wfn.org | PJC Says Gay Man May Be Ordination Candidate, Ministers May Bless

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Note #5910 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

Same-Sex Unions
24-May-2000
00209

	PJC Says Gay Man May Be Ordination Candidate, Ministers May Bless Same-Sex
Unions

	Panel delays decision whether Vermont church can defy ordination standards

	by Alexa Smith

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The highest court in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has
ruled that PC(USA) ministers may perform same-sex union services as long as
they are not confused with marriage ceremonies, and that a church session
may accept a young gay man as a candidate for ministry.

	A third case, dealing with a congregation in Burlington, Vt., that accepts
gays and lesbians as full church members – including ordaining them as
church officers – despite a constitutional provision that categorically
forbids doing so, was deferred until July.

	Decisions of the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission, which met
in Baltimore, Md., May 19-22, establish precedents for cases in lower
courts.

	The three cases, all on appeal from the Synod of New England, are the first
to reach the denomination's highest court that test a controversial 1997
amendment to the constitution that sets strict limits on the sexual behavior
of church officers, gay or straight.

	Liberal groups have tried, unsuccessfully, to rescind article G-0106.b of
the church's "Book of Order" since its passage in 1997. The current cases
have been watched closely by both liberal and conservative special-interest
groups within the denomination as both groups prepare political strategies
for the 212th General Assembly (GA) June 24-July 1 in Long Beach, Calif. The
GA is the denomination's legislative body.

	G-0106.b – commonly known as "Amendment B" – requires that ordained church
officers either practice fidelity in marriage between a man and a woman, or
chastity in singleness.

	"As you well know, faithful Presbyterian Christians have diverse
convictions on these matters," the Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, the stated
clerk of the denomination, and Elder Freda Gardner, moderator of the 211th
GA, wrote in a pastoral letter issued May 24. They maintain that the
judicial commission's rulings are in keeping with present church policy.

	"As we approach the 212th General Assembly, we hope you will hold the whole
church, and especially those who are troubled by these decisions, in your
prayers," Kirkpatrick and Gardner wrote. "The theme of this assembly is
drawn from Galatians 3, ‘For all are one in Christ.' Such a promise was good
news not only for the early church, but is also good news for the
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) today as we seek to be faithful to Christ in
the midst of our diversity."
	
   	                    Same-Sex Ceremonies

	The court upheld a synod PJC's decision to allow Hudson River Presbytery to
adopt a policy that permits sessions to allow ministers to perform
ceremonies of holy union, providing that the action reflects "our
understanding at this time that these ceremonies do not constitute marriage
as defined in the Book of Order."

	The PJC held that the presbytery was in order to allow sessions to let
ministers participate in services of blessing – as long as the services are
not easily confused with marriage ceremonies. It also instructed the
presbytery to change the language of its policy to distinguish more clearly
between services of marriage and of blessing.

	Representatives of the presbytery told the court that they had not
developed criteria for differentiating between same-sex unions and
marriages.

	Hudson River Presbytery's attorney, Sharon Davison, of New York City,
argued that the presbytery abided by existing denominational policy
established by the 1991 General Assembly, on the counsel of its Advisory
Committee on the Constitution. That policy leaves it to pastors and sessions
to decide whether such rituals are appropriate – and makes clear that such a
same-sex ceremony is not identical to Christian marriage, which unites only
a man and a woman.

	"We accept the decision of the PJC, and we're not surprised by it," said
Harriet Sandmeir, the presbytery's stated clerk. She said the case was about
whether the presbytery had acted properly, not about the actions of any
particular church.

	The case arose after a newspaper reported that a same-sex ceremony had been
performed at the South Presbyterian Church in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., in 1998.

	In his arguments on Friday, Gordon Fish, who represented the complainants,
argued that the synod PJC's ruling that same-sex unions do not constitute
marriage is a "case of semantic hair-splitting" and a "sham."

	He urged the court to overturn it, insisting that there is a single
standard for sexual behavior for Christians: marriage between a man and a
woman, or chastity in singleness.  Blessing what the church historically has
considered sinful, Fish said, is unconstitutional. He claimed that that view
is supported by both the scriptures and the confessions.

	Referring to the 1998 ceremony, he said the gay partners did not propose
holy union to each other, but marriage. "They didn't talk about being
holy-unioned, but about being married," he said. "They didn't order a holy
union cake, but a wedding cake."

	Fish also pointed out that one of the officiating ministers testified that
the difference between the two ceremonies was not clear to him.

	Lead counsel Julius Poppinga was unavailable for comment at press time.
Fish took Poppinga's place before the court because Poppinga was sick.

                          Candidacy for ordination

	The PJC sustained a decision by West Jersey Presbytery to accept an openly
gay candidate for ministry who has said that he does not intend to remain
celibate. The court said G-6.0106b is to be applied when an individual is
considered for ordination – not candidacy for ordination – especially when
there is evidence that the candidate is currently abiding by PC(USA)
standards for sexual behavior of church officers.

