Erika wrote:I have decided to leave this website as it is one of the nastiest forums I have encountered.
The website seems to has the function of an inquisitor. Inquisitors simply are not Christian and who are more concerned about conforming to the mob rule rather than practicing Christian love. I think the martyrs would be ashamed of this website and it is no wonder American Anabaptists have had so many divisions, splits, railings, and hate. I bet this post gets removed. I will check later.
I will assume that you were expecting some sort of answer to your question. First, you may take not that you likely have people here who were chased and hounded out of their churches because they will not accept deviance from the teaching the church has taught for over 500 years. This may account for what you perceive as conclusion jumping.
Second, as far as the "born this way" argument that has appeared in much of the media, the evidence to support it is much less than conclusive. MRI may be able to show a "gay" brain physiology pattern, but know that neuroanatomy is not fixed for life, it changes due to time and stimulus. For the record, there is also an alcoholic brain and a drug addicted brain. We would not have the willingness to excuse sin (as the Bible describes it) in these cases, neither should we for this. While such a person may be extremely tempted in these areas, it still does not mean we should accept that lifelong habitual sin is the absolute consequence. Genetics is not destiny, at least through the grace of God.
Now to your issue. I am assuming by your description you are affected by some sort of Chimera type syndrome. I could not find any hard and fast rate of occurrence for this, I can only find single case reports. This means that it is quite rare. The average church has never seen this occur. To expect that the diverse group on this forum could produce any hard and fast position is way beyond anyone's competence here, especially since we don't know you, your background, and what your walk with God has been like in the past. I only understand this because of a Radiobiology course some 35 years ago.
This sort of issue can only be decided by a church that you have gotten to know for some period of time. I would assume they would hear you out, try to come to the best understanding of your situation they could, and spend some time in prayer for discernment. If such a thing occurred in my church, this is what I would expect to happen. I would not even want to guess the outcome, but submission to the leadership that God has put in place, and to the church is part of being a Mennonite.
I wish you the best, and really hope you follow Wayne and my advice.
J.M.