Rachel Waltner Goossen People intifyg as lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, and queer have long faced stigmatizatn and discrimatn many North Amerin Mennone church and stutns. But durg the past , two parallel nomatns, Mennone Church USA and Mennone Church Canada, have been movg sporadilly but irrefutably toward polici of clivens.1 The rise of LGBTQ…
Contents:
- MENNONE CHURCH USA PASS ROLUTN ALLOWG PASTORS TO PERFORM GAY WEDDGS
- HOW AN OPEN LETTER BY A 98-YEAR-OLD MENNONE ON GAY MARRIAGE WENT VIRALA CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF ‘GENERO ORTHODOXY’ AND STRIKG A BALANCE BETWEEN RELIGN AND RATNALYKAMNA KIRTI·FOLLOWPUBLISHED THE COLLECTOR·5 M READ·MAY 24, 2021--4SHARECHTER AND SARA JANE WENGER. PICTURE-PUBLIC DOMALAST WEEK MY HBAND AND I WENT ON A 2000-E ROAD TRIP VERG PARTS OF WYOMG, UTAH, AND COLORADO. ALTHOUGH THE YELLOWSTONE NATNAL PARK WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE TRIP, LISTENG TO SOME CREDIBLE PODSTS AND AN DBOOK WAS AN EPIPHANY OF OUR LONG TRIP. NOT ONLY DID TRODUCE TO SOME BRILLIANT MDS AND THEIR LIV BUT THERE WASN’T A SGLE MOMENT OF MONOTONY AND TIME WENT BY PRETTY FAST.ONE OF THE PODSTS THAT STCK A CHORD WH MY HEART WAS — MALLM GLADWELL'S REVISNIST HISTORY — GENERO ORTHODOXY.IN THIS EPISO, GLADWELL PERSONALLY TERVIEWED A 98-YEAR-OLD MENNONE, CHTER WENGER WHO WROTE AN OPEN LETTER TO HIS BELOVED CHURCH OVER THE SUBJECT OF GAY MARRIAGE, TEACHG ALL AN IMPORTANT LSON OF STRIKG A BALANCE BETWEEN STRONG BELIEF RELIGN YET BEG OPEN TO CHANGE — TERMED “GENERO ORTHODOXY”; I’LL DISCS THIS THE LATTER PART OF THE ARTICLE.THE LETTER WAS SHARED AND READ MORE THAN 230,000 TIM OVER THE MENNONE WEBSE AND WENT VIRAL EVEN WHEN WENGER WAS UNSURE ABOUT THE MEANG OF “GETTG VIRAL”.WHO WAS CHTER WENGER?
- SOME U.S. MENNONE PASTORS NOW ALLOWED TO NDUCT GAY MARRIAG
- RETIRED MENNONE PASTOR LOS CRENTIALS AFTER OFFICIATG AT HIS GAY SON'S WEDDG
- SASKATOON GAY UPLE 1ST TO BE MARRIED MENNONE CHURCH
- GAY AND MENNONE
- MENNONE CHURCH USA PASS ROLUTN ALLOWG PASTORS TO PERFORM “GAY WEDDGS”
- SOME U.S. MENNONE PASTORS NOW ALLOWED TO NDUCT GAY MARRIAG
- MENNONE PASTORS HOPE FIRST GAY WEDDG WILL LEAD TO MORE
MENNONE CHURCH USA PASS ROLUTN ALLOWG PASTORS TO PERFORM GAY WEDDGS
* mennonite church gay weddings *
Rters/Lucy NicholsonThe Mennone Church USA has voted to retire nomatn-wi Membership Guil that prohibed pastors om performg same-sex weddgs but will allow lol church bodi to mata the Membership Guil had prohibed pastors om performg same-sex weddgs, fed marriage as beg between one man and one woman, and labeled “homosexual, extramaral and premaral sexual activy” as sful acts. ”The rolutn llg for repentance was non-bdg, which was meant more for nferenc and church wh the Mennone Church USA to give opportuni for tn and discernment, as well as before the special ssn approved the retirement of the Membership Guil, Mennone Church USA Executive Director Glen Guyton wrote a piece sayg that dog so would not force member church to perform same-sex marriag or have openly gay clergy. ”The Mennone Church USA’s creased acceptance of homosexualy more recent years has been a source of divisn wh the Anabaptist nomatn, wh some leavg 2018, for example, the Lanster Mennone Conference, which was the largt nference the nomatn wh around 180 ngregatns and 70, 000 members, spl om the South Central Mennone Conference, which has approximately 30 ngregatns and around 2, 800 members, also gave ser nsiratn to leavg the Mennone Church USA.
Not only did troduce to some brilliant mds and their liv but there wasn’t a sgle moment of monotony and time went by pretty of the podsts that stck a chord wh my heart was — Mallm Gladwell's Revisnist History — Genero this episo, Gladwell personally terviewed a 98-year-old Mennone, Chter Wenger who wrote an open letter to his beloved Church over the subject of gay marriage, teachg all an important lson of strikg a balance between strong belief relign yet beg open to change — termed “genero orthodoxy”; I’ll discs this the latter part of the letter was shared and read more than 230, 000 tim over the Mennone webse and went viral even when Wenger was unsure about the meang of “gettg viral” was Chter Wenger?
