Religious Left

By Daniel Burke, Religion News Service USA Today A Presbyterian minister who officiated at a lesbian wedding in 2005 is heading for church court again, two years after charges against her were dismissed on a technicality. The Rev. Janet Edwards of Pittsburgh will again face possible expulsion if convicted by the Permanent Judicial Commission of the Pittsburgh Presbytery. Edwards will appear before the commission Oct. 1, to answer charges that she defied her ordination vows and Presbyterian Church (USA) rules by officiating at the Pittsburgh wedding of a lesbian couple in 2005. "I am trying really hard to speak clearly about how what I did reflects Jesus' love and justice, and so I hope the permanent judicial council acquits me," Edwards said. full article

By Lillian Kwon The Christian Post The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)'s highest governing body voted Friday in favor of a proposal that would allow for the ordination of non-celibate gays and lesbians. The 218th General Assembly, meeting in San Jose, Calif., this week, voted 380-325 to send the overture – that would delete the requirement that clergy live in "fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman, or chastity in singleness" – to the denomination's 173 presbyteries for approval. Adding to the blow to conservatives, the Assembly also adopted a supplementary authoritative interpretation of the PC(USA) constitution that would allow gay and lesbian candidates for ordination to conscientiously object the current "fidelity and chastity" standard and the local ordaining body to discern whether the declared objection is disqualifying. Also on Friday, the Assembly approved a new authoritative interpretation of the Book of Order - which conta...

by Fiona MacGregor The Scotsman Gene Robinson, the first openly gay Anglican bishop, came to Scotland this week to debate homosexuality and religion. He has maintained his dignity in the face of hostility from the Church, but tells Fiona MacGregor his patience may be running out. "I am losing my patience. I have tried to play by the rules and be respectful and sometimes it would be nice to be shown a little respect back. I try to keep my sympathy (for Williams] and I do worry and pray for him. I don't believe this (refusal to recognise homosexual relationships can have a place within the church) is what's in his heart – unless he's changed very much since he became Archbishop of Canterbury." "As more and more Christians make themselves known to us as gay or lesbian, the more we realise they are not outside the embrace of God – I think that will prove itself over time. But I caution people all the time to be very careful of anyone who says they know what God...

BBC News, Wales Stephen Price, 25, of Clydach near Abergavenny, was bullied out of his job at Coleg Trefeca in Brecon by his manager Mair Jones, aged 40. A Cardiff tribunal heard Mrs Jones called him a "stupid poof" and gave him pink fairy toilet paper as a gift. The money was awarded for constructive dismissal and injury to feelings. The church had denied Mr Price's claim for sexual harassment, constructive dismissal and discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. The tribunal's panel ruled the church's internal investigation into Mr Price's claims of harassment was unfair, unbalanced, confused and contradictory. " He started as a cheerful and enthusiastic young man and there is no evidence of a vindictive side to his nature nor that his claims were fabricated " Dr Rachel Davies, judge full article with video

On June 27th I provided information on an article regarding the verbal assault on Presbyterian Assembly attendees in San Jose, California. In the article it stated the police were called and refused to respond. The police stated the altercation was on private property so they couldn’t help. I found this unacceptable and wrote the following letter to the Mayor; Mayor Reed, I was shocked today when I read an article stating your police department refused a call for assistance. It would seem on Wednesday evening Presbyterian Assembly attendees were verbally accosted by protestors. When a call was made to your police department, they refused to respond stating the protestors were on private property. Now I'm positive your police department has on file an arrest which was made on private property based on a verbal assault. Police are to "serve and protect". It seems that is no longer true in your city. Here is an article with the full story: http://young-activist.blogspot.com...

It wasn’t so long ago a high court in Australia was telling a religion they could not impose their religion upon law since there are many religions. The court continued by stating, since churches and religions exist which support homosexuality, another religion, which doesn't suppport homosexuality holds no sway. Now that Presbyterians have come into the light, this fact gains strength. Those who wish to bask in fundamental religious teachings will gain their just reward of shrinking numbers. Soon the fundamental religious folks will be on the same level as polygamists. Just another radical religious sect, unable to progress with the rest of the world. The church made a very big mistake becoming involved in politics. But I'm glad they did because now we force the fringe out into the light of day. Exposing their true intent to arrogantly attempt control and intimidation based on their personal beliefs. In my mind there is something terribly wrong with a "man of ...

For those wanting more information about the ins and outs of the recent Presbyterian Assembly; you are in luck. I just ran across the site of Pastor John Shuck, First Presbyterian Church of Elizabethton, Tennessee. There is so much information over there I'm not even going to try to encapsulate it. Click here to check it out .

Le Anne Clausen over at Journal of a Young Activist relates a story regarding the Presbyterian General Assembly in San Jose, California. Religious based hate groups were ready to accost the Presbyterians as they returned to the building Wednesday evening. The religious based Bema Ministries were carrying signs and shouting epithets such as "Jesus hates you" and "All Presbyterians will burn in hell". The group arrived a day after the denomination's committee recommendation to the Assembly to delete G-6.0106(b), a clause that excludes gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered persons in relationships from being ordained to the ministry of word and sacrament. The group brought large signs declaring, "Homo Sex is a Sin," and "Homosexuality is a Threat to National Security," and positioned themselves on the plaza outside the Convention Center. Presbyterian commissioners (voting delegates), youth delegates, and other participants in the Assembly w...

