NEJ affirms Calif. clergy on same-gender marriages

United Methodist Western Jurisdictional Conference
guests in Portland, Ore., applaud the passage of a resolution by the
Northeastern Jurisdiction in support of California United Methodist
clergy who choose to perform same-sex marriages.
A UMNS photo by Cate Monaghan. |
By Maidstone Mulenga*
July 18, 2008 | HARRISBURG, Pa. (UMNS)
In sharp contrast to the action taken at the United Methodist General
Conference last spring, delegates to the denomination’s Northeastern
Jurisdiction Conference voted July 17 to support clergy in California
who choose to perform same-gender marriages.
The delegates approved a resolution expressing respect for pastors in
the California-Pacific and California-Nevada annual (regional)
conferences “who as a matter of Christian conscience, spiritual
discernment and prophetic witnessing” opt to participate in the
celebration of same-gender marriages that are not approved by the
church.
The resolution also asks for lenient disciplinary action against clergy who disobey church law on the issue.
The 2008 General Conference, the denomination’s top legislative body,
voted to retain its ban on same-gender marriages and to bar clergy from
performing such marriages or consecrating them in the church. Pastors
who perform same-gender unions risk losing their clergy credentials. The
assembly met April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth, Texas.
Division among Northeastern Jurisdiction delegates over the resolution
prompted passionate debate from supporters and opponents. Bishop Jane
Allen Middleton of the Harrisburg Area, who was presiding over the
session, prayed for holy discernment before the delegates voted.
On May 15, the California Supreme Court struck down the state’s ban on
same-gender marriage, ruling that the state constitution protects that
“right to marry.”
The California-Pacific Annual Conference, which met in June, approved
measures that support same-gender couples entering into the marriage
covenant and encouraged congregations and pastors to “welcome, embrace
and provide spiritual nurture and pastoral care for these families.”
The neighboring California-Nevada Annual Conference approved similar
measures, including one that lists about 80 retired United Methodist
clergy who have offered to conduct same-gender marriage ceremonies on
behalf of those clergy who feel they cannot do it themselves.
After the Northeastern Jurisdiction Conference resolution was passed,
Bishop Mary Ann Swenson of the Los Angeles Area read it to the Western
Jurisdiction Conference in Portland, Ore. Delegates and guests greeted
it with a standing ovation.
The five U.S. jurisdictional conferences of The United Methodist Church
are meeting to elect and assign bishops for the next four years and to
handle other business. The Northeastern Jurisdiction is meeting July
13-18.
*Mulenga is a reporter for the Rochester Democrat-Chronicle, the
communications committee chairperson for the Western New York Annual
Conference, and a delegate to the Northeastern Jurisdictional
Conference.
News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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Resources
What is the denomination's position on homosexuality?
Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference
Western Jurisdictional Conference
California-Pacific Annual Conference
California-Nevada Annual Conference
General Conference 2008 |