Adam Hamilton, a Democrat running for the U.S. Senate in Kansas and a progressive Methodist pastor, has expressed that the concept of the Virgin Birth should be seen as an optional belief for Christians, primarily emphasized within “fundamentalism.”
As the senior pastor of the Church of the Resurrection, the largest United Methodist church in the U.S., Hamilton shared his views on a podcast titled Making Sense of Faith with Adam Hamilton last year.
He stated, “While we are all considered children of God, Jesus uniquely was the Son of God. The early church referred to Mary as ‘theotokos,’ meaning ‘God-bearer,’ signifying that God entered her womb through this child. The biological specifics of that conception? I’m not sure it’s essential to explain,” Hamilton remarked. “I personally believe in the virgin birth because it’s part of the stories we have, and while I may not fully grasp what happened, I choose to have faith in this narrative.”
He continued, “Interestingly, apart from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, the Virgin Birth isn’t mentioned elsewhere in the New Testament. We don’t see references to it in Paul’s letters or in the Book of Acts. If it were that crucial to Christian belief, I think Paul would have addressed it, but perhaps he didn’t see the need to mention it.”
Hamilton added, “I tell individuals who are uncertain about believing in the Virgin Birth that it’s perfectly fine. What matters is that they follow Jesus. He didn’t approach his followers to recount how he was conceived; he simply said, ‘Come follow me.’ For me, it’s about the theological implications of who Jesus is, not just the biology.”
He described the rise of Christian fundamentalism as a reaction against more liberal interpretations of scripture that allowed metaphorical readings. Among fundamentalist tenets, belief in the Virgin Birth became pivotal, with the assertion that it’s essential to be a ‘real’ Christian. While Hamilton chooses to believe in this doctrine, he acknowledges the discomfort it brings for some people and reflects on how Jesus probably would not have insisted on understanding his conception to follow him.
The Virgin Birth is included in both the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed, playing a significant role in comprehending the miraculous nature of Jesus’s arrival, affirming his dual identity as fully God and fully man. This narrative is outlined in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, and prophesied in the Old Testament book of Isaiah, indicating that the Virgin Birth fulfills a prophecy from around 600 to 700 years prior.
Previously, Hamilton has also stated that the Bible has “hundreds” of errors. In a sermon from 2022, he suggested that followers of other faiths, including Muslims and Hindus, could attain Heaven while recognizing Jesus after death.
Back in 2015, he raised questions about how much flexibility Christians might have in interpreting the Bible, even suggesting that one might say the Apostle Paul could have been “wrong.”
Under Hamilton’s leadership, the Church of the Resurrection has collaborated with Kansas City PrideFest for events like a “Drag Queen Story Time & Gay Pride Festival,” as reported by Breitbart News.
Hamilton has publicly supported legal abortion, Black Lives Matter, and supporting same-sex marriage within the framework of the United Methodist Church while portraying himself as a moderate.
Currently, Hamilton is campaigning for the U.S. Senate seat in Kansas against incumbent Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS). The race is expected to be extremely competitive, with RealClear Polling indicating that Marshall leads by an average of only 0.7 points.
