Progressive Christian Social Action

Area United Methodist Clergy Speak Out in Support of LGBTQIA People

(This statement is in the Grass Valley Union newspaper on March 13, 2019:  https://www.theunion.com/opinion/columns/other-voices-western-nevada-countys-united-methodist-clergy-speak-out-in-support-of-lgbtqia/.  It was drafted and signed by 15 Nevada County clergy, including me.)

We, the undersigned, are ordained clergy members of the United Methodist Church.  We are either currently appointed as pastors in Nevada County churches or are retired clergy now residing here. The official legislative body governing our global church is the General Conference, comprised of officially elected clergy and lay persons from around the world.

The issue of homosexuality has long been a matter of conflict within the United Methodist Church, particularly as to whether persons who openly identify themselves as LGBTQIA (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual) can be ordained as clergy and whether United Methodist clergy can preside at wedding services for persons so identified. Given this division, a special General Conference was convened from February 23-26 in St. Louis to address this controversy and determine “a way forward” for the denomination.  More than two-thirds of delegates from the United States voted for a more inclusive plan, but the United Methodist Church is a global church, made up of people from varied cultures, and is diverse theologically. After much debate, a plan was adopted by a slim margin to strengthen prohibitions on ordination and marriage ceremonies as mentioned above and to add severe penalties for any violations.

We deplore this decision, which toughens prohibitions against LGBTQIA clergy and all clergy who officiate at same-sex weddings.  We are concerned on many levels:

• This decision is heartbreaking and painful to our LGBTQIA sisters and brothers. This is contrary to Wesleyan theology as we know and practice it, especially to do no harm.  It gives support to those who would bully, reject or harm these beloved children of God.
• This decision damages the church, both laity and clergy, by setting up retributive sanctions without due process. It also increases the forces of division among members of the same congregations, members of the same regional areas, and members of the Body of Christ.
• This decision is based on a position that has already been ruled unconstitutional by the United Methodist Judicial Council. It will set in motion continued acrimony rather than offer an opportunity to celebrate diversity.  It does not resolve the conflicts among us, nor move us forward toward reconciliation.
• This decision throws the entire denomination into upheaval as Annual Conferences (regional bodies), local churches, and individuals are forced to face the unhealthy prospects of schism. Attention and energy that could be put to the pressing issues of our day will be spent on institutional preservation and/or separation.

For these reasons we pledge the following:

• We will continue to support and serve as allies to our LGBTQIA sisters and brothers, to affirm the sacred worth of every individual as a beloved child of God.
• We will continue to baptize all who come seeking to live in the grace of Jesus Christ.
• We will continue to perform wedding ceremonies for all who seek a service of Christian marriage.
• We will pursue a path within the institution that ensures full equality of participation and leadership for our LGBTQIA sisters and brothers at every level of church life.
• We will lead our congregations, with God’s grace, toward a whole and just world.

We affirm the leadership of the bishops of our Western Jurisdiction, comprised of Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, Wyoming, Washington, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Hawaii and Alaska, who articulate and defend our traditional Wesleyan values in support of a diverse and inclusive church.***

With sadness, yet in hope of a church made new, we sign below in affirmation that what God creates and calls good cannot be denied or voted away.  We shall not back down but will stand for what is right and good in God’s embracing love through Jesus Christ.  We do not stand alone, but with people around the world who desire to be part of an inclusive Christian fellowship that honors and loves them as does God. We will work for an outcome that includes justice, mercy and inclusion for all.

Rev. Don Baldwin (retired)

Rev. George Carter (retired)

Rev. Terry Deland (retired)

Rev. Sharon Delgado (retired)

Rev. Ron Dunn (retired)

Rev. Judson Gears (retired)

Rev. Rebecca Goodwin (active)

Rev. Susan Kemper (retired)

Rev. Don Lee (retired)

Rev. David Leeper-Moss (retired)

Rev. Tana McDonald (retired)

Rev. Joan Pell (active)

Rev. Kristin Sachen (active)

Rev. Barbara Smith (retired)

Rev. Jerry Smith (retired)

Rev. Patricia Spooner-Walther (retired)

Rev. Harold “Bud” Tillinghast (retired)

***See the Western Jurisdiction College of Bishops’ statement here:

http://westernjurisdictionumc.org/western-jurisdiction-umc-bishops-video-statement-script/