	That is essentially the argument that presbytery counsel John Reisner, of
Haddonfield, N.J., made before the 16-member PJC last Friday. "As he
presents himself, he cannot be ordained in the PC(USA)," Reisner said. "He
knows that. The presbytery knows that. However, candidacy is a process, and
this candidate has some hard decisions to make. This is a well-qualified
candidate for ministry in all respects but one."

	Compliance with G-6106.b is the only impediment to Van Keuren's eligibility
to seek a call, according to the Rev. Wendy Boer, chair of the presbytery's
Committee on Preparation for Ministry. Van Keuren has completed seminary and
passed his ordination exams.

	Reisner told the court there is precedent for Van Keuren's candidacy,
citing the LeTourneau case, in which the PJC upheld Twin Cities Presbytery's
decision to accept a lesbian candidate while being forthright about
PC(USA)'s prohibition of ordaining practicing homosexuals.

	The presbytery had no comment at press time.

	Counsel for the complainants also was unavailable. However, the Rev. John
Sheldon, one of the 11 pastors who filed the appeal, told the Presbyterian
News Service: "We are obviously disappointed, on the basis of this letter
from Kirkpatrick's office, that we lost the case. Not having received the
decision, we are eager to find out if there are any dissenting opinions. We
are thankful we had the opportunity to state our case before the highest
court in the church, and grateful that all through the process, the
presbytery, synod and General Assembly PJCs still affirm that one who
intends to participate in homosexual practice may not be ordained."

	Lead attorney Gary Griffith, of Ocean City, N.J., told the press before the
court issued its ruling that anyone who acknowledges being a homosexual and
intends to be sexually active is in violation of the constitutional
standards of the church. He asked the court to overturn the decision of the
synod PJC and strike Van Keuren's name from the candidates' list, thereby
bringing the presbytery into compliance with the constitution.

	He argued, however, that the case is less about homosexuality than about
fairness. "The (point) is ... Everybody is not getting treated equally. This
candidate has said, ‘I can't meet the standards.' Not only ‘I can't,' but
‘I'm not going to.' Let him make those decisions as an inquirer."

	"If everybody sets up their own standard for what is righteous or not,
that's anarchy and we can't have it," Griffith contended.

	                       The Pastoral Letter

	In their pastoral letter, the clerk and the moderator raise the question,
"What does all this mean for Presbyterians?"

	Their answer: "In short, the PJC reaffirmed what has been the consistent
witness of the PC(USA) on these matters in recent years. It made clear that
those to be ordained or installed to church office are to practice ‘fidelity
in marriage and chastity in singleness.' At the same time, it made clear
this standard does not apply to membership in the church (which is open to
all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior) or to the various steps that
might lead up to the call to ordained office.

	"Concerning same-sex unions, the Judicial Commission made it clear that the
PC(USA) does not support ‘gay marriage' or the blessing of any relationship
between two persons of the same gender that could be considered to be a
marriage."

	The letter points out that the Commission affirmed the provisions of the
Directory for Worship, which grants wide latitude to sessions and pastors in
"ordering the life of congregations and providing services of blessing for
people in a variety of relationships, life situations and endeavors,
including those that might involve two persons of the same gender."

                                The Postponed Case

	Having heard five cases in a day, the PJC said that, "because of the high
number of cases," it had not had time to reach a decision on a case from the
Presbytery of Northern New England that challenges how much freedom a church
or presbytery has to dissent from a constitutional mandate.

	The court said it will take up the case in July.

	That case got under way when five sessions and 18 individuals filed a
complaint against the presbytery for rescinding an order instructing Christ
Presbyterian Church, of Burlington, Vt., to conform to G-6.00106b – which
the church's session still refused (and still refuses) to do. The synod PJC
upheld the complaint and ordered the presbytery to "work pastorally" to
bring Christ Church into compliance, and also to register its disapproval of
churches that defy denominational policy.

	The attorney for the presbytery, Peter Oddleifson, of Rochester, N.Y., told
the court that the presbytery is not being defiant, but has discovered that
Christ Church has a "valid and sacred" ministry to the gay community.

	"Inconsistencies in the ‘Book of Order' do exist," he argued, "so this is
an unresolved issue. ... It is irresponsible to damage or destroy a
congregation ... while a presbytery is struggling with how to deal with a
problem."

	Oddleifson said G-00106.b does not abrogate other parts of the constitution
that uphold freedom of the individual conscience and members' right to
ordain church leaders of their own choosing.

	Fish countered by pointing out that there is a strong judicial "track
record" of holding that presbyteries do not have the right to freely
exercise of their own judgment when it contradicts constitutional standards.
Freedom of conscience, he said, does not permit churches to "do as they
please," and leadership is not a given right of every church member.
Further, Fish argued that the presbytery is asking the PJC to change
confessional standards, which is beyond the judicial commission's authority.

	Christ Church's pastor, the Rev. Rebecca Strader, said: "The plea of Christ
Church from the beginning of the case is that the session is placed in a
difficult dilemma, as is the presbytery, by attempting to comply with and
enforce our current constitution in its entirety. The General Assembly
Permanent Judicial Commission is taking the needed time to decide a complex
case, and I appreciate their willingness to consider the dilemma surrounding
it."

