For nearly 20 years, Greg Johnson has served as a pastor to the ngregatn of Memorial Prbyterian Church St. Louis, which is part of the Prbyterian Church Ameri. Last year, the PCA attempted to ban clergy for intifyg as gay.
Contents:
- PRBYTERIAN CHURCH AMERI LEARS SAY THOSE WHO INTIFY AS GAY ARE NOT QUALIFIED FOR ORDATN
- FIRST OPENLY GAY MISTER TO BE ORDAED BY PRBYTERIAN CHURCH (USA) TOMORROW
- PRBYTERIANS APPROVE ORDATN OF GAY PEOPLE
- HOW A GAY ST. LOUIS PASTOR TRIGGERED A WAR WH THE PRBYTERIAN CHURCH AMERI
- PCUSA VOT TO ALLOW OPENLY GAY CLERGY
- WHERE CHRISTIAN CHURCH, OTHER RELIGNS STAND ON GAY MARRIAGE
- NOT THE ONN: MOSW BANS GAY PRI FOR NEXT 100 YEARS
- GAY MOSW MOSW CY GUI
- SEXUAL INTY, STIGMA, AND DEPRSN: THE ROLE OF THE "ANTI-GAY PROPAGANDA LAW" MENTAL HEALTH AMONG MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN MOSW, RSIA
PRBYTERIAN CHURCH AMERI LEARS SAY THOSE WHO INTIFY AS GAY ARE NOT QUALIFIED FOR ORDATN
Wh an timated 3.1 ln members, the Prbyterian Church (USA) is very supportive of gay, lbian and bisexual people. * presbyterian gay *
” Meanwhile, on Twter, the Relign News Service announced that wh the PC(USA) change “male Prottants have solidified their support for gay marriage. When an associate pastor said to me, ‘I have a gay brother, and he don’t have any more time for you to study the matter, ’ I ma a cisn. Jt as the church changed her stance on slavery and women’s role the church, some of have e to unrstand the biblil prohibns of homosexual behavr to refer stead to vlent sexual acts agast anyone, wh specific reference to sexual acts between men and children.
Correctn append, March 18 The Prbyterian Church (USA) ma a historic cisn Tuday night to formally regnize gay marriage and allow same-sex upl to marry s ngregatns. 1968 November A Brooklyn Heights Prbyterian church holds a “two-hour worship service and symposium on the subject of homosexualy, ” which clus a performance of part of the gay themed off-Broadway play “The Boys the Band. 1970 Undated The General Assembly of the Uned Prbyterian Church releas a statement entled “Sexualy and the Human Communy” which ntas a brief sectn on homosexualy.
While the stat of homosexualy as a “s” is mataed, the Assembly also approv a remendatn that lls for the “elimatn of laws erng the private sexual behavr of nsentg adults. David Bailey Sdt begs the Prbyterian Gay Cc, which later be Prbyterians for Lbian and Gay Concerns (PLGC), by holdg a sign at the General Assembly that asks “Is anyone else out there gay? 1975 May The Prbyterian Gay Cc is nied “unofficial anizatn” stat by the General Assembly who “appreciat the reprentativ as Christian persons, ” but “do not ndone their sexual orientatn and life-style.
FIRST OPENLY GAY MISTER TO BE ORDAED BY PRBYTERIAN CHURCH (USA) TOMORROW
The Prbyterian Church ma a historic cisn Tuday night to formally regnize gay marriage and allow same-sex upl to marry. * presbyterian gay *
1976 Undated Bill Silver bee the first openly gay ndidate for mistry the Prbyterian Church, which opens a lengthy bate wh the church over the ordatn of homosexuals.
1977 May The rults of a qutnnaire sent by the 1976 task force to UPCUSA members and pastors dit that the overwhelmg majory would not accept a homosexual pastor and believe that “homosexual activi are not ‘normal and nsistent wh God’s orr. June The UPCUSA General Assembly rejects a proposals to prevent the future ordatn of gay misters, to end the task force tablished to study homosexualy, and to refer to homosexualy as a “not ‘ndoned as a life-style, ’” and also stat “the need of the Church to stand for the jt treatment of homosexual persons… regard to their civil liberti, equal rights, and protectn unr the law om social and enomic discrimatn.
1978 January The UPCUSA task force studyg homosexualy releas a report which the majory of the group remends that open homosexuals should not be prevented om ordatn or other learship rol the church.
PRBYTERIANS APPROVE ORDATN OF GAY PEOPLE
(RNS) — Stt Barber, chair of the Overtur Commtee, told the elrs votg on the overture that s tent is not to exclu Christians who are gay but rema celibate. Still, that’s not the way many opponents of the overture received s approval. * presbyterian gay *
The study, which also stat that homosexual relatnships are pable of beg “ethilly sound, ” mt go before the General Assembly for approval, and stantly opens the church’s ‘most ser ntroversy sce the Civil War.
May The UPCUSA General Assembly “overwhelmgly adopts a report” prohibg the ordatn of open homosexuals, but “strongly endorsg” gay civil rights. The report leav up to dividual clergy the cisn to orda a gays or lbians who take a vow of celibacy and also officially wel gays and lbians as church members. 1985 June The General Assembly vot down an amendment to the church nstutn that would have protected homosexuals om employment discrimatn.
HOW A GAY ST. LOUIS PASTOR TRIGGERED A WAR WH THE PRBYTERIAN CHURCH AMERI
The Natnal Gay and Lbian Task Force applds the historic ordatn of Stt Anrson set for tomorrow Madison, Wis. He will bee the first * presbyterian gay *
1989 June The General Assembly vot to uphold the ban on ordag homosexuals, while also turng the issue over to the Special Task Force on Human Sexualy for further study. 1990 June At the General Assembly, several of the nomatn’s “more several liberal and nservative” groups, cludg Prbyterians for Lbian-Gay Concerns and Prbyterians Pro-Life are clared to no longer have official reprentatn.
