Presbyterian leaders take step toward gay clergy
Presbyterian leaders voted Thursday to allow non-celibate gays in committed relationships to serve as clergy, approving the first of two policy changes that could make their church one of the most gay-friendly major Christian denominations in the U.S., the Associated Press reports.
But the vote isn't a final stamp of approval for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) or its more than 2 million members.
Delegates voted during the church's general assembly in Minneapolis, with 53 percent approving the more liberal policy on gay clergy. A separate vote is expected later Thursday on whether to change the church's definition of marriage from between "a man and a woman" to between "two people."
Under current church policy, Presbyterians are eligible to become clergy, deacons or elders only if they are married or celibate. The new policy would strike references to sexuality altogether in favor of candidates committed to "joyful submission to worship of Christ."
But such changes must be approved by a majority of the church's 173 U.S. presbyteries.
The assembly voted two years ago to liberalize the gay clergy policy, but it died last year when 94 of the presbyteries voted against it.
Still, the proposed changes "have the potential to be historic," said Cindy Bolbach, an elder at National Capital Presbytery in Washington and the assembly's elected moderator.
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is ranked the 10th-largest church in the U.S. with 2.8 million members, according to the National Council of Churches' 2010 "Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches." The church's media materials tout 2.1 million members.
Earlier this week, both proposals were approved by assembly committees. The gay clergy change passed 36-16, and the definition of marriage cleared on a vote of 34-18.
"There are still big steps ahead, but I'm feeling better about this than I ever have before," the Rev. Ray Bagnuolo, the openly gay pastor of Janhus Presbyterian Church in New York City, said ahead of the clergy vote.
Some conservative-minded Presbyterians have tried to rally opposition to the changes.
"Blurring or obscuring the clear teaching of God's Word in order to keep in step with secular laws and changing personal morals only confuses our witness and causes innumerable problems for the future," Presbyterians for Renewal, a group opposed to the changes, wrote on its website.
Messages seeking comment from leaders of Presbyterians for Renewal and Presbyterian Coalition, another conservative group in the church, weren't returned Thursday.
"Our church is divided and actions we take today at general assembly can split it even further," Donna Rivett, an elder at the Presbytery of Tropical Florida, said during assembly debate on the gay clergy policy.
A number of major Christian denominations have voted in recent years to allow non-celibate gays to serve as clergy if they are in committed relationships. Among them are the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the U.S. Episcopal Church and the United Church of Christ.
"For the Presbyterian Church to stay current and enter the next generation, they really need to let go of this debate," said the Rev. Cindi Love, executive director of SoulForce, a gay Christian group.
Love said she also believed that if the Presbyterians approve the redefinition of marriage, the church would become the largest U.S. Christian denomination to recognize marriage between same-sex couples.
A separate measure, which would also require regional ratification, would remove the threat of punishment for clergy who perform same-sex marriages in states that allow it.
Comments
"Blurring or obscuring the clear teaching of God's Word in order to keep in step with secular laws and changing personal morals" ...
hmmmmmmmmmm
Wonder how earlier Presbyterians might have used those same words to refer to miscegenation...
Good to see another denomination working to put pastoral values ahead of bigotry and prejudice
Posted by: BankStreet | July 9, 2010 5:58 AM
The Lord says in the Bible to treat everyone like a brother or sister but, nowhere does it say that same sex marriage is ok and to allow a couple like that into the church leadership is going to teach people the wrong thing, and at the end of it all same sex relationships/marriage is a SIN and should not be influenced. Read the Bible and stop twisting the word of our Lord!!
Posted by: Tom | July 9, 2010 7:37 AM
Tom,
Please provide specific reference to the words of Jesus of which you speak.
Jesus also never said it was OK to dye your hair blond or to derive on the right side of the highway, by the way.
Posted by: BankStreet | July 9, 2010 8:13 AM
So, Tom...I guess you're still looking for anything Jesus ever said about same-sex love. I'll help you out. You won't find anything. He is entirely silent on the issue.
It's OK that you are not attracted to other men sexually. Only a small minority of men are. What is not OK (and contrary to explicit teachings of Jesus) is for you to judge folk on the basis of their intrinsic nature, for their simple desire to love another person. Because homosexuality is not part of who you are -- and may even be repulsive to you -- does not make it wrong. Gay men did not choose their homosexuality; it is as much a part of who they are as your attraction to women. It does not affect you, and you are no better because you do not share this desire.
The Presbyterian pastors who are Gay are probably good pastors and can teach their congregations many things, including honesty, tolerance, patience against adversity, and the value of monogamy and commitment.
In this country, you are free to associate with any religious community in which you feel comfortable. For example, you may not be comfortable worshiping in a congregation led by a Gay pastor. That is certainly your prerogative. Others, including many Gay Christians, may well seek out such a congregation. It is, however, not your place to bring judgment against those pastors, those congregations, and those fellow seekers.
Posted by: BankStreet | July 10, 2010 7:17 AM
An Update:
Delegates at the general assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) voted Thursday in Minneapolis to advance a proposal to allow gay clergy, but they decided against allowing same-sex marriages by a close margin. The gay clergy proposal now must be approved by a majority of the church’s 173 presbyteries, which rejected a similar measure two years ago.
According to the Associated Press, “Both of Thursday's votes were close. Fifty-one percent of delegates voted to shelve the proposal to redefine marriage as being between ‘two people’ instead of between ‘a man and a woman,’ just hours after 53 percent of them voted to allow non-celibate gays in committed relationships to serve as clergy.”
A motion to reconsider the marriage vote failed by a wider margin Friday, the AP reported. Church committees will spend the next two years until the next general assembly reviewing the issue.
Posted by: BankStreet | July 11, 2010 10:46 AM