Update on Lutheran Pastor Bradley Schmeling

The disciplinary hearing committee has released its decision related to the Rev. Bradley Schmeling of St. John's Church ELCA in Atlanta, Georgia. Bradley Schmeling was charged with violating the ELCA's policy that bar practicing homosexuals from ordination. He was always open about his sexual orientation; it wasn't until he entered into a relationship with another man that his bishop charged him with violating the church's rule.

After meeting last week, the committee released its report and their findings. In essence, they determined that the Rev. Bradley Schmeling is a gifted pastor who possess all of the gifts and content of character necessary to be ordained and serving within the denomination. They called upon the denomination to change their policies, and they noted that the policy may be illegal given the denomination's constitution. However, seven of the twelve determined that if the oplicy is not changed then Bradley Schmeling will have to be removed from the ELCA's roster, in essence removing his ordination. They have delayed action against him until the denomination meets in early August in order to allow the necessary time for the policy to be changed.

As a gay identified pastor in another denomination, my prayers remain with Bradley Schmeling. As someone serving a church that supported a previous pastor under complaint for being gay, my prayers are with his congregation. But more than that, I pray for Christianity that has made itself so very small over this issue. God calls us into loving and caring relationships. If a pastor, or any person, finds a healthy, supportive, mutually respectful, loving relationship, as the body of Christ, we should support and bless that union. I am not going to debate the scriptural (un)reasoning used by those who continue to discriminate against GLBT folks. I just offer prayers for Christian unity, grace-filled encounters across diving, and for heaing of the wounds that too many GLBT people experience in the name of God.

Books I recommend:
"The Good Book: Reading the Bible With Mind and Heart" by Peter Gomes
"Is the Homosexual My Neighbor?: A Positive Response" by Letha Dawson Scanzoni and Virginia Ramey Mollencott
"The Children are Free: Reexamining Biblical Evidence on Same-Sex Relationships" by Rev. Jeff Miner and John Tyler Connoley

And, for a longer list of reading resources, including books mentioned above, the Episcopal Bookstore has a great selection.

praying for and with lutherans

Yet another clergy person is being brought to trial for expressing his authentic self. The twist is that this time it isn't a United Methodist. ELCA pastor Bradley Schmeling of St. John's Lutheran Church in Atlanta, Georgia will be undergoing a hearing beginning January 19. "On August 8, 2006, Bishop Ronald Warren of the Southeastern Synod filed formal charges with the ELCA against Pastor Schmeling because of his committed relationship with Rev. Darin Easler. Currently, the ELCA has a policy that excludes gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons in relationships from the ordained ministry" (St. John's website).

I have pledged to be in prayer for St. John's community, for Bradley Schmeling, and for the ELCA. Our communions are coming apart at the seams, bursting with the ignorance of many and the prejudice of some. I hear people raise up the Bible as a defense for their hurtful attitude toward and sometimes violent actions against GLBT people. While I could argue (and win, I must say) a prooftexting fight with these folks, what astounds me the most is the amount of weight they have given to seven scriptures that have been cherry picked from the Bible. I have to say that I've never seen a pastor on trial for encouraging her/his affluent church to remain aloof, bigotted, and segregated. And yet the Bible is clear, consistent, and unrelenting on the moral failure of those who oppress and refuse aid to people most vulnerable. I've never seen a denomination take a stance outlawing behavior that harms our environment. Yet the first thing that Adam and Eve are told to do is to tend to God's creation. I've never heard of someone being forced from office or removed from their orders for not loving their neighbor as themselves. So,while I heartily disagree with those who find GLBT folks in a state of sin just for being who God has made them to be, it is the unbelievable hyprocrisy of those who have made this so great a sin that it overshadows much more fundamental moral failings listed consistently in the Bible.

I pray that Lutherans will find their way to the light even if we Methodists are still living in shadow. I pray for bitterness to remain far away from the hearts of those who attend St. John's; it will be tempting to hate those who hate you, to hold in contempt those who hold you in contempt. I pray for strength and good humor for Bradley Schmeling, someone I have never met and who I consider my brother. I pray for all of us to stop manufacturing prejudice and exporting bigotry and to learn to struggle together toward full communion in God our Creator, our Redeemer, our Sustainer.

The world is vast. And in it we have many opportunities to grow in faith and life. Some of those opportunities are painful and are born from the womb of Injustice. Other opportunities, thank heaven, we welcome more easily. These arise from the womb of Joy. Both Injustice and Joy give birth every day. But won't heaven sing with delight when Justice and Joy are the mothers of this world? Until then I will continue to pray for Methodists, estranged from one another, and for Lutherans, who struggle this week to find a new path.

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