After Athletes Come Out, Christian College Bans Gay Sex

A private South Carolina Christian college with two openly gay volleyball players has issued a ban on gay sex.

"We believe the Bible teaches that monogamous marriage between a man and a woman is God's intended design for humanity and that sexual intimacy has its proper place only within the context of marriage. ... Sexual relations outside of marriage or between persons of the same sex are spoken of in scripture as sin and contrary to the will of the Creator (Rom. 1:26-27; 1 Cor. 6:9-10; 1 Tim. 1:9-11)," says the Statement on Human Sexuality from Erskine College, adopted by the college's board of trustees last week.

"We believe the Bible teaches that all sexual activity outside the covenant of marriage is sinful and therefore ultimately destructive to the parties involved. As a Christian academic community, and in light of our institutional mission, members of the Erskine community are expected to follow the teachings of scripture concerning matters of human sexuality and institutional decisions will be made in light of this position."

The rural Erskine College happens to be the college attended by Drew Davis and Juan Varona, two gay athletes who last year shared their stories in LGBT sports publication OutSports. The piece highlighted how accepting Davis and Varona's teammates were of them.

"I've never had a team so close," Davis told OutSports in the article. "They're like brothers to me. They are so accepting, and that has really made me more confident in myself."

But the administration apparently has another perspective -- one that Varona found unexpected.

"I have never received anything but kind treatment from everyone at this school, and my sexual orientation is no secret. So it took me by surprise," told OutSports this week.

"I feel that in the time that we are living right now, where even in the conservative state of South Carolina same-sex marriage is legal, the school took several steps back instead of progressing towards a future where everyone can be treated as an equal, which is a future most of the country is moving towards," Varona continued. "When I saw the mention of sexual orientation being an issue, it just made me sad and worried for other gay people who might be struggling with confidence to come out."

According to the Erskine website, the college was established by the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church -- separate from the more LGBT-friendly Presbyterian Church (USA) -- which has on its website several position statements. The statement on homosexuality says:

"For all conditions of men and women, the renewing grace and changing power of Jesus Christ are freely offered. To those enslaved in the bonds of any sinful practice or thought pattern, Jesus Christ can bring freedom and release.

"Today, many seem to be caught in the web of homosexual practices and thought-patterns. In Christian love we declare that God's Word clearly forbids homosexual practice as a sin against God. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ we affirm our obligation to show Christian love and concern for homosexuals, and call them to repentance, cleansing, and deliverance in the saving power of Jesus Christ."