On returning to the States, she revealed publicly that she will no longer be signed with a Christian label, and that she was accompanied during her hiatus in Australia by a same-sex partner she had been in a relationship with since before she left the country.
Facing the reactions of thousands of shocked fans and the confused church, Knapp agreed to a tell-all interview with “Christianity Today,” published April 13, where she uncovered the truth about this lifestyle choice, her faith and her love for music.
“It was a huge risk to say I may never do this again,” Knapp said. “It was a real heart wrenching decision.”
She said that her homosexual lifestyle was not the reason she left.
“That was a straw [in my decision], but there were many straws on the camel’s back at the time,” Knapp replied. “I’m certainly in a same-sex relationship now, but when I suspended my work, that wasn’t even really a factor. I had some difficult decisions to make and what that meant for my life and deciding to invest in a same-sex relationship, but it would be completely unfair to say that’s why I left music.”
Although she did not leave the music industry because of her sexual orientation, it was around that same time that she decided to consider and deal with her homosexuality.
“It never occurred to me that I was in something that should be labeled as a ‘struggle,’” Knapp said. “The struggle I’ve had has been with the church, acknowledging me as a human being, trying to live the spiritual life that I’ve been called to, in whatever ramshackled, broken, frustrated way that I’ve always approached my faith. I still consider my hope to be a whole human being, to be a person of love and grace. So it’s difficult for me to say that I’ve struggled within myself, because I haven’t. I’ve struggled with other people. I’ve struggled with what that means in my own faith. I have struggled with how that perception of me will affect the way I feel about myself.”
Though she has strayed from being signed with a Christian label as a way to include a broader range of people in her audience, Knapp has not walked away from her faith in Christ.
“As a Christian, I’m doing that as best as I can,” Knapp said, admitting her need for Christ. “The heartbreaking thing to me is that we’re all hopelessly deceived if we don’t think that there are people within our churches, within our communities, who want to hold on to the person they love, whatever sex that may be, and hold on to their faith.”
How are Christians reacting to the new Jennifer Knapp? Just as predicted, the church has responded as oil to water. From apathetic Christians to raging extremists. From the welcoming liberal churches rejoicing in her individuality to conservative pastors writing blogs of mourning on Knapp’s behalf, Christians cannot agree on yet another issue.
But this is not the first time a believing artist has come out of the closet.
“Yes, I’m gay … I’m a gay dad,” admitted American Idol veteran Clay Aiken in September 2008, after years of speculation. Within the same month, Ray Boltz, a retired Christian musician at the ripe age of 55, announced that he was also gay.
“This is what it really comes down to,” Boltz said according to a “Christianity Today” article. “If this is the way God made me, then this is the way I’m going to live. It’s not like God made me this way and he’ll send me to hell if I am who he created me to be – I really feel closer to God because I no longer hate myself.”
After these announcements, Christian artist and former homosexual Brian Bates shared an interesting and refreshing view in his essay titled, “Ray & Clay are Gay: How I Would Respond.” As a man with conviction concerning this subject and experience as a former homosexual, Bates gives advice to Christians on how to react to homosexuals.
In summary, Bates tells believers to get to know them on a spiritual and personal basis, listening, putting arguments aside and being kind and honest. All in all, you must love them like a friend the way someone was a friend to Bates in his darkest times.
“Julie loved like Jesus,” Bates said concerning a friend who helped him turn his life around. “We did not agree on the gay issue, but her kindness and compassion really affected me. The Bible says it’s God’s kindness that leads to repentance. That’s so important to remember, and is the proper response to this issue, I believe. I didn’t forsake a gay identity because I was afraid of going to hell. I did so because I fell in love with a God that I could trust. That is absolutely my story.”
Some Christians struggle with homosexuality and, when they present it to somebody, it is because they want help and support. Others, like Knapp, announce it as a way to reveal who they truly are, wanting people to love them as they come, sexuality and all. It becomes their identity.
As a woman with strong convictions and a heart that gravitates toward this unreached community of homosexuals, senior Katie Trent gave some insight on how to reach out to them.
“With both of those scenarios you have to gain a lot of credibility because of the image the church has portrayed,” Trent said. “It is one of the only sins that the church says ‘fix this and then you can come to us, rather than the church being equipped in knowing how to handle people struggling with that sin and welcoming them. They have seen an unloving attitude. It’s sad that they are so un-ministered to; that the church is not meeting them at their needs. It’s sad but there is legitimacy in that fear of coming out.”
As believers, we must love these people as they come, not condemning them for a sin that they must wear on their sleeve while ours are hidden in the secret darkness of our hearts. We must stand firm in the Word of God as we love them and know them the way our Savior does.
Although Knapp may not be the same role model she was seven years ago and her sin must be acknowledged, she is a child of God, made in his likeness. As a Christian community, let us step off of her doorstep and drop our picket signs. Let us search for reconciliation, befriend homosexuals and love them the way that Christ has loved us in our own sin.
