pastor said he wanted to be “empathetic, not just sympathetic” to the gay community, adding that he did it in “support of his daughter who identifies as pansexual.” Weeks later, he was removed from the pulpit but not fired; he will be in the receiving end of a program of “renewal, reflection, and recovery.” His wife who served as youth pastor has also stepped down.

One commenter posted, “It was a performance. I think the church was overreacting. He loves his child enough to identify with her. Im (sic) glad Jesus loves me enough to put on the ‘human suit’ it identify with me.”

Yes, it was a performance but he is not a performer by profession; he professes to be a pastor. I don’t know the pastor but I do know what God’s Word says about men dressing up as women (Deut. 22:5). Hence, there can be no overreacting when it comes to not being “beyond reproach” (1 Tim. 3:2) as God’s leaders have their own biblical standards to uphold.

It is commendable that the pastor “loves his child” as every father should but a minister must love God more and that love must guide his parenting. A parent who is also God’s servant does not give in to what is clearly against the Bible and celebrate it in the airwaves. A godly father can best show his love by being on his knees.

Reports do not indicate the daughter’s age but she was taken seriously enough by her father when she came out as pansexual which is not to be confused with being bisexual (one who believes in gender binary---male and female). A pansexual subscribes to the belief that there are more than two genders and “they” (singular) can be attracted to any of them.

Jesus did not “put on the ‘human suit.” He became a man and stayed a man while still being divine. The minister just acted for a show and that is the supernatural world of difference. Dressing up and discarding the clothes and the make-up after the cameras stopped rolling is not identifying. It was just role-playing. Jesus lived being both God and man and continues to be so as He sits on the right hand of God.

He never became an adulterer or a prostitute, even for a role. He remained true and unblemished in His ministry.

He did not act like a tax collector for an authentic experience. But in spite of that, the sinners of His day still gave Him their acceptance which led to their salvation.

Jesus became man not just to identify with us but to save us (Luke 19:10). The father just played a role for a TV show. He did the daughter whom God gifted him and his wife with, no favor by sidestepping his role as a pastor and head of the household in showing the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He may have won praises for being a cool dad but at what price? Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” (ESV) May his household return to the Lord and may his mistake serve as a warning to all of us to love God with all our hearts, souls, strength, and mind (Luke 10:27) and to let God be true and every man a liar (Rom. 3:4).

 

Usually, when a pastor is caught in an act that is contrary to his calling, it is because he has been exposed. Circumstances have made it impossible for him to hide his shenanigans any longer but in the case of one American minister, he did it on TV for all to see by performing the role of a drag queen. As it was a docu-series, we are not talking fiction here.

The pastor said he wanted to be “empathetic, not just sympathetic” to the gay community, adding that he did it in “support of his daughter who identifies as pansexual.” Weeks later, he was removed from the pulpit but not fired; he will be in the receiving end of a program of “renewal, reflection, and recovery.” His wife who served as youth pastor has also stepped down.

One commenter posted, “It was a performance. I think the church was overreacting. He loves his child enough to identify with her. Im (sic) glad Jesus loves me enough to put on the ‘human suit’ it identify with me.”

Yes, it was a performance but he is not a performer by profession; he professes to be a pastor. I don’t know the pastor but I do know what God’s Word says about men dressing up as women (Deut. 22:5). Hence, there can be no overreacting when it comes to not being “beyond reproach” (1 Tim. 3:2) as God’s leaders have their own biblical standards to uphold.

It is commendable that the pastor “loves his child” as every father should but a minister must love God more and that love must guide his parenting. A parent who is also God’s servant does not give in to what is clearly against the Bible and celebrate it in the airwaves. A godly father can best show his love by being on his knees.

Reports do not indicate the daughter’s age but she was taken seriously enough by her father when she came out as pansexual which is not to be confused with being bisexual (one who believes in gender binary---male and female). A pansexual subscribes to the belief that there are more than two genders and “they” (singular) can be attracted to any of them.

Jesus did not “put on the ‘human suit.” He became a man and stayed a man while still being divine. The minister just acted for a show and that is the supernatural world of difference. Dressing up and discarding the clothes and the make-up after the cameras stopped rolling is not identifying. It was just role-playing. Jesus lived being both God and man and continues to be so as He sits on the right hand of God.

He never became an adulterer or a prostitute, even for a role. He remained true and unblemished in His ministry.

He did not act like a tax collector for an authentic experience. But in spite of that, the sinners of His day still gave Him their acceptance which led to their salvation.

Jesus became man not just to identify with us but to save us (Luke 19:10). The father just played a role for a TV show. He did the daughter whom God gifted him and his wife with, no favor by sidestepping his role as a pastor and head of the household in showing the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He may have won praises for being a cool dad but at what price? Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” (ESV) May his household return to the Lord and may his mistake serve as a warning to all of us to love God with all our hearts, souls, strength, and mind (Luke 10:27) and to let God be true and every man a liar (Rom. 3:4).

 

Author

Elizabeth Ong

Elizabeth Ong is an author, lecturer, an app creator, and a businesswoman. She has a master's degree in Biblical Studies from Asian Theological Seminary.