LGBTQ Ordination: here we go again.

February 19, 2009 by Pastor Dan.

The ELCA released the final Draft Sexuality Statement today, called “Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust,” but it doesn’t contain much that is new. This Draft of a social teaching was authorized in 2001, and has been painful in its formation. This coming summer in Minneapolis, the voting members of the ELCA will have the last word on the draft and probably adopt it at the official policy of the churchbody. In the meantime, the Council of Bishops and others will be able to take a crack at it.

You can download the documents here.

What is new is the accompanying document – recommendations about what to do with gay/ lesbian partnered clergy or candidates for ministry. On first reading, it appears to be the “half a loaf” solution to a problem that vexes church denominations: each Synod can decide for itself, whether to accept, tolerate or ban gay clergy.

Right now, that probably means that large metropolitan areas with more liberal congregations and bishops will continue to accept sexual minority clergy, but more suburban and rural areas will not.

But the half loaf solution is almost all wrong. Instead of adopting a policy of “local option” – leaving it to each congregation to decide if it accepts or hates the thought of a homosexual, bisexual or transgender pastor– or in the alternative, liberalizing the policy from the top down, this “half loaf” solution puts the decision at the synod level.

Geographic synods do have a lot to say about the people who serve as pastors in their jurisdiction. A powerful bishop can either open doors in a parish church, or welcome in a pastor or pastoral candidate in the effort to place him or her in a congregation, or virtually block any pastor from serving or being considered for a call.

The whole reason the Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries came into existence more than a decade ago was to get around these blockades which synodical bishops have the authority to set up. A network of open-minded congregations has developed and is expanding which will consider an LGBT candidate (otherwise fully-qualified by professional and spiritual measures). Fear of discipline by the synodical bishops have kept many congregations from being open-minded about LGBTQ clergy, and literally forced individuals who are lesbian or gay to remain very closeted, which is amazing in this day and age when coming out as a sexual minority is moving forward in every other sector or our society.

But the “half loaf” recommendations, by lodging this partial liberality at the synod level —if approved in August by the ELCA’s Assembly—almost guarantees the politicizing of every decision at the synod level. When a bishop is elected, or any member of the Synod Council is elected, you can bet that people will be pressing them to reveal where they stand on homosexual clergy.  Instead of either slamming the door or opening it wide to fly a rainbow flag, the door will flop open or closed depending on who gets elected.  Since one or another of these positions are up for election every year, it means that every annual Synod assembly may become a time to re-open the debate over LGBT clergy, like re-opening a wound over and over.

We aren’t privy to the discussions of the national committee, chaired by Rev. Peter Strommen, that drafted these recommendations. All we can tell is the effect of their discussions, and the effect is to shove the homophobic policy down to a regional level as if this will get homosexuality off of the priority list at the national level. Folks, it is not that simple.  You will come to regret it.

— Pastor Dan Hooper, Los Angeles

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