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(Orlando, Florida) With gays pleading for
acceptance, delegates to a national meeting of the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America debated Thursday whether to approve ordination for partnered gays and
to give pastors leeway in ministering to same-sex couples. Conservatives warned
a change would irreparably damage the church.
The major proposals on the floor were meant as a
compromise, aiming to uphold Lutheran restrictions on gays and lesbians who are
not celibate, while allowing congregations and bishops to make exceptions in
some cases without risking discipline.
During the debate, several delegates worried that
ordaining gays would strain relations with other Christian denominations and
with the many conservative Lutherans overseas. A vote could come as soon as
Friday.
``We would be granting exceptions to biblical,
moral standards that have seen approval for 2000 years,'' said David Glesne of
the Minneapolis Area Synod.
The Rev. Sara Gausmann of the Lower Susquehanna
Synod in Pennsylvania said easing the rules would make it impossible for her to
teach children to follow Christian sexual ethics. Many delegates said the truly
Christian approach would be to convince homosexuals to change their sexual
orientation.
``This debate is not about emotional pleas for
love and acceptance,'' said Kara Felde of the Indiana-Kentucky Synod. ``It's
about what Scripture says.''
Advocates for full inclusion of gay clerics
attempted to counter these arguments by expressing the pain of what they called
rejection by their own church.
His voice cracking with emotion, Timothy Mumm of
the South-Central Wisconsin Synod said he became suicidal after years in therapy
trying to rid himself of his attraction to men. He said a ``faithful, caring
pastor'' helped him accept his homosexuality.
James Boline of the Southwest California Synod
said he has been with his partner for eight years and is the third-generation of
his family to feel a call to ministry.
``I ask your prayers for me refusing to be
banished from this church,'' he said.
Frank Petrovic of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod
said he was gay and felt called to become a minister when he was in eighth
grade. He questioned traditional claims that the Bible condemns gay sex, saying
that those opposed to gay ordination were selectively picking scriptural verses
to justify their position.
``I'm told I'm a member of the body of Christ,
welcome to full participation,'' he said. ``So which human being has the right
to tell me that because of who I love my call from God is not valid?''
Many delegates said they were concerned about the
impact of any changes on the church itself. One man who said he supported gay
relationships, but believed the church wasn't ready for change, so he would vote
against the proposals ``with a heavy heart.''
The key measures would:
Affirm the church ban on ordaining sexually
active gays and lesbians, but allow bishops and church districts called synods
to seek an exception for a particular candidate if that person is in a committed
relationship and meets other conditions.
Uphold the denomination's prohibition against
blessing of same-sex unions, but give bishops and pastors discretion in deciding
how to minister to gay couples.
Call for unity, even though congregants disagree
on the issue.
Before the debate began, advocates for full
inclusion of gays donned clergy stoles bearing the names of gays and lesbians
who had been barred from serving as ministers, and stood silently along the
hallway where delegates were filing into the meeting hall.
Conservatives wore stickers of a symbol called
the Luther Rose a black cross over a red heart inside a white flower. They were
scrambling to sway undecided voters, bringing in nightly speakers, including the
leader of a ministry that counsels gays on becoming heterosexual.
In other business, delegates overwhelmingly
approved ``interim eucharistic sharing'' with the United Methodist Church, which
means churches in both denominations will be encouraged to share Holy Communion
and ministries, in a step toward full communion.
©365Gay.com 2005
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