Ordination of LGBT Christian clergy
Encyclopedia
The ordination of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender clergy who are open about their sexuality, are sexually active, or are in committed same-sex relationships is a debated practice within some contemporary Christian
Church communities.
While the majority of churches are opposed to it because they view homosexuality
as incompatible with Biblical teaching and traditional Christian practice , there are an increasing number of Christian churches and communities that are open to the ordination of people who are gay and lesbian. These are mainly moderate and liberal Protestant churches and include the Metropolitan Community Church
and the Church of Sweden
where clergy may serve in senior clerical positions.
The issue of ordination has caused particular controversy in the worldwide Anglican communion, following the appointment of the Bishop of New Hampshire
in the US Episcopal Church
.
, and the Moravian Church , are discussing it while the Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELCA)
, the Episcopal Church
, and the Presbyterian Church
approved rules to ordain openly gay or lesbian clergy.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
decided in August 2009 to accept gay clergy in sexually active monogamous relationships. In July 2011 also Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
decided to accept gay clergy in sexually active monogamous relationships.
The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches
is the first denomination with an official stance allowing non-celibate gays and lesbians
to be ordained; it is also one of the fastest growing denominations in the United States
and the United Kingdom
. Smaller denominations, like the Liberal Catholic Church
, the Swedenborgian Church of North America
and the Apostolic Johannite Church also do so.
The United Methodist Church
has also been discussing the issue for many years, but its official position continues to deny ordination to "Self-Avowed Practicing Homosexuals." In theory, a homosexual who is celibate is a fit candidate for ordination within the United Methodist Church, but in practice this rarely happens.
In Scandinavia
, the Church of Sweden
permits openly gay and lesbian clergy to act as ministers, often in senior positions. In May 2009 the Diocese of Stockholm elected Eva Brunne
as its Bishop-Elect. Brunne lives in a registered partnership with another woman, who have a son. Likewise the Danish National Church in Denmark, and the Church of Norway
permit the ordination of openly LGBT clergy. Also Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
and Church of Iceland
permit the ordination of openly LGBT clergy.
In Germany
, the Lutheran
, United
and Reformed churches
as part of the Evangelical Church
ordain openly LGBT Christian clergy.
In 2008, the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church announced with Horst Gorski has been nominated as a lutheran bishop, but did not make election.
Also in Switzerland
the Reformed churches
in Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches
ordain openly LGBT christian clergy and the same situation is in Austria
in reformed church and lutheran churches.
The Protestant Church in the Netherlands
also ordains openly LGBT christian clergy.
The United Church of Canada
and the Uniting Church in Australia
already welcome gays and lesbians in permanent partnerships into the ordained ministry. The United Church of Christ
, because of its decentralized model that arose from the Congregational churches of New England, allows such ordinations by default since there are no official denomination-wide stances on doctrine
.
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
has a decentralized church structure as well. Regional bodies ordain individuals and as such have different rules regarding ordination. Northern California is the only region labeled as Open and Inclusive; however, the Ohio Commission on Ministry (the body that grants ordination) has decided that sexual orientation is not a criterion for ordination. Other regions are in the process of investigating the matter, mostly on a polity (since congregations determine ethical fitness for candidates and hire their ministers) and not a theological basis.
In 2009, the British Quakers confirmed the Church was open for LGBT ordination and said issued support for same-sex marriage.
The Church of Scotland
discussed the issue at its 2009 General Assembly. This was in response to the induction of openly gay minister Rev. Scott Rennie, to serve at Queen's Cross Church, Aberdeen
. The outcome was agreement that the induction, which had triggered the debate, should go ahead, but that no further such cases should be permitted until a commission on the subject has reported in 2011. In 2011, Church of Scotland voted at its 2011 General Assembly to allow open gay and lesbian ministers who live in civil unions.
The Christian United Church decided to ordain openly LGBT Christian clergy at First Annual Conference in Seattle, WA in 2010.
.
