wfn.org | ELCA Bishops Hear Proposals for Study, Voice Preferences

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ELCA NEWS SERVICE

October 17, 2001

ELCA BISHOPS HEAR PROPOSALS FOR STUDY, VOICE PREFERENCES
01-255-JB

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Two divisions of the churchwide organization of
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) said they will work
cooperatively to carry out directives of the 2001 ELCA Churchwide
Assembly, division leaders said in a report to the ELCA Conference of
Bishops Oct. 8.  The assembly, which met in August in Indianapolis,
directed the churchwide organization to produce a study on
homosexuality, develop a plan and time line leading to a decision
regarding the possible ordination of gay and lesbian people in committed
relationships and initiate a process to develop a social statement on
human sexuality.
     The Conference of Bishops, which met here Oct. 4-9, is an advisory
body to the church.  Its members include the ELCA's 65 synod bishops,
ELCA presiding bishop and ELCA secretary.
     The bishops were the first group to hear suggestions for how the
study and statement may be done.  They made known their preferences for
how to proceed, though the ELCA Church Council will make formal
decisions on the proposals.
     The ELCA Church Council is the church's board of directors and
functions as the interim legislative authority between churchwide
assemblies.  The next assembly is planned for 2003 in Milwaukee. The
council will meet here Nov. 9-11.
     In introducing the report on the proposals to the bishops, the
Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop-elect, said "homosexuality
and human sexuality should not define who we are as the ELCA, but a part
of who we are."
     The ELCA Division for Ministry and ELCA Division for Church in
Society propose to lead together the effort to fulfill the assembly
mandates, said the Rev. Joseph M. Wagner, executive director, Division
for Ministry.  The units propose to combine into a single effort the
homosexuality study, the request for a specific time line leading to a
decision on ordaining gay and lesbian people in committed relationships
and the process for a social statement on human sexuality, Wagner said.
     The process would involve regular consultation with the Church
Council, Conference of Bishops, presiding bishop, members of synods,
seminaries, colleges and universities, and other units of the church, he
said.  He also said the lead units involved acknowledge the "unsettled
time" in the United States following the recent terrorist attacks and
the U.S. military response in Afghanistan.
     The homosexuality study and ordination plan and time line have the
ELCA's 2005  Churchwide Assembly as deadlines for possible decision; the
assembly mandated no deadline for the human sexuality social statement.
     "We could not accomplish all of this in four years," Wagner said.
Initial work will build on the existing ELCA message, "Sexuality: Some
Common Convictions," which the Church Council adopted in 1996, he said.
     A preliminary report on the homosexuality study will be provided
to the 2003 Churchwide Assembly, with a final report in 2005, Wagner
said.  A preliminary draft of the human sexuality statement would be
made in 2005, with a final report planned for 2007, he added.
     In a written report to the bishops, the divisions outlined as many
as four different options for accomplishing the tasks.  One option is to
delay the study, given the circumstances surrounding the Sept. 11
attacks.  Three other options lay out proposals for study with costs
that could range from $850,000 to $1.3 million over six years, depending
on the process chosen, the bishops were told.  Presently, no funds are
budgeted for these expenses.
      Next month, the report said, the divisions plan to ask the Church
Council to authorize an initial expenditure of $250,000, which would
include appointment of a full-time study director.  In the spring, they
plan to ask the council to identify sources for additional funds,
parameters of the study and, if desired, appointment of a task force.
     Both of the divisions' executive directors proposed that they
approve printing and distribution of any documents associated with the
study, the report said.
     In an informal poll, the bishops seemed to favor appointment of a
study director, a small task force, and use of existing meetings in
congregations and synods for discussion and feedback. Costs for this
mid-range option are estimated at $1 million over six years.
     In a discussion, the bishops offered a wide range of opinions
about how to proceed.
     "I think there would be great value in having the widest possible
involvement," said the Rev. Paul J. Blom, bishop of the ELCA Texas-
Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod, Houston.  Speaking in favor of a greater
degree of study, he said such a process might provide a good teaching
moment in the church for how members can engage in moral deliberation
together.
     The Rev. Peter Rogness, bishop of the ELCA Greater Milwaukee
Synod, said an approach without a task force might offer the church a
better chance for wide-ranging and open discussion.  "I think we widen
it (the study process) by doing a low-budget process," he said.
     Anxiety in congregations about the study might be reduced if
congregations are engaged and there is regular consultation with the
ELCA bishops, said the Rev. Marcus J. Miller, bishop of the ELCA
Northeastern Ohio Synod, Cuyahoga Falls.  "People I have heard from want
the opportunity to speak with the director and the task force," he said.
      Finances for such a study are important, said the Rev. Ronald D.
Martinson, bishop of the ELCA Alaska Synod, Anchorage.  However, he
noted that money provided for a study alone may not provide all of the
answers to meet the needs of members.
     "What's going to do it is when people really dig into Scripture
and learn where we are as Lutherans," Martinson said.
     In brief comments to the bishops on behalf of the ELCA's seminary
presidents, the Rev. Frederick H. Reisz Jr.,  president of Lutheran
Theological Southern Seminary, an ELCA seminary in Columbia, S.C., said
the presidents have discussed this issue.  As the church works through
the assembly's mandates, Reisz said, seminary faculties will likely
offer at least three resources: a bibliography of resources on
homosexuality, a booklet including the views of four authors based on
biblical hermeneutics and ethics, and a resource on the issue of
blessings of same-gender relationships based on a series of papers.
     However the ELCA proceeds, Reisz emphasized the importance of a
full church discussion and discernment leading to any decisions.
     "People have to come out of this process feeling like this was a
church decision," he said.

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