According to the Star Tribune the Presbyterian Church experienced record-breaking membership decline last year. Perhaps this news would indicate a need to make some changes? Although the source seems anti-gay the news is good. Over at the Dakota Voice (“without the liberal bias” can be read as “with right wing bias”) they provide us with a few tidbits regarding the current Presbyterian conference in California. It would seem there were some translation issues with the Catechism: In 1967 the Presbyterian Church adopted a 1962 Miller-Osterhaven version of the catechism in its Book of Confessions. This translation of the original German document is said to contain a reference to "homosexual perversion" not found in the original. The first visual that came to my mind was Jesus with open and welcoming arms of love.

by Matthai Kuruvila, Religion Writer San Francisco Chronicle Members of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) have for decades been struggling to come to a consensus about the role of gays and lesbians in the church. And they just can't make up their mind. The church allows the blessing of same-sex unions, but defines homosexual acts as sinful and won't ordain partnered lesbian or gay candidates for priesthood. They're steadfast in opposition to same-sex marriage - but vindicate priests who preside over them, saying church-approved marriages can't exist no matter what priests do or say. "Sadly enough, I think within my own denomination, the state has been a much more powerful witness than the church has," said Rev. W. Rob Martin III, pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Palo Alto, which has welcomed and blessed same-sex couples for nearly 20 years. "It's my fervent hope that with movement in civil society my denomination will catch up with that." fu...

Associated Press The International Herald SAN RAFAEL, California : A retired Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) minister challenged her denomination's position on same-sex marriage Friday by officiating the wedding of two women who wanted to be among the first same-sex couples to legally marry in California. The Rev. Jane Spahr, of San Rafael, presided over the wedding between Sara Taylor, 54, and Sherrie Holmes, 57, at the Marin County Civic Center, where the pair secured their marriage license on Tuesday. "I pronounced them married under the authority granted me by the state and as a minister of the Presbyterian Church," Spahr said after the service attended by Holmes' 30-year-old daughter and longtime friends of the couple, who have been together 18 years. full article

BBC News United Kingdom Stephen Price, 25, of Clydach near Abergavenny, claims he was bullied out of his job by Mair Jones, 40, because she made anti-homosexual taunts. He had told the hearing he was forced to quit as the assistant manager because of Ms Jones's non-stop comments about sex, which included calling him a "stupid poof" and telling other staff he "batted for the other side". But giving evidence on Wednesday, Ms Jones said she did not even know Mr Price was gay and denied driving him away from the centre. The tribunal heard that an internal church investigation had upheld claims of aggressive behaviour, foul language and bullying by Ms Jones, who had worked at the church centre for 10 years. But the Presbyterian Church of Wales failed to take any disciplinary action against her. full article

By Michael Conlon, Religion Writer Reuters CHICAGO (Reuters) - The highest court of the U.S. Presbyterian Church has lifted a censure placed on a retired minister for presiding over two same-sex unions, the church announced on Tuesday. The ruling said the Rev. Jane Adams Spahr, an activist for gay and lesbian causes who lives in San Rafael, California, performed "ceremonies" and not actual marriages in two instances in 2004 and 2005. Both cases involved lesbian couples. full article

Recently I read an article on how the "powers that be" in the Presbyterian religion cleared up confusion in regards to gay clergy. The largest Presbyterian body in the country, the PC(USA) has been wracked with confusion and debates over gay ordination since the 2006 General Assembly adopted an "authoritative interpretation" of the ordination standard. Some felt the decision gave leeway to local and regional governing bodies to ordain practicing gay ministers. Last month's rulings upheld the denomination's fidelity and chastity requirement – fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman, or chastity in singleness" – and were praised by conservatives. "I commend the church court for making clear and final what ought to have been obvious all along: Our constitution appropriately forbids the ordination of persons unrepentantly remaining in sinful practices," said Jim Berkley, director of the Institute on Religion and Democrac...

Baltimore Presbyterians are calling for a change in the religion’s definition of marriage in order to extend equality to gays and lesbians. The executive presbyter for Baltimore’s presbytery, Rev. Peter Nord said, "It’s a vote that provides real sustenance and hope for those who want same-sex couples to be treated with respect and equality." Said Nord, "One of the things I’m committed to is keeping the family together and recognizing that it is only in diversity that we are able to fully understand the desires and will of God, and if any party removes itself from the discussion, we all suffer from that." full article

On Aug. 23, the Synod of the Pacific Permanent Judicial Commission, a regional body of the Presbyterian Church ( USA ) , reversed the Presbytery of the Redwood’s previous acquittal of any wrongdoing by the Rev. Jane Spahr in her decision to officiate at marriage ceremonies for two lesbian couples. The Synod stated, “Although the Rev. Dr. Spahr had acted with conscience and conviction, her actions were contrary to the [ Presbyterian Church ( USA ) ] Constitution as it is authoritatively interpreted.” In a 6-2 vote, the Synod directed that a finding of guilty be entered, and Spahr receive the censure of rebuke, which was the lightest punishment possible for the offense. “For me to say that one is better than the other…I don’t even think like that. It’s got to be equal. … I’m not only for equal rights, I’m for equal rites,” explained Sparh. http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=15946 .

Overturning an earlier ruling that upheld a lesbian minister's right to perform same-sex weddings, a Presbyterian appeals court decided last week that the minister had violated church policy. The Pacific Permanent Judicial Commission, representing Presbyterian churches in California, Idaho, Oregon and Nevada, ruled 6-2 August 23 that the Reverend Jane Spahr should be rebuked for marrying gay and lesbian couples. "For me, this kind of decision again perpetuates a second-class attitude. It not only perpetuates myths and stereotypes, but some people will feel it gives them license to do violence," Spahr said in a telephone interview Tuesday. Spahr has served as a Presbyterian minister since 1974. Early in her career she founded the Ministry of Light in Marin County, which became Spectrum Center for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Concerns, in San Anselmo. More recently she started a national Presbyterian group for LGBT people called, That All May Freely Serve. Alt...