The ordination of gays and lesbians is not a new thing, but their ordination as openly practicing homosexuals has caused controversy among some churchgoers: a 2006 survey suggested that two-thirds of weekly Protestant church-goers in the United States of America believe that it is inappropriate for gays and lesbians to serve as bishops or pastors; with the number opposed rising to 80% amongst evangelical Christian
s. In the past, ordinands who were gay or lesbian did not admit their sexuality, and were ordained.
In the American Episcopal Church
, a resolution was adopted in 2009 by the General Convention
, the Church's governing body, declaring that gays and lesbians who had been baptized were eligible for "any ordained ministry," including becoming bishop
s. In the wider Anglican Communion
, which includes more conservative congregations in developing countries, the ordination of homosexuals is highly controversial.
In 1999, open gay anglican bishop Peter Wheatley
was ordained as bishop of Edmonton
in London. The Archbishop of Canterbury
, spiritual head of the Anglican Communion
, formed the Eames Commission due to controversy associated with the consecration of Gene Robinson
to the order of bishop
in the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire
and the planned consecration of Jeffrey John
(who was to be ordained Bishop of Reading
) in the Church of England
. Its findings, published as the Windsor Report
, recommended that the consecration of individuals in same-sex relationships as bishops cease, although it conspicuously avoided discussing gays and lesbians ordered as priests and deacons. In response, the Episcopal Church placed a moratorium on confirming the consecrations of all bishops.
Episcopal Bishop J. Neil Alexander
of the Diocese of Atlanta
said he voted for the ordination of Gene Robinson as bishop because Robinson was open about his sexuality and honest about his caring relationship. In the past known gay clergy were ordained to the episcopate only because they lied about their sexuality.
In July 2009, clergy and laity in the US voted to reject the three-year moratorium on the consecration of gay clergy. The Archbishop of Canterbury responded to this in a statement which regretted that this move would not heal the divisions in the church, and effectively sets in motion a two-tier system of Anglicanism in which those within the covenant can speak as Anglicans, and LGBT clergy and those who support them fall outside the covenant, and so cannot speak on behalf of other Anglicans. A coalition of thirteen LGBT Christian groups in the UK formulated a united response to the Archbishop's statement, questioning whether the 'listening process' he had called for had been properly engaged with, that LGBT people are committed members of the communion, and criticising a 'two-track' system within Anglicanism.
In August 2009, it was announced that two gay Episcopal priests were among the six nominated candidates for the role of suffragan bishop of Los Angeles; both were in committed relationships. The appointment was voted on in December 2009, and in March 2010 it was announced that Mary Douglas Glasspool
had been elected; becoming only the second openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church. In December 2009, the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota also announced a lesbian had been nominated as a bishop, but did not make election .
Formed in opposition to the Episcopal Church's policies concerning gays and lesbians are several other Anglican church bodies. The Anglican Mission in the Americas was founded in 2000 by the Anglican Communion's Rwandan and Southeast Asia provinces to serve North American Anglicans formerly affiliated with the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada; it claims more than 100 parishes in the United States. A church-planting partner with the Anglican Mission is the Anglican Church in North America, founded in 2010. It claims over 600 parishes serving 100,000 members, most of whom are former members of the Episcopal Church opposed to the ordination of LGBT clergy. The Anglican Church in North America includes four dioceses which withdrew from the Episcopal Church and subsequently joined with the 13,000 member Reformed Episcopal Church and several smaller bodies.
In addition, the even more conservative Continuing Anglican movement
is composed of various churches which were formed in the late twentieth century by former Episcopalians opposed to what they believed were liberal and un-scriptural developments within the parent body. Although the place of homosexual persons in the life of the church was not one of the causes of these churches' separation from the Anglican Communion, all of them are strongly opposed to both the ordination of gay clergy and to church-approved matrimonial rites for LGBT persons.
An interfaith movement known as the Confessing Movement
has also been a vehicle for opposition to the ordination of non-celibate gays and lesbians.
In 2011, Church in Wales
gives pensions for gay partners of clergy. The Church of England
General Synod approved the change in 2010.
, but only on the condition that they have lived without engaging in "homosexual culture" or acts for several years, and that have no "deep-seated homosexual tendencies". All priests are required to take the vow of celibacy and to live by the Church's moral teachings.
