The church must recognize man as it is
That the church council is challenging within the Church is a healthy sign.
The church council's decision on April 11 on a gender-neutral marriage liturgy opened up an inclusive understanding of marriage where gender is not central, but love between people. The council thus signalled that the church has room for diversity, but the reactions that followed cast doubt on this diversity.
Gunnar Amadeus Syvertsen, [who Universitas interviewed last week](1), reacts as though giving others equality leaves him with less. Challenging prevailing religious norms rekindles reactions. Meanwhile, the protestant church, which the Norwegian Church is a part of, would not been where it is today without the people who took the lead and questioned the church's teachings.
That the council also challenges within the Church is a healthy sign. Church doctrine is not static it evolves with the society we live in. Having room for two views also implies that one must be able to cope with these existing in parallel in a single denomination. To leave the church if you disagree does not make it more tolerant.
The idea of two views means that it is equally important that you must be able to deal with there being room for diversity. The church is basically an inclusive space, but when a text is the only basis for truth, with no room for interpretation, then the door is closed. That young queers feel they are being left out is not okay.
We need a church that recognizes people as they are, like whole humans. The council's decision is a step in that direction, and I hope Syvertsen will understand this one day.