The Rhetoric of Gay Christians: Matthew Vines and Reverend Nancy Wilson As Exemplars
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UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones 5-1-2014 The Rhetoric of Gay Christians: Matthew Vines and Reverend Nancy Wilson as Exemplars Joshua Holman Miller University of Nevada, Las Vegas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/thesesdissertations Part of the Communication Commons Repository Citation Miller, Joshua Holman, "The Rhetoric of Gay Christians: Matthew Vines and Reverend Nancy Wilson as Exemplars" (2014). UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones. 2122. http://dx.doi.org/10.34917/5836141 This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Scholarship@UNLV with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Thesis in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. 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THE RHETORIC OF GAY CHRISTIANS: MATTHEW VINES AND REVEREND NANCY WILSON AS EXEMPLARS by Joshua Holman Miller Bachelor of Arts Michigan State University 2012 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts - Communication Studies Department of Communication Studies Greenspun College of Urban Affairs The Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas May 2014 Copyright by Joshua Holman Miller, 2014 All Rights Reserved THE GRADUATE COLLEGE We recommend the thesis prepared under our supervision by Joshua Miller entitled The Rhetoric of Gay Christians: Matthew Vines and Reverend Nancy Wilson as Exemplars is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts - Communication Studies Department of Communication Studies Sara VanderHaagen, Ph.D., Committee Chair David Henry, Ph.D., Committee Member Thomas Burkholder, Ph.D., Committee Member Gregory Borchard, Ph.D., Graduate College Representative Kathryn Hausbeck Korgan, Ph.D., Interim Dean of the Graduate College May 2014 ii ABSTRACT The Rhetoric of Gay Christians: Matthew Vines and Reverend Nancy Wilson as Exemplars by Joshua Holman Miller Dr. Sara C. VanderHaagen, Examination Committee Chair Professor of Communication Studies University of Nevada, Las Vegas There is a view of gay rights debates that pits Christians against gay rights advocates. According to this perception, Christians oppose gay rights, because the Bible condemns homosexuality as a sin, and those who support gay rights do so using purely secular arguments. However, this perception of the gay rights debate is flawed and overly simplistic because not all Christians oppose gay rights. In fact, there are multiple interpretations of biblical texts that support homosexuality and have caused a gay rights debate within the church that is as complex and intricate as gay rights debate outside of the church. This thesis examines the gay rights debate within the church and, specifically, investigates the biblical arguments used by two individuals, Matthew Vines and Reverend Nancy Wilson, to convince others that homosexuality is not a sin. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I often wonder how I could be so blessed. I have always received support and encouragement from so many wonderful people. Without their presence in my life, I doubt I would have been able to make it this far. It is difficult to put into words how I feel about all of the support I have received. What follows is my best attempt at accomplishing that impossible task. Two years ago, when I decided that I was going to move to Las Vegas and attend UNLV, I really had no idea why I was doing so. I had a good feeling about it and that is about it. Now, I know why I attended UNLV—to work with Dr. Sara VanderHaagen. I find it to be rather humorous that we arrived here at the same time. She grew up in the same denomination. Even though she went to Calvin College instead of Hope College, I knew that she would be a great choice for an advisor. Her guidance made this project possible. Her knowledge of biblical interpretation, biblical controversies, and religion in general has enabled me to think about my project in new and exciting ways. Ever since I stepped into her office to ask her to be my advisor, she has been encouraging and supportive of my efforts and this project. She has provided me with countless pieces of advice. Her commentary, suggestions, corrections, and feedback have been wonderful, extensive, helpful, and at times even humorous. She read through all of my typo filled drafts. She certainly corrected plenty of typos but correcting “humpy” to “hunky” stands out in my mind. She read and re-read countless drafts of my thesis chapters; there have been roughly thirty. She did more than that. She read drafts of my PhD school writing samples, statements of purpose, drafts for conferences, and my curriculum vita. She was iv there to calm me down when I was freaking out about my prospectus defense, about making my PhD decision, and when I was waiting to hear from PhD schools. The other members of my committee were also essential to the success of this thesis. Dr. Thomas Burkholder provided excellent commentary on the strengths and weaknesses of my chapters. He described where I could go from here by providing advice and suggestions about future research and about ways that I could explain this project to others. He has an incredible passion for teaching. He is now retiring, but I know that his legacy will live on in his students. I hope that someday that I will be able to be half the teacher that he is. Dr. David Henry reminded me about the fallacy of hasty generalization, did not let me forget that there were thousands of years of rhetorical tradition from which I could draw, and calmed my nervousness with his sense of humor. I hope that he did not strain himself too much by lugging my thesis around Greenspun Hall. Dr. Marcia Gallo guided me to archives that enabled me to research interesting, important, and foundational topics and events. Her kind and encouraging words solidified my belief that my research was necessary and significant. Dr. Gregory Borchard stepped onto my committee near the end of this thesis project, yet he still provided strong advice and interesting future directions for my project. Defenses advice The other faculty members have fostered an incredible department that allowed me to grow as an academic, instructor, and person. They were willing to help me revise and edit numerous papers. When I started this program, I knew very little about communication studies. With their support and guidance, I learned so much. They challenged me to become a better writer, to challenge myself, to set high goals for myself, and to “just see what happens.” Because of this, I summited papers to v conferences and applied to reputable PhD programs, and I saw success when I did. In particular, Dr. Sahlstein-Parcell read and re-read countless drafts of my research. Dr. McManus reminded me that I should always discuss the value of my research. Dr. Conley pushed me to be as original in my research as possible. Dr. Engstrom wrote out citations for me; those citations have been extremely valuable and have helped to guide my research. Dr. Bush took the time to talk to me about Greek words and also taught me how to pronounce them. Dr. Emmers-Sommer helped me fund my conference trips and provided excellent advice about how to find an outside committee member. Dr. Guthrie always greeted me with a warm smile and “positive vibes.” Dr. Jacob Thompson is the reason that I came to UNLV. He gave me an opportunity to coach debate, teach, and continue my education. Without him, none of this thesis would have been possible. When I arrived at UNLV, he made sure that I figured out how to enroll in classes, and he called people when I forgot to do paperwork. He has given me plenty of how to coach, how to teach, and how to succeed in graduate school. He is passionate about debate and ensuring that those he coaches and coaches with are as successful as possible. The members of the Sanford I. Berman Debate Forum are a great group of talented students. They care for each other just as much as they argue with each other. I am sure that they will continue to improve and become an even stronger team. Both Alyssa and Ian were encouraging and supportive coaches. Working with them was a pleasure. Tom Gliniecki encouraged me to come to Las Vegas. He was a great and devoted teammate when I was at Michigan State. At UNLV, he provided comedic relief whenever the semesters became more difficult. I could always rely on him to provide frank advice vi about what I should do with my research and how to make my research stronger. He always pointed out my typos. He is just a great guy *stare*. My cohort was wonderful. They all supported each other. Michael’s enthusiasm is contagious. It is impossible to feel discouraged when he is around. Carly was a wonderful officemate who always reminded me of something that I was supposed to be doing. Ashley’s joy put a smile on our faces. Travis reminded us that there are more important things than always getting the best grade. Caitlin’s devotion to teaching and to her students showed me how to be a better educator and mentor.