A significant number of evangelicals believe both that homosexuality is a sin and civil unions for same-sex couples should be legal, according to research recently presented at the American Sociological Association annual meeting. These evangelicals find themselves in the "messy middle," Baylor University researchers Dr. Lydia Bean and Brandon Martinez argue, due to competing notions about how to engage with homosexuals: both wanting to show love and compassion for their gay neighbors, and wanting to remain loyal to the teachings of their faith. Those in the "messy middle," they find, are more similar to conservative than liberal evangelicals.
Evangelicals sustain "two competing scripts about homosexuality," explain Bean, assistant professor of sociology, and Martinez, a doctoral student in sociology. First, evangelicals believe homosexual behavior is sinful and harmful to those who engage in it. Second, evangelicals emphasize the importance of sharing their faith with others by building relationships in love and empathy. Expressing belief in the first can sometimes make the second more difficult because of the commonly expressed view that it is hateful to say that homosexual behavior is a sin.
Using data from the 2010 Baylor Religion Survey, Bean and Martinez divide their sample of evangelicals into three camps: "cultural progressives" (those who do believe homosexual behavior is not morally wrong and support civil unions for same-sex couples), "gay rights opponents" (those who believe homosexual behavior is morally wrong and do not support civil unions), and "ambivalent evangelicals" (those who believe homosexual behavior is morally wrong and support civil unions). Read more
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