Despite the official position, some studies in the United States
have suggested that at least a third of all priests in the US Catholic Church may be gay. A 2006 survey suggests that Roman Catholic church-goers in the US are evenly split on whether homosexual men should or should not serve as priests or bishops.
with anyone besides their wife. Some gay men have chosen to remain celibate, while others have chosen to marry. Regardless of orientation, only married men may become bishops. Transgendered persons who were born men may only receive the priesthood if they have not had, and are not planning to have, an operation to change their gender (1999 Church handbook). Women are not ordained to the priesthood.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
Church communities.
While the majority of churches are opposed to it because they view homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
as incompatible with Biblical teaching and traditional Christian practice , there are an increasing number of Christian churches and communities that are open to the ordination of people who are gay and lesbian. These are mainly moderate and liberal Protestant churches and include the Metropolitan Community Church
Metropolitan Community Church
The Metropolitan Community Church or The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches is an international Protestant Christian denomination...
and the Church of Sweden
Church of Sweden
The Church of Sweden is the largest Christian church in Sweden. The church professes the Lutheran faith and is a member of the Porvoo Communion. With 6,589,769 baptized members, it is the largest Lutheran church in the world, although combined, there are more Lutherans in the member churches of...
where clergy may serve in senior clerical positions.
The issue of ordination has caused particular controversy in the worldwide Anglican communion, following the appointment of the Bishop of New Hampshire
Gene Robinson
Vicki Gene Robinson is the ninth bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Robinson was elected bishop in 2003 and entered office in March 2004...
in the US Episcopal Church
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
.
Moderate and Liberal Protestant denominations
In the United States, most moderate and liberal Protestant churches either already ordain openly gay or lesbian clergy or are in the processes of discussing it. For example the Reformed Church in AmericaReformed Church in America
The Reformed Church in America is a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. It has about 170,000 members, with the total declining in recent decades. From its beginning in 1628 until 1819, it was the North American branch of the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1819, it...
, and the Moravian Church , are discussing it while the Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELCA)
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches. As of December 31, 2009, it had 4,543,037 baptized members, with 2,527,941 of them...
, the Episcopal Church
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
, and the Presbyterian Church
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
The Presbyterian Church , or PC, is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States. Part of the Reformed tradition, it is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the U.S...
approved rules to ordain openly gay or lesbian clergy.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches. As of December 31, 2009, it had 4,543,037 baptized members, with 2,527,941 of them...
decided in August 2009 to accept gay clergy in sexually active monogamous relationships. In July 2011 also Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada's largest Lutheran denomination, with 152,788 baptized members in 624 congregations, with the second largest, the Lutheran Church–Canada, having 72,116 baptized members...
decided to accept gay clergy in sexually active monogamous relationships.
The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches
Metropolitan Community Church
The Metropolitan Community Church or The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches is an international Protestant Christian denomination...
is the first denomination with an official stance allowing non-celibate gays and lesbians
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
to be ordained; it is also one of the fastest growing denominations in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Smaller denominations, like the Liberal Catholic Church
Liberal Catholic Church
The Liberal Catholic Church is a form of Christianity open to theosophical ideas and even reincarnation. It is not connected to the Roman Catholic Church, which considers it heretical and schismatic...
, the Swedenborgian Church of North America
Swedenborgian Church of North America
The Swedenborgian Church in North America . The Administrative Offices of the denomination are located at 11 Highland Avenue, Newton, MA.-Beliefs:...
and the Apostolic Johannite Church also do so.
The United Methodist Church
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
has also been discussing the issue for many years, but its official position continues to deny ordination to "Self-Avowed Practicing Homosexuals." In theory, a homosexual who is celibate is a fit candidate for ordination within the United Methodist Church, but in practice this rarely happens.
In Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
, the Church of Sweden
Church of Sweden
The Church of Sweden is the largest Christian church in Sweden. The church professes the Lutheran faith and is a member of the Porvoo Communion. With 6,589,769 baptized members, it is the largest Lutheran church in the world, although combined, there are more Lutherans in the member churches of...
permits openly gay and lesbian clergy to act as ministers, often in senior positions. In May 2009 the Diocese of Stockholm elected Eva Brunne
Eva Brunne
Gerd Eva Cecilia Brunne is Swedish and a bishop in the Church of Sweden.Brunne has served as a priest from 1978, during which time she has had several positions in the church, including pastor of the parishes of Sundbyberg and Flemingsberg.In May 2009 she was elected as bishop in the Diocese of...
as its Bishop-Elect. Brunne lives in a registered partnership with another woman, who have a son. Likewise the Danish National Church in Denmark, and the Church of Norway
Church of Norway
The Church of Norway is the state church of Norway, established after the Lutheran reformation in Denmark-Norway in 1536-1537 broke the ties to the Holy See. The church confesses the Lutheran Christian faith...
permit the ordination of openly LGBT clergy. Also Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland is the national church of Finland. The church professes the Lutheran branch of Christianity, and is a member of the Porvoo Communion....
and Church of Iceland
Church of Iceland
The National Church of Iceland, or Þjóðkirkjan, formally called the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland, is the state church in Iceland. Like the established churches in the other Nordic countries, the National Church of Iceland professes the Lutheran branch of Christianity. Its head is the...
permit the ordination of openly LGBT clergy.
In Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the Lutheran
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
, United
United and uniting churches
United and uniting churches are churches formed from the merger or other form of union of two or more different Protestant denominations.Perhaps the oldest example of a united church is found in Germany, where the Evangelical Church in Germany is a federation of Lutheran, United and Reformed...
and Reformed churches
Reformed churches
The Reformed churches are a group of Protestant denominations characterized by Calvinist doctrines. They are descended from the Swiss Reformation inaugurated by Huldrych Zwingli but developed more coherently by Martin Bucer, Heinrich Bullinger and especially John Calvin...
as part of the Evangelical Church
Evangelical Church in Germany
The Evangelical Church in Germany is a federation of 22 Lutheran, Unified and Reformed Protestant regional church bodies in Germany. The EKD is not a church in a theological understanding because of the denominational differences. However, the member churches share full pulpit and altar...
ordain openly LGBT Christian clergy.
In 2008, the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church announced with Horst Gorski has been nominated as a lutheran bishop, but did not make election.
Also in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
the Reformed churches
Reformed churches
The Reformed churches are a group of Protestant denominations characterized by Calvinist doctrines. They are descended from the Swiss Reformation inaugurated by Huldrych Zwingli but developed more coherently by Martin Bucer, Heinrich Bullinger and especially John Calvin...
in Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches
Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches
The Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches is a federation of 26 member churches — 24 cantonal churches and two free churches . The SEK-FEPS is not a church in a theological understanding, because every member is independent with their own theological and formal organisation...
ordain openly LGBT christian clergy and the same situation is in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
in reformed church and lutheran churches.
The Protestant Church in the Netherlands
Protestant Church in the Netherlands
The Protestant Church in the Netherlands is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in the Netherlands. With 2,000 congregations and a membership of some 1.8 million , it is the second largest church in the Netherlands after the Roman Catholic Church.It was founded 1 May 2004 as a merger of...
also ordains openly LGBT christian clergy.
The United Church of Canada
United Church of Canada
The United Church of Canada is a Protestant Christian denomination in Canada. It is the largest Protestant church and, after the Roman Catholic Church, the second-largest Christian church in Canada...
and the Uniting Church in Australia
Uniting Church in Australia
The Uniting Church in Australia was formed on 22 June 1977 when many congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, the Presbyterian Church of Australia and the Congregational Union of Australia came together under the Basis of Union....
already welcome gays and lesbians in permanent partnerships into the ordained ministry. The United Church of Christ
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination primarily in the Reformed tradition but also historically influenced by Lutheranism. The Evangelical and Reformed Church and the Congregational Christian Churches united in 1957 to form the UCC...
, because of its decentralized model that arose from the Congregational churches of New England, allows such ordinations by default since there are no official denomination-wide stances on doctrine
Doctrine
Doctrine is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system...
