wfn.org | UCC President asks that pastoral letter be read from church pulpits

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@wfn.org>]

Nov. 19, 1998
Office of Communication
United Church of Christ
Barb Powell, press contact
(216) 736-2217
<powellb@ucc.org>
On the web: <http://www.ucc.org>

UCC President asks that pastoral letter on ministry and rights
of gay, lesbian and bisexual church members be read from
church pulpits

     CLEVELAND -- The Rev. Paul H. Sherry, president
of the 1.4-million-member United Church of Christ, has
requested that his pastoral letter supporting the full
participation of gay, lesbian and bisexual persons in the
membership and ministry of the church, and the protection of
their civil rights in society, be read aloud from all local church
pulpits.
     The pastoral document, mailed this week to the more
than 6,000 local UCC churches, was written by Sherry in
response to a summer marked by anti-gay statements by a
number of religious and political leaders.  In the cover letter
accompanying the document, Sherry writes, "The hatred
exposed in the shocking murder of Matthew Shepard in
Wyoming last month underscores the critical importance of
this reflection and of the need for our voice to be heard."
     "I am mailing it to all local churches with a request
that it be read from our pulpits, discussed in adult forums and
confirmation classes and shared broadly with lay leaders," he
continues.  "Knowing how challenging this issue can be for
some in our churches, I hope it can be helpful to you in the
exercise of your own leadership, providing a way to initiate
needed reflection, study and action.  I also hope it can be a
resource to members of our church who enter into public
conversations on this issue so that we can offer a clear witness
shaped by the languages of the church's Scripture and its
theological traditions."
     The pastoral letter, titled "Now, No Condemnations,"
urges local congregations to be welcoming sanctuaries for all
people and acknowledges that "we have sometimes failed to
recognize how the Bible has been used by some to perpetuate
prejudice and to justify violence against homosexual persons." 
It is available in both English and Spanish, and is posted in
full on the UCC Web site:  <http://www.ucc.org>.
     The United Church of Christ, with national offices in
Cleveland, was formed by the 1957 union of the
Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and
Reformed Church.
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