United Church of Christ Backs Gay Marriage

[lagomorph]

From the AP:

 

The United Church of Christ's rule-making body voted overwhelmingly Monday to approve a resolution endorsing same-sex marriage, making it the largest Christian denomination to do so.

 

The vote is not binding on individual churches, but could cause some congregations to leave the fold.

 

Roughly 80 percent of the representatives on the church's 884-member General Synod voted to approve the resolution Monday, a day after a smaller committee recommended it.

 

The Rev. John H. Thomas, president of the United Church of Christ, said with the vote on Independence Day, the rule-making body "acted courageously to declare freedom."

 

The resolution calls on member churches of the liberal denomination of 1.3 million to consider wedding policies "that do not discriminate against couples based on gender."

 

It also asks churches to consider supporting legislation granting equal marriage rights to gay and lesbian couples and to work against laws banning gay marriage.

 

A small group of conservative congregations had proposed an alternative resolution defining marriage as between a man and a woman, and suggested that supporting gay marriage could lead to the church's collapse.

 

The Rev. Brett Becker, who represents a group of the UCC's more conservative churches, said it's possible his congregation at St. Paul United Church of Christ in Cibolo, Texas, will leave the church over the resolution.

 

"I would like to see us stay in the denomination and network for positive change," said Becker. "However, many of my members have expressed very clearly that this decision would cause great consternation and that, if this happened, they would want to see us leave."

 

UCC leaders said individual churches have not been polled about their views.

 

Formed in 1957 and traditionally strong in New England, the United Church of Christ has a tradition of support for gays and lesbians. It is distinct from the more conservative Churches of Christ, which has some 2 million members in the U.S.

 

The UCC was criticized last year for its television advertising campaign featuring a gay couple, among others, being excluded from a church. CBS and NBC rejected the 30-second ads.

 

In the early 1970s, the UCC became the first major Christian church to ordain an openly gay minister. The church declared itself to be "open and affirming" of gays and lesbians 20 years ago.

 

"This is a significant moment," said the Rev. Rebecca Voelkel, of Cleveland, coordinator of a church coalition addressing gay and lesbian issues. She said the decision emphasizes that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are "spiritual people who love and are loved by God."

 

But Becker said he doesn't think Monday's vote was representative of the wishes of most church members.

 

"If we had put it to a vote of the people in the pews, it would have failed overwhelmingly," he said. "This is truly Independence Day for the UCC

[RTJ]

Good for them! I do have to ask though, why do conservatives in the church feel that endorsing same sex marriage would cause the collapse of their organization?

[Conner]

Good for them!  I do have to ask though, why do conservatives in the church feel that endorsing same sex marriage would cause the collapse of their organization?

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I can only offer an educated guess. The individual churches are autonomous and may leave the UCC, thus dwindling its numbers significantly. Where an individual church decides to remain within the UCC, its conservative 'straights' may well leave the church and go elsewhere. Their children and their monetary contributions go with them of course.

 

Unless a church has a strong missionary program, I would think that children are its prime means of growth. The Roman Catholic church, for example, is growing only in areas like Africa and South America. Ultimately, I believe all churches measure their success by how many souls they bring home. On a political level, churches will therefore only support policies that allow them to do that.

 

Hugs,

Conner