), wh about two ln members, voted to change s nstutn and approve the ordatn of openly gay men and lbians same-sex relatnships as misters, elrs, and ans. (RNS) — Pastors and church lears the Prbyterian Church Ameri passed an overture at s General Assembly this week sayg those who intify as gay are not qualified for ordatn the nservative Prbyterian nomatn.
PCUSA VOT TO ALLOW OPENLY GAY CLERGY
The Prbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has voted to change s nstutn and allow openly gay people same-sex relatnships to be ordaed as misters, elrs and ans. * presbyterian gay *
The overture clus any inty Christians may profs “that unrm or ntradicts their inty as new creatns Christ, ” though sgl out “gay Christian, ” “same sex attracted Christian” and “homosexual Christian” among those inti. Those who profs an inty (such as, but not limed to, ‘gay Christian, ’ ‘same sex attracted Christian, ’ ‘homosexual Christian, ’ or like terms) that unrm or ntradicts their inty as new creatns Christ, eher by nyg the sfulns of fallen sir (such as, but not limed to, same sex attractn), or by nyg the realy and hope of progrsive sanctifitn, or by failg to pursue Spir-empowered victory over their sful temptatns, clatns, and actns are not qualified for ordaed office. Johnson, who voted agast the overture, has prevly shared his story as a “gay atheist kid who experienced a nversn to J llege and has joyfully walked wh him celibacy ever sce.
The pastor pots a fger at the ex-gay movement and nversn therapy, which, while wily discreded the mental health field, he said ntu to shape many evangelils’ beliefs about and expectatns of LGBTQ people. He will bee the first openly gay mister ordaed by the Prbyterian Church (USA) sce the nomatn amend s nstutn this year to elimate official barriers to the ordatn of people based on their sexual orientatn. “So much of my work wh the Shower of Stol Project volv holdg my hands every day symbols of loss — loss of mistry, loss of votn, loss of llg, ” says David Lohman, fah work ordator at the Natnal Gay and Lbian Task Force.
WHERE CHRISTIAN CHURCH, OTHER RELIGNS STAND ON GAY MARRIAGE
* presbyterian gay *
But before leavg the church, she wanted to do somethg symbolic to show that she was only one of untls lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr (LGBT) people servg the church silence bee the st of livg thentic, open liv was too high. The oute is a reversal om only two years ago, when a majory of the church’s regns, known as prbyteri, voted agast ordag openly gay ndidat. He attributed the turnabout the vot to both the growg acceptance of homosexualy the larger culture, and to church members simply wearyg of the nflict.
) now jos a growg bloc of historic, male Prottant church that have voted to accept gay clergy members and church lears — a bloc that clus the Uned Church of Christ, the Evangelil Lutheran Church Ameri and the Epispal Church. Pl and a spokwoman for a pro-gay church group lled More Light Prbyterians, said an terview, “Fally, the nomatn has seen the error of s ways and will repent, which means, lerally, to turn around.
NOT THE ONN: MOSW BANS GAY PRI FOR NEXT 100 YEARS
The Prbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has bee the fourth Prottant nomatn the U.S. to allow the ordatn of gay and lbian clergy. It follows a majory vote by the 173 prbyteri (district erng bodi) on Tuday to change the body’s nstutn * presbyterian gay *
“I’ve had young people who have been exemplary, obvly good ndidat for the mistry, ” she said, “but then you have to have this weird nversatn which you say that, umm, bee they might be gay or lbian, ’s not gog to work. ”In the next few months, the nomatn will gge the reactn om s more theologilly nservative members, who believe that ordag sexually active gay people is nsistent wh the Bible. “We need to have some kd of an inty, ” he said he did not thk the homosexualy issue was rolved bee gay advot are likely to try to pass an amendment at the church’s next General Assembly 2012 llg for the church to bls same-sex marriag and unns.
GAY MOSW MOSW CY GUI
”A versn of this article appears prt on, Sectn A, Page 14 of the New York edn wh the headle: Prbyterians Approve Ordatn Of Gay People.
Greg Johnson scrib himself as a “gay atheist teenager” who fell for J — and found himself at the center of evangelil Christiany’s ternal battl over nearly 20 years, Johnson has pastored Memorial Prbyterian Church St. When he me out to his church, he said he received a standg ovatn and shouts of “We love you, Greg” om sce Johnson went public wh his orientatn Christiany Today, pastors his nomatn, the Prbyterian Church Ameri, have tried to banish clergy who intify as gay, even if they m to celibacy.
SEXUAL INTY, STIGMA, AND DEPRSN: THE ROLE OF THE "ANTI-GAY PROPAGANDA LAW" MENTAL HEALTH AMONG MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN MOSW, RSIA
“I spent a lot of years nvcg myself that I was a straight man wh a disease lled homosexualy that uld be cured, ” Johnson said on Wednday’s St.
”The ln Johnson is referrg to are people who participated the so-lled “ex-gay movement, ” which centered on the theory that one n change sexual orientatn. Last year, Johnson released a book lled “Still Time To Care: What We Can Learn om the Church’s Failed Attempt to Cure Homosexualy, ” which scrib the fall of the ex-gay movement. ”When the PCA nomatn voted last year on whether to keep gay people om beg clergy members, one observer wrote that the actn was signed to “prevent another Greg Johnson.
”More than 60% of regnal church bodi voted favor of barrg people who intify as gay om beg clergy, even if they do not engage sexual behavr.