.
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
The Christian Church is a Mainline Protestant denomination in North America. It is often referred to as The Christian Church, The Disciples of Christ, or more simply as The Disciples...
has a decentralized church structure as well. Regional bodies ordain individuals and as such have different rules regarding ordination. Northern California is the only region labeled as Open and Inclusive; however, the Ohio Commission on Ministry (the body that grants ordination) has decided that sexual orientation is not a criterion for ordination. Other regions are in the process of investigating the matter, mostly on a polity (since congregations determine ethical fitness for candidates and hire their ministers) and not a theological basis.
In 2009, the British Quakers confirmed the Church was open for LGBT ordination and said issued support for same-sex marriage.
The Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
discussed the issue at its 2009 General Assembly. This was in response to the induction of openly gay minister Rev. Scott Rennie, to serve at Queen's Cross Church, Aberdeen
Queen's Cross Church, Aberdeen
Queen's Cross Church is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. It is located at the intersection of Carden Place and Albyn Place, at Queen's Cross in the heart of Aberdeen's west end business community...
. The outcome was agreement that the induction, which had triggered the debate, should go ahead, but that no further such cases should be permitted until a commission on the subject has reported in 2011. In 2011, Church of Scotland voted at its 2011 General Assembly to allow open gay and lesbian ministers who live in civil unions.
The Christian United Church decided to ordain openly LGBT Christian clergy at First Annual Conference in Seattle, WA in 2010.
Conservative Protestants
To many conservative Protestants, homosexuality is interpreted in terms of behavior. A homosexual is a person who engages in same-sex behavior. These denominations also interpret the Bible as condemning homosexualityThe Bible and homosexuality
There are a number of direct references to homosexuality in the Bible.In Mosaic law, male homosexuality is identified as an "abomination".In the New Testament, Paul of Tarsus condemns arsenokoitēs, a term related to male homosexuality that is open to much interpretation; it could mean male...
.
The ordination of gays and lesbians is not a new thing, but their ordination as openly practicing homosexuals has caused controversy among some churchgoers: a 2006 survey suggested that two-thirds of weekly Protestant church-goers in the United States of America believe that it is inappropriate for gays and lesbians to serve as bishops or pastors; with the number opposed rising to 80% amongst evangelical Christian
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
s. In the past, ordinands who were gay or lesbian did not admit their sexuality, and were ordained.
Anglicanism
For many years, moderate and liberal western Anglican Provinces operated on a basis of "don't ask, don't tell".Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
, a resolution was adopted in 2009 by the General Convention
General Convention of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America
The General Convention is the primary governing and legislative body of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. With the exception of the Bible, the Book of Common Prayer, and the Constitution and Canons, it is the ultimate authority in the Episcopal Church. General Convention...
, the Church's governing body, declaring that gays and lesbians who had been baptized were eligible for "any ordained ministry," including becoming bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
s. In the wider Anglican Communion
Anglican Communion
The Anglican Communion is an international association of national and regional Anglican churches in full communion with the Church of England and specifically with its principal primate, the Archbishop of Canterbury...
, which includes more conservative congregations in developing countries, the ordination of homosexuals is highly controversial.
In 1999, open gay anglican bishop Peter Wheatley
Peter Wheatley
Peter Wheatley is the current Bishop of Edmonton in the Diocese of London.-Life:Educated at Ipswich School, The Queen's College, Oxford, and Pembroke College, Cambridge, Wheatley trained for ordination at the College of the Resurrection and Ripon Hall, Oxford and was ordained in 1973.Wheatley...
was ordained as bishop of Edmonton
Bishop of Edmonton (London)
The Bishop of Edmonton is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury, England...
in London. The Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
, spiritual head of the Anglican Communion
Anglican Communion
The Anglican Communion is an international association of national and regional Anglican churches in full communion with the Church of England and specifically with its principal primate, the Archbishop of Canterbury...
