As a concerned gay alumnus I’m interested to know; can Asbury be thought of as a safe place for LGBT students that are presently enrolled there? Could a current student come out as openly gay (if they, like their heterosexual peers, refrained from any sexual activity) without fear of dismissal?

How would they be treated by the student body, as a whole? Would they have to endure disparaging remarks? Would they be ostracized? Would that gay student be “encouraged” to seek counseling? Would that gay student be told they could (or had to) change?

Or would that student be looked upon as courageous for “coming out” in an environment where homosexuality is considered a sin? Would that gay student be accepted or reviled? Would that gay student be loved by the administration, faculty and other students as Christ instructed us to? Would that gay student be given the freedom to decide what the scriptures say, or don’t say, about homosexuality? Would that decision be respected and allowed, even if it is not the same decision the school has reached? Would that gay student be able to have a differing opinion? Would that gay student be given the freedom to seek God’s will on whether one can be a Christian and gay?

Simply put, can there ever be an openly gay, and chaste, student at Asbury?

I am very interested in the answers to those questions. You can find me here on Facebook. You can email me. I'd like to know what you think.

Can Asbury become a safe place for those students who are presently living with the fear of anyone finding out they are gay?

avanwhy@aol.com