General assembly vot to allow ngregatns to adm gay misters but only if they specifilly elect to do so
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CHURCH OF STLAND VOT TO ALLOW GAY MISTERS
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. ”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.
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 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.