The Delegate Assembly of the Mennone Church USA had a special ssn Missouri’s Kansas Cy om May 27to 30 durg which the official Membership Guil of the church, which prohibs pastors om nductg gay weddgs, was voted for retirement.
HOW AN OPEN LETTER BY A 98-YEAR-OLD MENNONE ON GAY MARRIAGE WENT VIRALA CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF ‘GENERO ORTHODOXY’ AND STRIKG A BALANCE BETWEEN RELIGN AND RATNALYKAMNA KIRTI·FOLLOWPUBLISHED THE COLLECTOR·5 M READ·MAY 24, 2021--4SHARECHTER AND SARA JANE WENGER. PICTURE-PUBLIC DOMALAST WEEK MY HBAND AND I WENT ON A 2000-E ROAD TRIP VERG PARTS OF WYOMG, UTAH, AND COLORADO. ALTHOUGH THE YELLOWSTONE NATNAL PARK WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE TRIP, LISTENG TO SOME CREDIBLE PODSTS AND AN DBOOK WAS AN EPIPHANY OF OUR LONG TRIP. NOT ONLY DID TRODUCE TO SOME BRILLIANT MDS AND THEIR LIV BUT THERE WASN’T A SGLE MOMENT OF MONOTONY AND TIME WENT BY PRETTY FAST.ONE OF THE PODSTS THAT STCK A CHORD WH MY HEART WAS — MALLM GLADWELL'S REVISNIST HISTORY — GENERO ORTHODOXY.IN THIS EPISO, GLADWELL PERSONALLY TERVIEWED A 98-YEAR-OLD MENNONE, CHTER WENGER WHO WROTE AN OPEN LETTER TO HIS BELOVED CHURCH OVER THE SUBJECT OF GAY MARRIAGE, TEACHG ALL AN IMPORTANT LSON OF STRIKG A BALANCE BETWEEN STRONG BELIEF RELIGN YET BEG OPEN TO CHANGE — TERMED “GENERO ORTHODOXY”; I’LL DISCS THIS THE LATTER PART OF THE ARTICLE.THE LETTER WAS SHARED AND READ MORE THAN 230,000 TIM OVER THE MENNONE WEBSE AND WENT VIRAL EVEN WHEN WENGER WAS UNSURE ABOUT THE MEANG OF “GETTG VIRAL”.WHO WAS CHTER WENGER?
The Membership Guil had prohibed pastors om performg same-sex weddgs, fed marriage as beg between one man and one woman, and labeled “homosexual, extramaral and premaral sexual activy” as sful acts. Days before the special ssn approved the retirement of the Membership Guil, Mennone Church USA Executive Director Glen Guyton wrote a piece sayg that dog so would not force member church to perform same-sex marriag or have openly gay clergy.
SOME U.S. MENNONE PASTORS NOW ALLOWED TO NDUCT GAY MARRIAG
People intifyg as lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, and queer have long faced stigmatizatn and discrimatn many North Amerin Mennone church and stutns. Until the early 2000s, when profil of LGBTQ Mennone dividuals began appearg a few publitns, Mennon were rarely visible histori criqug homophobia and heterosexism. Borr who intify as LGBTQ, a project culmatg newly-published scholarship the journal Nova Relig: “’Repent of the Ss of Homophobia’: The Rise of Queer Mennone Lears.
At s heart are first person narrativ of theologilly-traed dividuals who intify as lbian, gay, bisexual, and queer.
Their perspectiv rm and alter Mennone stutns that are seekg, however nvulsively, to acknowledge and addrs homophobic relig culture reachg back many s.
RETIRED MENNONE PASTOR LOS CRENTIALS AFTER OFFICIATG AT HIS GAY SON'S WEDDG
While many sectors wh the broar Anabaptist landspe—not only North Ameri, but worldwi—ntue to ny lls for equy and jtice, queer lears are phg Mennone bodi to make history, dismantlg discrimatn agast LGBTQ-intified members and nontg the ss of homophobia.
Signifint scholarship clus Roberta Showalter Kreir, From Wound Hearts: Fah Stori of Lbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgenred People and Those Who Love Them(Gahersburg, MD: Chi Rho Prs, 1998); Together Love: Fah Stori of Gay, Lbian, Bisexual and Transgenr Coupl (Kulpsville, PA: Strategic Prs, 2002); The Cost of Tth: Fah Stori of Mennone and Brethren Lears and Those Who Might Have Been (Kulpsville, PA: Strategic Prs, 2004); Alicia Dueck, Negotiatg Sexual Inti: Lbian, Gay, and Queer Perspectiv on Beg Mennone (Zurich: LVerlag, 2012); Stephanie Krehbiel, “Pacifist Battlegrounds: Vlence, Communy, and the Stggle for LGBTQ Jtice the Mennone Church USA, ” Ph.