, formed the Eames Commission due to controversy associated with the consecration of Gene Robinson
Gene Robinson
Vicki Gene Robinson is the ninth bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Robinson was elected bishop in 2003 and entered office in March 2004...
to the order of bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
in the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire
Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire
The Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire, a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America , covers the entire state of New Hampshire. It was originally part of the Diocese of Massachusetts, but became independent in 1841. The see city is Concord...
and the planned consecration of Jeffrey John
Jeffrey John
Jeffrey Philip Hywel John SCP is a Church of England priest and the current Dean of St Albans. He made headlines in 2003 when he was the first person to have openly been in a same-sex relationship to be nominated as a Church of England bishop...
(who was to be ordained Bishop of Reading
Bishop of Reading
The Bishop of Reading is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford, which is within the Province of Canterbury, England. The current Bishop is the Rt Revd Andrew Proud....
) in the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
. Its findings, published as the Windsor Report
Windsor Report
In 2003, the Lambeth Commission on Communion was appointed by the Anglican Communion to study problems stemming from the consecration of Gene Robinson, the first openly gay, noncelibate priest to be ordained as an Anglican bishop, in the Episcopal Church in the United States and the blessing of...
, recommended that the consecration of individuals in same-sex relationships as bishops cease, although it conspicuously avoided discussing gays and lesbians ordered as priests and deacons. In response, the Episcopal Church placed a moratorium on confirming the consecrations of all bishops.
Episcopal Bishop J. Neil Alexander
J. Neil Alexander
John Neil Alexander is the 9th bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, being elected to that office March 31, 2001. On July 7, 2001, Bishop Alexander was installed as bishop in a service at the Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta, Georgia...
of the Diocese of Atlanta
Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta
The Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, with jurisdiction over middle and north Georgia. It is in Province IV of the Episcopal Church and its cathedral, the Cathedral of St...
said he voted for the ordination of Gene Robinson as bishop because Robinson was open about his sexuality and honest about his caring relationship. In the past known gay clergy were ordained to the episcopate only because they lied about their sexuality.
In July 2009, clergy and laity in the US voted to reject the three-year moratorium on the consecration of gay clergy. The Archbishop of Canterbury responded to this in a statement which regretted that this move would not heal the divisions in the church, and effectively sets in motion a two-tier system of Anglicanism in which those within the covenant can speak as Anglicans, and LGBT clergy and those who support them fall outside the covenant, and so cannot speak on behalf of other Anglicans. A coalition of thirteen LGBT Christian groups in the UK formulated a united response to the Archbishop's statement, questioning whether the 'listening process' he had called for had been properly engaged with, that LGBT people are committed members of the communion, and criticising a 'two-track' system within Anglicanism.
In August 2009, it was announced that two gay Episcopal priests were among the six nominated candidates for the role of suffragan bishop of Los Angeles; both were in committed relationships. The appointment was voted on in December 2009, and in March 2010 it was announced that Mary Douglas Glasspool
Mary Douglas Glasspool
Mary Douglas Glasspool is a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Los Angeles in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. She is the first open lesbian to be consecrated a bishop in the Anglican Communion....
had been elected; becoming only the second openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church. In December 2009, the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota also announced a lesbian had been nominated as a bishop, but did not make election .
Formed in opposition to the Episcopal Church's policies concerning gays and lesbians are several other Anglican church bodies. The Anglican Mission in the Americas was founded in 2000 by the Anglican Communion's Rwandan and Southeast Asia provinces to serve North American Anglicans formerly affiliated with the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada; it claims more than 100 parishes in the United States. A church-planting partner with the Anglican Mission is the Anglican Church in North America, founded in 2010. It claims over 600 parishes serving 100,000 members, most of whom are former members of the Episcopal Church opposed to the ordination of LGBT clergy. The Anglican Church in North America includes four dioceses which withdrew from the Episcopal Church and subsequently joined with the 13,000 member Reformed Episcopal Church and several smaller bodies.
