Staff editorials

Mars Hill Church protest: it's time voices are heard

By STAFF EDITORIALS, Editorials Board

Published: November 29, 2006

The buzz created by Mars Hill lead pastor Mark Driscoll's comments in a recent blog about Colorado pastor Ted Haggard's adulterous scandal has resulted in the organization of a peaceful protest. The protest will begin at 10 a.m. on Sunday outside the Ballard campus.

According to http://Endfundamentalism.org -- a local grassroots organization -- the protest is meant to expose Driscoll's "anti-women" discourse relayed through his blog and sermons. The organizers also want Driscoll removed from his position as a religion columnist for The Seattle Times and a "sincere apology" from Driscoll for his controversial comments.

The creator of the Web site, Paul Chapman, states in a blog entry dated yesterday that the protest's goal isn't theological debate nor is it meant to convince anyone to stop attending Mars Hill.

The furor is mostly over a post on Driscoll's blog that discussed why the former pastor Haggard got involved with a male prostitute. In the post, Driscoll wrote, "It is not uncommon to meet pastors' wives who really let themselves go; they sometimes feel that because their husband is a pastor, he is therefore trapped into fidelity, which gives them cause for laziness."

His statement clearly implies that if a pastor's wife does not take care of her body and appear in a way that is sexually arousing to her husband, the pastor may be led to seek sexual gratification elsewhere.

What is most disturbing about Driscoll's comment is his focus on a woman's physical appearance as being the maintaining factor of fidelity in marriage.

His argument may have been more credible if he had expressed that if pastors' wives stood strong spiritually, challenging their husbands morally, intellectually and not wearing an outward shell of faith their husbands would have less reason to fall into adultery. As it stands, though, Driscoll focuses on the physical aspect and has not relented.

Regardless of whether people realize it or not, Driscoll holds influence over many non-Christians' perceptions of the typical believer. His religion columns for The Seattle Times reach people of all different beliefs and creeds. His recent inflammatory statements do not represent the majority of Christians in the Seattle area.

Whether or not the coming protest will illuminate Driscoll's perceived "anti-women" discourse, extract a sincere apology for his comments or encourage his resignation as a columnist for The Seattle Times, it is important that people recognize what Driscoll says if they support him.

We at The Falcon encourage all who are able to attend the protest on Dec. 3. The event is a warranted exercise of free speech and there is no reason to take anything into it other than Driscoll's own statements.

The protest's goal should not be to argue, but to bring Driscoll's words to light, in order to tell the unadulterated truth.

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