Worship leader and lesbian Vicky Beeching Disappointed By Eugene Peterson's LGBT Retraction

Worship leader and lesbian Vicky Beeching is disappointed that Eugene Peterson has retracted after saying in an interview that he affirmed homosexual marriage. Earlier in the week, Peterson, who wrote the The Message, said in an interview with Jonathan Merritt at Religion News Service that he has changed his stance against homosexuality.  But when the flurry of ensuing responses came, Peterson was pressured to retract his statements over homosexuality. 

Vicking, a self-confessing lesbian, is far from happy.  She wants Peterson to stand by his earlier statement. "Here's my much-loved copy of The Message. Come on Eugene; stand by LGBT Christians and affirm your original statement," she tweeted.

"I imagine Eugene Peterson is under immense pressure, but that's not a reason to backtrack and throw LGBT people under the bus."

Another tweet from her read, "Reminds me of when I came out as gay; American stores and churches started boycotting my CDs and songs - it hugely impacts your livelihood."

She also noted that LifeWay decided that their stores will continue selling Peterson's books based on his retraction. "The moment Peterson's pro-LGBT beliefs hit the internet, huge USA Christian bookstore chains started threatening to boycott selling his books," she wrote in a preceding tweet.

Beeching came onto the music scene in December 2002 when she released "The Shelter" EP through EMI UK. This EP later caught the attention of music executives in the US.  In 2005, after signing with Sparrow Records, Beeching released an EP followed by her first full-length Sparrow album, "Yesterday, Today & Forever," on 27 December 2005. 

Her second full-length studio album, "Painting the Invisible," was her most noteworthy project.  Produced by Ed Cash and Nathan Nockels, Beeching wrote most of the album's material, although a few tracks include songwriting from Ed Cash, Matthew West and Joy Williams. Several of the songs for the album were written on Keith Green's old piano, at the invitation of her mentor and friend, Melody Green. 

Her third studio album "Eternity Invades" released in 2010 features a song co-written with Steve Fee entitled "Glory To God Forever." "Glory to God Forever," which she performs with Steve Fee, is currently one of the 100 most popular songs sung in churches, as measured by Christian Copyright Licensing International (CCLI).  She was also a worship leader at Spring Harvest from 2010-12, leading worship in the 'Big Top' at Minehead and was part of the Spring Harvest Theme Group.

Beeching moved to central London in December 2012. As of February 2013, she was pursuing a PhD in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University, with religion, technology, "online connectivity," and ethics as her topics of focus. In June 2014, Beeching announced that she had changed her PhD focus topic to Christianity and sexuality. Shortly after she announced her sexual orientation, an interviewer wrote that her new PhD focus is specifically Christianity and same-sex marriage, and he also highlighted that she continues to identify as an Evangelical Christian.  

 

 

Tags : vicky beeching eugene peterson eugene peterson homosexuality LGBT community