Because of the gay marriage debate, the right-wing fundamentalist Christians are in the public sphere again, preaching the theology of exclusion. Granted that many theologians (Tutu, Bell, Gomes, Creech, Greenberg) and many denominations (Episcopalian, Lutheran, Presbyterian) don’t consider homosexuality to be a sin at all, it seems like the whole issue takes away from the most fundamental of Jesus’ message: love thy neighbor. As Cornel West says, “Fundamentalist Christians want to be fundamental about everything except ‘love thy neighbor as thyself.'” (It’s worth noting briefly that Jesus never mentioned homosexuality, Paul did.)

Anyways, this sermon from Cornel West emphasizes what I believe to be the core of Jesus’s message: social justice. Enjoy.