LGBTQ & Christian?
We march in San Francisco to the site of the United Methodist Judical Council hearings Oct 24, 2007
Walnut Creek United Methodist Church is a "Reconciling Congregation." This means that we have made an explicit statement of welcome to gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered and questioning persons:
The Reconciling Team is a group of people that works to help our congregation keep exploring and celebrating what is means to be inclusive and a church of open hearts, open minds and open doors. We are currently working on a proposal endorsing same sex marriage for our congregation's approval.
On June 5, 1994 Walnut Creek United Methodist Church voted to become a Reconciling Congregation by a vote of 206 (79%) for to 56 (21%) against and approved the following affirmation:
Believing that all persons are recipients of God's grace, the Walnut Creek First United Methodist Church makes these affirmations:
We rejoice in the gifts and graces of all persons. No one will be excluded from participating in the body of the church because of age, race, ethnicity, culture, religious origins, sexual preference, or challenging conditions; therefore, we openly accept and welcome the participation of lesbian, gay and bisexual persons in our midst.
Acceptance for all can be a reality, if we as builders of the community make it so. Fear, hatred and oppression reflect neither God's love nor God's intent for the community of faith.
We pledge our efforts to advocate and address the concerns of all in our church and in society.
We pray for all who find themselves in exile from the family of God. We pray that our church, the First United Methodist Church in Walnut Creek, will share the responsibility of moving forward to affirm the integrity and worth of all persons.
*We commit ourselves, as the body of Christ, to advocate for the right of everyone to have the freedom to marry the person of their choice, regardless of color, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, gender identity or challenging conditions.
We affirm the teachings of Jesus that call us to move beyond judgment to love, and renew our commitment to one another and to this church to be faithful witnesses of the gospel. *We believe that discrimination and intolerance is incompatible with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
As builders of the bridges of connectedness, we invite all to join with us in our gatherings.
*The bolded additions were updated from our All Church Meeting on June 7, 2009
What is a Reconciling Congregation?
Information regarding the issues of Reconciling Congregations and Homosexuality in the United Methodist Church
A reconciling congregation in the United Methodist Church is a church that is part of the national Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN), which advocates the full participation of people in the United Methodist Church regardless of sexual orientations and gender identities. The name of the Reconciling Ministries organization is based on the passage from 2 Corinthians 5:19:
In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
The following provides information on reconciling congregations as well as the United Methodist Church's position on homosexuality, links to Methodist organizations on both sides of the debate, links to both Biblical passages and books dealing with the issue, and information that has been distributed to NBUMC members with regards to the current bridge building/reconciling study.
What does becoming a reconciling congregation really mean?
Becoming a reconciling congregation,
1) DOES MEAN that the members of a church have chosen to publicly declare that it welcomes all persons regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity by issuing a statement of affirmation
2) DOES MEAN that all visitors to a reconciling church can know that they will be welcomed and not judged on their sexual orientation and will not be subjected to anything negative or derogatory with regards to the issue of homosexuality during any part of a church service or event
3) DOES MEAN that the church is welcoming the opportunity to become a more diverse congregation
4) DOES MEAN that the church joins other United Methodist churches, individuals and organizations in the belief that all people should be accepted and are loved by God regardless of their sexual orientation.
5) DOES MEAN that when the time comes for the appointment of a pastor to a reconciling church, the bishop will be mindful of this and attempt to appoint someone who shares the church's views on the subject of sexual orientation.
Becoming a reconciling congregation,
1) DOES NOT MEAN that the church will be disenfranchised or punished by the United Methodist Church because of the acceptance of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders into its congregation - there are no cases of this having happened.
2) DOES NOT MEAN that the church will become a "gay church" - it is believed that reconciling congregations have an average of about 10-15% gay members, and many churches acknowledge the added blessings of open honesty, trust and love in becoming a reconciling congregation.
3) DOES NOT MEAN that the church must have an annual "gay tax" line item in its budget payable to the Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN) - all donations to RMN are voluntary and there is no requirement or expectation that a reconciling church must pay a yearly apportionment/fee to RMN. Individual donations are the major source of funding for RMN.
4) DOES NOT MEAN that the congregation must support a clergy member who announces that he or she is gay and thus will be subject to a church trial under current United Methodist Church policy.
