Students hear from Rosaria Butterfield at Convocation
Convocation began Oct. 10 with Liberty President Dondi Costin taking the stage to recognize veterans from all branches of the military, followed by a moment of silence in remembrance of those who lost their lives during military service.
“While it’s true that only one person could have given his life for the sins of mankind — that person being Jesus — there are plenty of others who have raised their right hands and who have been willing to do so for us and our freedom,” Costin said.
The Presentation of Colors and the national anthem took place next, with Liberty ROTC students taking part in the ceremony.
Students then heard from Rosaria Butterfield, speaker and author of “The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert.”
Butterfield began her speech by talking about her past as a tenured professor at Syracuse University, where she engaged in a monogamous lesbian relationship.
“When I entered my first lesbian relationship at 28, I believed I had found my authentic self,” Butterfield said. “I cared about morality, justice and compassion.”
After a while, Butterfield began reading the Bible, typically reading entire books at a time, trying to understand why Christians spend so much time evangelizing those with other lifestyles.
“Over time, the Bible began taking on a life and a meaning that really startled me,” Butterfield said.
However, spending time in the Bible was not always easy, as it brought up questions about the sin of her lifestyle.
“If God is the creator of all things, and if the Bible has his seal of truth and power, then the Bible has the right to interrogate my life and my culture, and not the other way around,” Butterfield said.
As Butterfield’s friends began interrogating her for spending time reading the Bible, she began questioning her homosexual lifestyle more and more.
“My gay friends believed that we were all sexual minorities,” Butterfield said. “But that’s not how the Bible understands homosexuality. According to the Bible, homosexuality may very well reflect how you in your sin feels, but homosexuality will never represent who you are.”
Butterfield continued her time onstage by talking about how her transition from a life of homosexuality to a life as a Christian unfolded.
“For the first time, I wondered if I was wrong,” Butterfield said. “After a year of wrestling with the Bible, … two events unfolded that changed my life forever. The first was the moment that the gospel revealed that I was Christ’s enemy. … The second was a growing reality that the Bible had gotten to be bigger inside me than I.”
Butterfield finished by emphasizing the importance of repentance from sin.
“Christians are called to starve sin and to mortify it,” Butterfield said. “You cannot bypass repentance and get to grace. The way to grace is through your repentance.”
To livestream or rewatch prior Convocations, visit @LibertyOSD on Facebook.
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