Bye Mikael REALE – Publié le 10 juillet 2026
We live in an age where balance has become suspect. Being nuanced means being accused of lukewarmness by some and complicity by others. Defending biblical principles without hating those who reject them exposes you to a double condemnation: from traditionalists, who call you a coward, and from progressives, who label you a fanatic.
I know this from experience. As a Christian, author, and speaker, I have often felt caught between the hammer and the anvil. On one side, fellow believers reproach me for not being “at war” enough on issues like surrogacy, euthanasia, or homosexuality. On the other, society brands me as reactionary, intolerant, or even hateful simply because I refuse to renounce my convictions on abortion or the adoption of an ultra-secular libertarianism.
Yet, I am convinced that it is precisely in this narrow space, between the excesses of all kinds, that one of the most powerful testimonies of Christianity today can be found. A Christianity that is neither rigid dogmatism without compassion nor complicit submission to gain the world’s acceptance! A living faith, both compassionate and courageous, reasonable and bold!
When Nuance Becomes Subversive
Not long ago, I was publicly rebuked for expressing doubt about the fairness of a statement made by a well-known political leader, infamous for his media antics.
“What? So you’re for abortion and gay marriage now!” I was immediately accused. No, not really. But I know how to recognize what is good and what is bad in everyone, especially in myself.
We live in a fiercely divided world where debates are no longer exchanges of ideas but trench warfare. On issues like marriage, abortion, or immigration, there is no longer any room for nuance. Defend traditional marriage, and you are immediately labeled a homophobe. Express simple reservations about abortion, and you are accused of misogyny. Dare to say that a child needs a father and a mother, and society brands you a dinosaur. On the other hand, say that we should care for the poor, that capitalism needs regulation, and that the law of the strongest is unworthy of Christ, and you are called a communist.
The worst part is that both sides end up rejecting you. Traditionalists will reproach you for a lack of firmness, while progressives will accuse you of spreading hate. You are always too soft for some, too harsh for others.
Yet, this polarization is a crude trap into which too many Christians fall today. It pushes us to choose a side, to renounce our own humanity in favor of pack ideology.
I love how The Chosen series depicts Jesus’ position toward the Romans or Samaritans. It was a shock for His disciples as much as for the Romans. Christianity, by its very nature, rejects this dichotomy. Jesus Himself dined with sinners while firmly calling them to repentance. He denounced the hypocrisy of the Pharisees without rejecting the Law.
Today, the world demands that we choose between love and truth. But Christ never asked us to choose! He asks us to imitate Him: to be firm on principles but deeply loving toward people.
The Truth That Sets Free, Without Crushing
In the Gospel of John, chapter 8, Jesus speaks words that have been at the heart of my life and ministry since the 2000s: “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples; you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. […] So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
When I speak about marriage, abortion, or euthanasia, it is never out of a desire to condemn, but because I believe that truth, however unpopular it may be, is the only thing that truly sets us free. Too many Christians today use the Bible as a hammer to strike those who do not think like them. But Jesus, faced with the woman caught in adultery, did not pick up stones. He defended her dignity against her accusers while reminding her of the truth: “Go, and sin no more.”
Similarly, affirming that Christian marriage is a covenant between a man and a woman is not a judgment against same-sex couples. It is the proclamation of a truth that I believe is essential to humanity’s flourishing within God’s plan, but which I neither can nor wish to impose.
Chained to the Trends of Modern Thought
Everyone is free to live as they see fit, and it is not my place to judge people. However, this freedom also applies to me, and as a pastor, I cannot in good conscience officiate a same-sex wedding because it is incompatible with my faith. There is nothing hateful in my position.
The modern world offers us new forms of slavery. There is the slavery of ideology, which demands that we adopt the dogmas of progressivism or risk social exclusion. There is the slavery of fear, which pushes so many Christians to remain silent out of fear of “cancel culture.” And there is the slavery of relativism, that famous “anything goes” which ends up draining life of all meaning. Christ has freed us from these chains. He calls us to live in truth, even when it is uncomfortable.
When Faith and Reason Refuse to Yield
The great apologist C.S. Lewis, a former atheist who knew what it meant to criticize faith, magnificently demonstrated that faith and reason are not opposed. In a striking phrase, he wrote: “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.”
This sentence perfectly sums up our daily tension. If our convictions are false, we are fanatics. But if they are true, attacking them means attacking truth itself.
Society would have us believe that our positions of faith are purely irrational and visceral. Yet, reason and facts are often on our side.
On a biological level, science reminds us that a fetus is a unique human being from conception, with its own DNA and a heartbeat as early as the third week. Denying this is denying scientific evidence. The same goes for gender, which is a rational reality, regardless of how some may feel.
However, this does not give us the right to despise those who, for whatever reason, cannot or will not share our position. We owe them respect, and above all, as Christians, love.
I love my homosexual friends, and that is precisely why it is not my place to approve or disapprove of a lifestyle that I personally believe is distant from God’s plan. I love women facing the distress of abortion, and that should not prevent me from seeing the injustice done to the unborn child. I understand the suffering of someone who can no longer fight terminal cancer and wishes to end their life quickly, but I am suspicious of the current legislative proposals on this issue.
In another work, The Four Loves, C.S. Lewis reminded us that loving someone does not mean blindly approving of everything they do. True love has the courage to speak difficult truths.
This is where the warning of sociologist and theologian Jacques Ellul resonates.
He explained how modern societies create new idols, systems of thought that enslave us. Today, “woke” ideology, consumerism, and radical individualism have become the new dogmas of a secular religion seeking to impose itself on everyone. It has its inquisitors who embark on witch hunts in the name of “defending” minorities, women, Black people, or homosexuals. These ayatollahs of political correctness are ready to burn at the stake of social media anyone who questions their dogma.
Jacques Ellul insisted on one point: Christians have a duty to resist these oppressive systems. Our role is to bear witness to another way. I therefore refuse to remain silent, I refuse to submit to political correctness, just as, as a Christian, I refuse to hate those who reject me.
That is where the true resistance lies. !
So, if we want to stand firm in this climate of media and digital lynching, we first need unshakable foundations. We must immerse ourselves in Scripture, but also rediscover modern thinkers and martyrs like Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who knew how to combine intellect with heroic courage.
As early as April 1933, he publicly stood up against the persecution of Jews and committed himself to the fight against the ‘Aryan paragraph.’ He was banned from public speaking in 1940 and from writing in 1941. In April 1943, he was arrested, and two years later, he was executed.
We must refuse to abandon the ground of dialogue for that of polemics. Let us listen before we speak, let us understand the pain or position of the other person, and let us always express ourselves with love, gentleness, and absolute respect for individuals.
May we never fall into the trap of hatred by condemning those who oppose our line of thought to hell. Nor should we fall into the trap of cowardice by selling out our convictions just to keep the peace, or under the guise of ‘wisdom.'”
A Necessary Voice !
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.”
Being between the hammer and the anvil is a painful, uncomfortable, and sometimes exhausting position. But it is precisely there that God waits for us to be authentic witnesses. The world is tired of extremes and empty slogans. It has a visceral need for voices that defend truth with compassion.
So, continue to testify with conviction and truth, while being full of compassion and love. Be attentive to suffering, without hesitating to denounce, with humility, the causes of this suffering that you have identified. Your voice matters. It is at the heart of this tension, between the hammer and the anvil, that the most beautiful testimony of the Gospel shines today.
© Mikael REALE – 2026
Reproduction authorized with mention of the source.