In addition, the even more conservative Continuing Anglican movement
Continuing Anglican Movement
The term Continuing Anglican movement refers to a number of churches in various countries that have been formed outside of the Anglican Communion. These churches generally believe that "traditional" forms of Anglican faith and worship have been unacceptably revised or abandoned within some...
is composed of various churches which were formed in the late twentieth century by former Episcopalians opposed to what they believed were liberal and un-scriptural developments within the parent body. Although the place of homosexual persons in the life of the church was not one of the causes of these churches' separation from the Anglican Communion, all of them are strongly opposed to both the ordination of gay clergy and to church-approved matrimonial rites for LGBT persons.
An interfaith movement known as the Confessing Movement
Confessing Movement
The Confessing Movement is an Evangelical movement within several mainline Protestant denominations to return those churches to what the members of the movement see as theological orthodoxy....
has also been a vehicle for opposition to the ordination of non-celibate gays and lesbians.
In 2011, Church in Wales
Church in Wales
The Church in Wales is the Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses.As with the primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Archbishop of Wales serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The current archbishop is Barry Morgan, the Bishop of Llandaff.In contrast to the...
gives pensions for gay partners of clergy. The Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
General Synod approved the change in 2010.
Roman Catholicism
According to the Catholic Church's moral doctrine, homosexual attraction is disordered, and homosexual acts themselves are sinful. However, the Church does allow the ordination of men who may have, in the past, experienced same-sex attractionSame-sex attraction
Same-sex attraction is a term occasionally used instead of the more common term homosexuality to refer to a person's feelings of sexual attraction toward members of the same gender identity....
, but only on the condition that they have lived without engaging in "homosexual culture" or acts for several years, and that have no "deep-seated homosexual tendencies". All priests are required to take the vow of celibacy and to live by the Church's moral teachings.
Despite the official position, some studies in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
have suggested that at least a third of all priests in the US Catholic Church may be gay. A 2006 survey suggests that Roman Catholic church-goers in the US are evenly split on whether homosexual men should or should not serve as priests or bishops.
Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ordains to the priesthood only men who have covenanted not to have sexLaw of Chastity
The law of chastity is a moral code defined by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . According to the church, chastity means abstinence from sexual relations before marriage, and complete fidelity to one's husband or wife during marriage...
with anyone besides their wife. Some gay men have chosen to remain celibate, while others have chosen to marry. Regardless of orientation, only married men may become bishops. Transgendered persons who were born men may only receive the priesthood if they have not had, and are not planning to have, an operation to change their gender (1999 Church handbook). Women are not ordained to the priesthood.
Literature
- David BergerDavid Berger (theologian)David Berger is a German theologian and author.- Biography :From 1991 to 1998 Berger studied philosophy, Roman Catholic theology and German language and literature in Würzburg, Cologne and Dortmund. Berger is a German neo-Thomist and a former professor of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas...
: Der heilige Schein: Als schwuler Theologe in der katholischen Kirche. Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-550-08855-1 - Gene RobinsonGene RobinsonVicki Gene Robinson is the ninth bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Robinson was elected bishop in 2003 and entered office in March 2004...
: In the Eye of the Storm: Swept to the Center by God, with foreword by Desmond TutuDesmond TutuDesmond Mpilo Tutu is a South African activist and retired Anglican bishop who rose to worldwide fame during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid...
, New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
: SeaburySamuel SeaburySamuel Seabury was the first American Episcopal bishop, the second Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, USA, and the first Bishop of Connecticut. He had been a leading Loyalist in New York City during the American Revolution.-History:Samuel Seabury was born in Groton, Connecticut in 1729...
Books, 2008
See also
- Gay bishopsGay bishopsThe existence of homosexual bishops in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, and other traditions is a matter of historical record, though never, until recently, considered licit by any of the main Christian denominations. Homosexual activity was engaged in secretly. When it was made public, official...
- Homosexuality and Anglicanism
- Homosexuality and ChristianityHomosexuality and ChristianityChristian denominations hold a variety of views on the issues of sexual orientation and homosexuality, ranging from outright condemnation to complete acceptance. In accordance with the traditional values of Abrahamic religions, most Christian denominations welcome people attracted to the same sex,...
- Homosexuality and Roman Catholic priests
- List of Christian denominational positions on homosexuality