	Strader said the presbytery is trying to find "an alternative pastoral
response" to Christ Church rather than simply ordering compliance.

	A PASTORAL LETTER TO THE CHURCH
	concerning the
	DECISIONS OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY PERMANENT JUDICIAL COMMISSION

May 24, 2000

Dear Friends in Christ:

You will soon be reading in the secular and church related press about the
actions taken by the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission on cases
concerning ordination and human sexuality and same sex unions.  As your
elected leaders, we want you to hear first from us.  These are issues around
which there are deep, and often conflicting, convictions among
Presbyterians, but it is important for all of us to understand the actual
decisions rendered by our Permanent Judicial Commission.  It is also
important that we hold one another and our church in prayer as we seek to be
faithful to the biblical witness and the love of Christ for all people.

There were a number of cases considered by the General Assembly Permanent
Judicial Commission this past weekend, but three of them dealt with issues
related to the church's position on matters related to human sexuality.  In
remedial case 212-8 (Session, Londonderry Presbyterian Church v. Presbytery
of Northern New England) the issue was over the right of a  presbytery to
concur with the request of one of its sessions for an exemption from the
constitutional requirements that no church officers be ordained or installed
who fail to live up to the standard of "fidelity in marriage or chastity in
singleness" (G-6.0106b).  Because of the high number of cases before this
session of the Permanent Judicial Commission, they did not have time to
reach a decision on this case but will do so at their meeting in early July.

Remedial case 212-12 (John S. Sheldon, et. al. v. Presbytery of West Jersey)
asked the Judicial Commission to set aside an action by the presbytery in
which it approved a candidate for the ministry who met the requirements for
candidacy but who indicated that he is a gay man who is currently celibate
but who intends to participate in a fully sexual way in a future monogamous
same sex relationship.  The Permanent Judicial Commission sustained the
action of the presbytery, indicating that (as the presbytery noted) the
standard of "fidelity in marriage or chastity in singleness" (G-6.0106b) is
to be applied at the point that a person is considered for ordination, not
for candidacy, especially when there is evidence that the candidate in
question is currently abiding by the standard of "chastity in singleness."

Remedial case 212-11 (Marc G. Benton, et. al. v. Presbytery of Hudson River)
deals with a challenge to the following policy adopted by the presbytery:
"that the Presbytery affirm the freedom of any session to allow its
ministers to perform ceremonies of holy union (within or outside the
confines of the church sanctuary) between persons of the same gender,
reflecting our understanding at this time that these ceremonies do not
constitute marriage as defined in the Book of Order."  The Judicial
Commission reaffirmed the 1991 authoritative interpretation of the General
Assembly that Christian marriage can only be between a man and a woman and
that no minister or church building should be involved in a same sex union
ceremony that could be considered the same as a marriage ceremony.  Based on
this interpretation, the Judicial Commission held that the presbytery was in
order in permitting sessions and ministers to participate in services of
blessing as long as these were clearly not considered or easily confused
with marriage ceremonies.  While affirming this right for the presbytery,
the Judicial Commission also instructed the presbytery to change the
language of its policy (quoted above) to make very clear the distinction
between marriage (which is between a man and a woman) and blessing services
that might apply to other relationships.

What does all this mean for Presbyterians?  In short, the Permanent Judicial
Commission re-affirmed what has been the consistent witness of the
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) on these matters in recent years.  It made
clear that those to be ordained or installed to church office are to
practice "fidelity in marriage and chastity in singleness."  At the same
time, it made clear that this standard does not apply to membership in the
church (which is open to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior) or
to the various steps that might lead up to the call to ordained office.

Concerning same sex unions, the Judicial Commission made it clear that the
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) does not support "gay marriage" or the blessing
of any relationship between two persons of the same gender that could be
considered to be a marriage.  The Permanent Judicial Commission stated in
its decision, "Ministers and sessions should take special care to avoid any
confusion of such (same sex) services with services of Christian marriage. 
Ministers should not appropriate specific liturgical forms from services of
Christian marriage or services recognizing civil marriage in the conduct of
such ceremonies.  They should also instruct same-sex couples that the
service to be conducted does not constitute a marriage ceremony and should
not be held out as such."  At the same time, the Commission affirmed the
provisions of the Directory for Worship, which grants wide latitude to
sessions and their pastors in ordering the worship life of congregations and
in providing services of blessing for people in a variety of relationships,
life situations and endeavors, including those that might involve two
persons of the same gender.

As you well know, faithful Presbyterian Christians have diverse convictions
on these matters.  As we approach the 212th General Assembly, we hope you
will hold the whole church, and especially those who are troubled by these
decisions, in your prayers.  The theme of this assembly is drawn from
Galatians 3, "For all are one in Christ."  Such a promise was good news not
only for the early church but is also good news for the Presbyterian Church
(U.S.A.) today as we seek to be faithful to Christ in the midst of our
diversity.

May God continue to richly bless you, your ministry and the Presbyterian
Church (U.S.A.).

Yours in Christ, 

Freda Gardner
Moderator, 211th General Assembly

Clifton Kirkpatrick		
Stated Clerk of the General Assembly		

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