Church of Stland fac breakaway over gay clergy

Contents:

• CHURCH OF STLAND VOT TO ALLOW GAY MISTERS
• STTISH CHURCH PH FORWARD ON GAY RIGHTS
• CHURCH OF STLAND FAC BREAKAWAY OVER GAY CLERGY
• REV DOUG GAY

CHURCH OF STLAND VOT TO ALLOW GAY MISTERS

While clergy will not be required to marry same-sex upl, the move mak the mory who oppose the natnal church’s volvement gay marriage worried about further divisn. The vote mak the Church of Stland the largt church the UK to allow gay marriag, creasg the spl wh the Prottant fah.

It has already allowed gay misters to wh the threat of a global revolt wh the Anglin munn, the Church of England has nsistently refed to approve same-sex 2017 the Sttish Epispal church, which is Anglin, voted at s synod to approve same-sex marriag, beg the first Stland to do so.

Methodists, Quakers and the Uned Reformed church already nduct measure had already been supported an ditive vote by Church of Stland prbyteri, which are s lol erng bodi, but crics warned uld crease ternal rifts and leave the church open to legal Rev Stt Rennie, a mister at the centre of a bter and protracted dispute the church over the employment of openly gay clergy 13 years ago, told the general assembly he was heartened that spe the fear and uncertaty surroundg the proposal, now had majory support.

STTISH CHURCH PH FORWARD ON GAY RIGHTS

”Another speaker, Craig Dobney, told the general assembly that s past opposn to gay marriag had alienated people: a primary school near his church had stopped g after the church refed to appot a gay mister.

The Church of Stland, the untry's largt Prottant church, has narrowly voted to adm gay and lbian misters after tradnalists agreed to promise after four years of church's lg general assembly voted to allow ngregatns to adm gay misters but only if they specifilly elect to do so, a radil parture om more than 450 years of orthodoxy set tra by the prottant reformer John vote is likely to lead to an end to a four-year ntroversy which has spl the church after an openly gay mister, Stt Rennie, was selected to lead Queen's Cross parish Aberen general assembly, equivalent to the Church of England's synod, rejected a motn which would have ma gay ordatn – solely for misters civil partnerships or who are celibate - the flt posn of the Church of Stland, by 340 vot to new al – which now has to be wrten to a new church law and thorised by next year's general assembly - affirms the tradnal teachg of the church as favourg heterosexual misters, but will allow ngregatns to opt to select gay misters if they church's plited law-makg procr uld still mean the promise measure – which was proposed a late motn tabled on Monday by the prev morator, Albert Bogle, may not be law until Chalmers, the Church of Stland's prcipal clerk, said the vote was historic: "This has been one way or another, a massive vote for the peace and uny of the church. " He said both sis of the bate had moved to agree a general assembly had voted for the "mixed enomy", he said, where ngregatns uld ci to uphold tradnal teachgs to only employ heterosexual misters but whether others uld take on gay and lbian misters. Crics of gay ordatn had warned that sr of Church of Stland misters and ngregatns uld leave prott at proposals to make church policy that all ngregatns had to accept gay misters unls they opted out of dog misters and two ngregatns have already rigned, while senr figur the far more orthodox Free Church of Stland said that around 50 misters have been touch about Church of Stland has been edgg towards gay ordatn ever sce Rennie's appotment: 2011, the general assembly voted to allow gay misters already post to rema place, so long as they were openly-clared civil partnerships or celibate, and had been ordaed before vote me after the general assembly heard om the Rev Elizabeth Spence, a lbian mister om Ibrox Glasgow.

"For me, there is nothg bigger than whether I'm accepted this church or not, bee I am a gay woman, " she said, addg: "It's now time; 's time to ci, so those of who are this limbo n get unr the wire. "A mister based England, the Rev Jim Sharp, also urged the assembly to support gay ordatn, the spir of acceptg the total equaly of all people, regardls of genr, ethnicy or sexualy. "Let not put ourselv the posn where ten, 20 years om now, people say of 'how on earth n anyone thk that lbians and gays were send class cizens and not worthy to be treated as equals?

CHURCH OF STLAND FAC BREAKAWAY OVER GAY CLERGY

'"The Rt Rev Roy Patton, the morator of the Prbyterian Church of Ireland, warned the legat there would be ser tensns wh the global prbyterian church if the general assembly voted to adm gay misters. There were other people the church "hangg on by the fgernails", hopg the move towards gay ordatn would be proposals the church's theologil missn report on ordag gay misters for a gay marriage lurgy was one of his "worst nightmar", Randall said. Sttish church are phg forward on gay rights, wh the Church of Stland to ci on Saturday whether to allow s misters to be same-sex marriag and the Sttish Epispal Church likely to take a signifint step next month towards permtg gay weddgs s approved, the chang will differentiate the two church om the Church of England, which bans clergy om beg married to partners of the same sex and has refed to allow gay church Church of Stland’s general assembly, which opens Edburgh on Saturday, is to vote on extendg a law passed last May that perms misters to be same-sex civil the past year, 29 prbyteri have approved such a move, and 19 opposed .

A vote to allow misters to be gay marriag would not promise the church’s tradnal stance that marriage was a unn of a man and a woman, the source year, the church’s Theologil Fom is to plete a review of tradnal church teachg on human sexualy and an terim report to this year’s assembly, said the issue had threatened to polarise the church. ”Same-sex marriage was legalised Stland December 2014, wh almost 500 gay upl gettg married the followg three Church of Stland – known as the Kirk – is the largt church Stland wh almost a third of the populatn claimg allegiance the 2011 cens.

Congregatns at the two church, both the Wtern Isl, are to vote on whether to qu the Kirk over the ngregatn at Kloch and elrs of Stornoway High, on the Isle of Lewis, are the first to react to the Kirk’s cisn to allow gay clergy, which was passed last week by the General Assembly.

REV DOUG GAY

Sourc suggted at least ten more ngregatns uld be nsirg siar vot this summer and warned the Church of Stland “uld be facg extctn the Wtern Isl” ordag of misters same-sex relatnships has divid the Kirk sce tradnalist members attempted to block the appotment of Stt Rennie, who is gay, 2009.