5) DOES NOT MEAN that the congregation will necessarily support gay marriage issues - some reconciling churches, especially some in California and Massachusetts, are certainly supportive of gay marriage proposals, but there is no requirement or expectation that a reconciling church will agree with proposals regarding the redefinition of the institution of marriage. These are considered two separate issues
************************************************************************
Links to Methodist Organizations with stated opinions on the issue of homosexuality:
United Methodist Groups with Progressive points of view
Methodist Federation for Social Action (MFSA) - organization that advocates for peace and justice issues within all levels of the United Methodist Church.
Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN) - group of churches, communities, and individuals that advocates for the full "participation of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities in the life of the United Methodist Church".
Affirmation - An activist organization of United Methodists that addresses inclusion and justice concerns of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgenders and their allies
************************************************************************
The United Methodist Church's position on homosexuality
The position of the church as stated in the Book of Discipline regarding self-avowed, practicing homosexuals and the ministry (Paragraph 304.3):
While persons set apart by the Church for ordained ministry are subject to all the frailties of the human condition and the pressures of society, they are required to maintain the highest standards of holy living in the world. Since the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching, self-avowed practicing homosexuals1 are not to be accepted as candidates, ordained as ministers, or appointed to serve in The United Methodist Church.
1. "Self-avowed practicing homosexual" is understood to mean that a person openly acknowledges to a bishop, district superintendent, district committee of ordained ministry, board of ordained ministry, or clergy session that the person is a practicing homosexual. See Judicial Council Decisions 702, 708, 722, 725, 764, 844.
The position of the church as stated in the Book of Discipline regarding homosexual unions (Paragraph 332.6):
Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers and shall not be conducted in our churches.
Link to the church's position on human sexuality as stated in the Social Principles, including the following statement on homosexuality:
"The United Methodist Church does not condone the practice of homosexuality and consider this practice incompatible with Christian teaching."
*At our church conference held on November 22, 2009 we passed the following declaration:
- We the members of Walnut Creek United Methodist Church believe that the General Conference should remove all discriminatory language pertaining to homesexuality from the Book of Discipline.
On October 29, 2005, the Judicial Council of the United Methodist Church ruled in Decision 1032 that a Virginia United Methodist pastor was within his right to deny membership to a gay man because the perspective member was unwilling to repent or seek to live a different lifestyle.
In reaction to the Judicial Council's ruling, the Council of Bishops released a pastoral letter to the People of The United Methodist Church on November 2, 2005 stating that "gay and lesbian people are not to be excluded from church membership." The following day, Bishop John Schol also released a statement reiterating what the Council of Bishops had said and asking members of the Baltimore-Washington Conference to "keep the whole church in prayer and especially those who are experiencing the pain of being excluded by the recent Judicial Council decisions." The Bishop's letter can be found by clicking on this link.
The Baltimore-Washington and Wisconsin Annual Conferences passed motions in early November 2005 requesting that a special session of the General Conference be convened to address the matter of Decision 1032
************************************************************************
Scriptures often cited in the debate about Homosexuality:
Genesis 19:1-29: The story of Sodom & Gomorrah
Leviticus 18:22 & Leviticus 20:13: the "abomination" passages
Romans 1: 26-27: Paul's passage regarding the "unnatural", those who are socially unacceptable
I Corinthians 6:9-10: Paul's reference to those who are unrighteous - the translation of this passage has been debated by Biblical scholars
I Timothy 1:9-10: A passage similar to the 1 Corinthians passage - the translation of this passage has also been debated by some scholars
Other passages cited less frequently:
Jude 1:6-7: Reference to Sodom and Gomorrah
2 Peter 2:4-11: Reference to Sodom and Gomorrah
1 Samuel 18:1-4, 1 Samuel 20:1-42, and 2 Samuel 1:22-26 The story of David & Jonathan which some argue was more than a friendship
Ruth 1:16-17: The story of Ruth and Naomi which some also cite as being more than a friendship
************************************************************************
A few books that address the subject of the church and homosexuality:
Jesus, the Bible and Homosexuality: Explode the Myths, Heal the Church by Jack Rogers
What the Bible Really Says About Homosexuality by Daniel Helminiak
Homosexuality and the Bible: Two Views by Robert Gagnon
The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and Hermeneutics by Robert Gagnon
The Church and the Homosexual by John McNeil
Homosexuality in the Church: Both Sides of the Debate by Jeffrey Siker
Living in Sin?: A Bishop Rethinks Human Sexuality by Bishop John Spong
Stranger at the Gate : To Be Gay and Christian in America by Mel White
Uncommon Calling: A Gay Man's Struggle to Serve the Church by Chris Glase