Rachel Waltner Goossen, “’Repent of the Ss of Homophobia’: The Rise of Queer Mennone Lears, ” Nova Relig, 24 (Febary 2021): 68-95. Richard Lichty, An Increase Time: Story L of Germantown Mennone Church and Its Historic Tst, 1683-2005 (Elkhart, IN: Instute of Mennone Studi, 2015), and an acunt of Hyattsville Mennone Church’s relatnship to Allegheny Mennone Conference Emma Green, “Gay and Mennone, ” The Atlantic, 18 March 2015,. On the historic first licensg of an openly queer lear Mennone Church USA, see “Theda Good, Lbian Mennone Mister, Licensed Denver, a First Step Towards Gay Ordatn, ” Huffgton Post, 4 Febary 2014,.
SASKATOON GAY UPLE 1ST TO BE MARRIED MENNONE CHURCH
(AP) — A retired Mennone pastor om Pennsylvania who lost his crentials after officiatg at his gay son's weddg says he hop the church will someday be more acceptg of gays and () reports that 96-year-old Chter Wenger of East Lampeter Township wrote a Mennone Church USA publitn that he happily agreed to officiate at the June 21 weddg. He said his father is worried that Mennone Church USA may splter over acceptance of gay members and pastors. After that, he said, he began meetg and readg the Bible wh the parents of other gay said he is at peace wh the crentialg missn's actn, but he prays for greater church acceptance of gays and lbians.
"We ve the church to embrace the missnal opportuny to extend the church's blsg of marriage to our homosexual children who sire to live acuntable, venanted ways, " he said. RelatedpastorweddgsChristianyMennoneGay MarriageBefore You GoStatements On LGBT People From Fah LearsPopular the CommunyYou May Like. Mennone pastors hope first gay weddg will lead to more"Our relatnship don't feel different, but our relatnship wh our muny and wh our fah has changed at least a ltle b.
GAY AND MENNONE
It was a bold move for the two pastors, who said there are vol Mennone ngregatns across the untry that don't agree wh gay marriage. That rolutn nfsed harm to and affirmed the spirual gifts of Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenr and Queer (LGBTQ) people and ms to clive actns to “embody a theology that honors LGBTQIA people and relatnships wh all future MC USA theologil statements”. Unlike the Mennone Church USA, the Church of the Brethren’s official posn that “venantal relatnships between homosexual persons” are not acceptable remas unchanged.
Gay and MennoneThey vote on everythg. Can a church that f self by harmony survive dissonance over homosexualy? A earlier, the Maryland ngregatn had been formally “discipled” for acceptg gay and lbian members.
MENNONE CHURCH USA PASS ROLUTN ALLOWG PASTORS TO PERFORM “GAY WEDDGS”
In 2005, when Hyattsville was discipled, the church had already been welg gay members for nearly two s. “Hyattsville had an active mistry to homosexuals, which I was for, I didn’t have a problem wh , ” Jon said. But when the church “started puttg active, practicg homosexuals posns of learship, as legat votg bodi here at nference—that beme more difficult for me to take.
”A Mennone pastor om Oh, Myron Weaver, then spoke to the group about his experienc wh homosexualy church muni. He told the story of attendg Maple Grove Mennone Church Hartville, Oh, his teens and watchg a fay who was part of the church al wh the revelatn that their son was gay. This was the 1970s, when many Amerins didn’t necsarily know much about homosexualy, but he said members of the ngregatn didn’t react wh fear; stead, they offered prayers.
SOME U.S. MENNONE PASTORS NOW ALLOWED TO NDUCT GAY MARRIAG
”In his role as a pastor, he said, he has often enuntered church members who are tryg to figure out what means to be gay—or to have a gay fay member. As one woman spoke, “she started to shake, and soon she was sobbg, and soon she fell off of her chair, and she clutched ahold of the rpet, and she simply cried out, ‘I have attend my church for 35 years, and I nnot fd a safe place to talk to anyone about my gay son.
MENNONE PASTORS HOPE FIRST GAY WEDDG WILL LEAD TO MORE
’“For those who claim to be followers of J today, we, too, mt display the heart of God to the margal our culture, ” Weaver said he regnized that there might be theologil disagreements over the issue of homosexualy the church. But as homosexualy and gay marriage have bee a bigger part of Amerin culture and polics, Mast said, “I thk ’s been nfg to the church. Jon was the pastor who iated the disciple agast Hyattsville 2003, after the church brought an openly gay legate, Larry Miller, to a nference meetg.
” Although gay marriage is now legal 34 stat, and the Supreme Court will possibly issue a cisn on same-sex marriage by mid-summer, “generally speakg, I view homosexual behavr as s, ” he general, “the Mennon n be clanish, ” he ntued. ”Even so, there’s an evable feedback loop between how Mennon see homosexualy and how ’s discsed Amerin culture more broadly.
“To me, the scriptur say that people who ci to actively practice [homosexualy] are not to be wh the church the same way as someone who has tennci toward , ” Jon said, exprsg a view shared by other nservative Christian lears. ’”By that time, Hyattsville had already gone through s own time of transn—and divisn—on s stance toward homosexualy.