A leading Orlando-based conservative activist says he's stunned that Northland Church recently invited the Reformation Project, a gay Christian ministry, to attend an LGBTQ event at the Orlando mega-church.
"It's frankly shocking that any church would invite this organization," says Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel.
"One would have to be blind or complicit to allow the Reformation Project to put on an LGBTQ propaganda presentation in the church," he says.
Northland disputes that it was either blind or complicit in working with the organization. In a public statement, church leaders say they disagree with the Reformation Project's Biblical interpretation but wanted to connect with the group.
"Sex is a gift God gave to be used exclusively inside the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman," the statement says.
The church says it hosted the event to build bridges with the gay community following the Pulse nightclub tragedy.
"We may disagree with how others interpret scripture, but that doesn't mean we can't treat them with respect," the church says.
Northland says it's a "poor representation of Christ" to treat gay people with disrespect or ignorance.
"We believe that the way forward with the LGBTQ community is not a debate on the Bible's statements about same-sex sexual behavior but a discussion of how to have an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ," the church says.
Dr. Joel Hunter leads the 20,000 member church at Northland and is known for his spiritual mentorship of President Obama during his presidency. He helped lead the LGBTQ event along with other LGBTQ Orlando leaders.
Matthew Vines, the founder and executive director of the Reformation Project, does not dispute that the non-profit's mission is to reform church teaching on sexuality to include support for same-sex covenantal monogamous relationships.
However, he told CBN that the non-profit engages in a variety of programming and that the purpose of the Northland event was not to reform teaching.
"The goal of the event was not to try and change people's theological views," Vines told CBN, "but to create more space for the fact that Christians hold different views and we can still treat one another as brothers and sisters in Christ."
More than 800 people attended the workshop which Vines says falls under the organization's "Elevating the Dialogue" events. Such events are sponsored by churches that support orthodox theological views on sexuality but want to engage with gay Christians.
Staver doesn't buy the idea and cites a pamphlet and survey used by the Reformation Project that he believes was used to confuse attendees about Scripture. The pamphlet in particular cites Scripture that the project believes supports same-sex relationships.
"They're not intent on dialogue," Staver told CBN. "They're intent on changing, twisting the Scriptures....to support LGBT behavior."
The Reformation Project held its first "Elevating the Dialogue" event last year at Atlanta's Renovation Church.