Our Vision

We envision a body of Christ in which straight, gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and trans-gendered members truly exemplify the love of God in their relations with each other — loving unconditionally without demanding proof that others are “worthy” of love. For God loved us unconditionally, as unworthy as we are.

To this end we want to foster understanding and encourage dialogue to help reduce the fear of homosexuality (homophobia) that is too often evident in conservative Christian churches and to replace it with an active love that finds its source in the heart of God.

We envision our discussion lists as aiding subscribers in recognizing their supreme value in the eyes of God. And we envision our private discussion lists functioning as cyber communities in which persons with different sexual orientations “bear one another’s burdens” and so fulfill the law of Christ, encouraging each other in our relationships with Christ.

On the other hand, you are very welcome to comment on our public articles and posts without joining our Yahoogroups private list, and you may even submit your own blog posts in harmony with our philosophy.

Our Philosophy

As Christians we accept the Bible as the Word of God and recognize that we are all broken by sin and become whole only by experiencing the healing love of Christ. We are saved through faith by His grace alone and not by anything we do or refrain from doing. Thus we have nothing in ourselves of which to boast, for all that we have – whether in possessions, talent, or character – is from Him.

We believe that the unconditional love of God draws us to Him and empowers us to change more effectively than exhortation or condemnation. And we believe it is God’s purpose for His church to exemplify the unconditional love of Christ in a society that is performance-oriented.

We understand that same-sex attractions are real and not just a chosen behavior. Whether they are caused by heredity, pre-natal influences, environment, or a combination of these factors, they are an integral part of an individual and are morally neutral.

We believe that God designed sexual expression as a component of the life-long bond between one man and one woman. And He designed that our shared, intimate relationships with each other would draw us closer to Him. But when we look around us and see the many broken families and other fractured relationships in our society, it is evident that we have all fallen far from this ideal.

Just as God drew near to people in a fallen society in the past, so we believe He deals compassionately with us in our fallen condition today. And so should we treat each other with love and compassion, because only as we experience human love do we begin to understand the unconditional love of the Savior — the only One who can meet the love-hunger of the soul.

We are not qualified to judge what is sin in another person’s life — particularly when it comes to intimate human relationships — because sin is a matter of the heart (James 4:17) and only God can see what is in a person’s heart. God does ask us to witness to the power of His love in our own lives, and we can thus encourage each other in drawing closer to Him who is our strength. In doing this, we may share our understanding of the meaning of the text of God’s Word, but we will trust Him to convict each of us of our duty and to guide us  in the way that He knows is best for us.

John the Beloved tells us that God is love. Nothing we do can put us outside of His love. And we believe that experiencing God’s love transforms our lives from the inside out. Thus it is our desire to communicate God’s Love as Our Witness through this internet initiative.

Who We Are

GLOW is an informal association of persons interested in addressing the issues surrounding homosexuality in a manner consistent with the character of God, of whom His beloved disciple testified, “God is love.” (1 John 4:8) We are united in our vision and philosophy for this list.

Inge Anderson and Ralph Seland are the founders of the project, including the web page and the discussion lists. Inge has been the driving force behind initiating various email lists (including some private ones not listed on the web page), the design and implementation of the web page, as well as the expansion of the ministry. Ralph, who has been much of the inspiration behind the project, is currently on a leave of absence from the administrative team, but he is an active participant in our online community. Lists are moderated by moderatorial teams of committed Christian men and women who are also members of the lists.

Inge Anderson is solely responsible for the overall tone and current content of the site. Her wide involvement with Christians of various faiths has given her a vision that reaches far beyond the borders of her own Seventh-day Adventist church, to all who long to know that they are beloved by the Creator who cared enough to become one with us. Inge is fortunate to have the backing and involvement of her family, with family members contributing time and effort in suggestions, designing and critiquing, besides giving up large chunks of their spouse’s or mother’s time in the process. Credit goes to personal friends and to over a hundred individuals involved as silent supporters or contributors through messages on email lists. This project would not exist without them.

How to Contribute

By changing to a blog structure, we have made it easier for you, our readers to contribute.

You may, of course, comment on any post, as on most other blogs. You will be asked for your name and email address, and you can use any name you please. Your email address will be visible only to the administrative staff and not to the public. You can edit any comments you have made for 12 hours. After that, you will have to register as an “author” to be able to edit your comments. Please avoid significant edits to comments after someone has replied to them.

You may also write regular blog posts

All you need to do is register for the site. (See the Meta Section of the Links.) This will give you “Author” status, and you can immediately submit a blog post for consideration. (All posts are moderated.) In order for none of your personal information to be public, please be sure to choose your public display name. You will have the choice to do this on your profile page.

I’m looking forward to your submissions!

Inge