Posted on 03/25/2004 11:32:56 PM PST by JohnHuang2
When the "Reverend" Karen Dammann got "married" to a woman last month, she should have expected to be ousted from the United Methodist "Church" in which she serves as a pastor. The United Methodist "Book of Discipline," in accordance with 17 references to homosexuality in the Old and New Testaments, declares, "Self-avowed practicing homosexuals are not to be accepted as candidates, ordained as ministers, or appointed to serve in the United Methodist Church" and homosexuality is "incompatible with Christian teaching."
But on March 20, a jury of 13 Methodist pastors considering charges that Rev. Dammann had violated church law deluded, "We searched the Discipline and did not find a declaration that 'the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teachings.'" It is a sure sign of a morally confused jury when its members quote the very passage of law they claim does not exist. Actually, they explained their decision by pretending that none of the references to homosexuality in the "Book of Discipline" "constitute a declaration."
It isn't that the members of the United Methodist jury are irreligious. They do a good deal of worship at the altars of social justice, diversity, tolerance, inclusion and all those other gods in whose name they burned the Bible the other day.
The trial in Bothell, Wash., was only a prelude to the big bonfire planned for next month in Pittsburgh, Pa. That's where the United Methodists, America's third-largest church denomination, will hold its annual General Conference and make decisions about its policies on various issues of homosexuality.
A likely topic of debate at the United Methodist General Conference will be the Boy Scouts of America. What does the UMC have to do with the BSA? The United Methodist Church happens to be the largest sponsor of the Boy Scouts in the country. Nearly 13 percent of Boy Scouts – almost half a million boys – belong to troops chartered to a Methodist church.
In the past, the Boy Scouts have been a point of mild contention for the United Methodists. In 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court decided in the case of Boy Scouts of America v. Dale that the Boy Scouts have the constitutional right to set their own membership policies banning homosexuals from positions of membership and leadership, and the conservative United Methodist Church Men's Organization filed a friend of the court brief as an ally of the Scouts.
At the same time, the liberal General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church filed a friend of the court in opposition to the Boy Scouts, explaining that while it would "like to enthusiastically affirm and encourage this continuing partnership of the church and scouting, we cannot due to the Boy Scouts of America's discrimination against gays."
Due to the division between the General Board of Church and Society and the Men's Organization, the denomination has considered itself stalemated regarding the Boy Scouts.
But today, the Boy Scouts question stands in stark proximity to the larger question of homosexuality in the United Methodist Church. It is time for the General Assembly to choose a side in the culture – either God or man, spirit or flesh.
Sadly, with the acceptance of Rev. Dammann, it appears that the flesh is winning. In contemplation of the Boy Scouts, it seems that the voice of the General Board of Church and Society is louder than that of the United Methodist Men's Organization. While the Men's Organization has most of the operating authority over the church's relationship to the Boy Scouts of America, a policy decision in the General Conference about the Boy Scouts is inevitable.
The United Church of Christ and the Episcopal Church have made recent resolutions distancing themselves from the Boy Scouts, though only the Unitarian Universalists refuse to sponsor troops altogether. A United Methodist church-wide resolution condemning the Boy Scouts seems like a possibility these days, and it would have dangerous consequences for the Scouts.
First, thousands of troops and hundreds of thousands of Boy Scouts would be threatened with the loss of their troop charter and meeting place. Second, the pressures on the Scouts to give up the ban on homosexual members and leaders would intensify. A hard-line, pro-homosexual policy in the United Methodist Church would wreak havoc in a sizable corner of Scouting.
The United Methodist Church must answer with finality whether it will even uphold the mere principles of the Scout Oath, of "duty to God," and "morally straight." At least the Boy Scouts still stand for truth and character.
I am a United Methodist pastor.
This article betrays a real lack of understanding regarding how this denomination operates. That isn't surprising, though. There is no reason anyone would have any idea how our church is governed. Even though the article says we are the third largest denomination in America, 8 million members is relatively small compared to the entire population.
In short, the boards, agencies, men's and women's groups, etc., have no authority to speak for anything other than their own small area of concern; certainly not for the denomination. The once-every-four-year General Conference is the ONLY body that speaks for the denomination.
In between General Conferences, the denomination is a hodge-podge of geographic, little fiefdoms controlled by bishops. Generally, a bishop's area comprises a region the size of a state, although some states have 2 regions and some bishop's regions have 2 or more states. It depends to so some degree on how many methodists are in any given area.
No one can tell a bishop what to do. There is no effective way to try a bishop. A liberal bishop will do liberal things and a conservative bishop will do conservative things. There is no office higher than bishop.
Supposedly, bishops are to follow the church law called "The UM Discipline." As we can see from the trial of the homosexual, that bishop did everything in his power (bishop Galvan) to ruin the process. Even the pastor who served as "prosecution" supported the homosexual pastor being set off scot free.
The results showed the kangaroo court that had been set up.
This General Conference next month will try to tackle fixing all of these things. Who knows what they can do?
The only effective thing is to put together a scheme that makes bishops truly, day-by-day accountable. But that would probably require some kind of over-bishop or over-committee finally coming into existence in our denomination.
In terms of that.....one bad apple can spoil the barrel. If you don't believe that, look at the arch-bishop of Canterbury.
As a Jew and former Boy Scout liason to the temple that chartered our troop I lived in a constant state of worry that the left members of the temple (80% of the membership) would someday decide the troop had to go. (The assistant rabbi was a former Eagle scout and the Rabbi a former Life Scout, but I still had my concerns. ) As I speak now, it appears the Methodists will go first down that sink hole, but they will be joined by many congregations who worship the secular god of diversity and multiculturalism that will oneday rip our country apart.
We will be watching, the Union of Reform Rabbis has been taken over by the multiculturalists, Gender is disappering from the translations of the Schriptures. " Our Lord who art in heaven...". They are handmadens of the left.
I have a youngster who will soon enter school, and I'm tempted to pay the extra dollars to send him to a private school to keep him from such nonsense. I don't want him to learn about how anybody has sex. I want him to learn how he can be a contributor to the success of this society rather than be beholden to the forces that determine society.
If religion has no place in a public institution, then we should also demand that SEX has no place in a public institution. It boils my blood that that homosexuals have the right to promote their sexuality the same week as we celebrate Easter.
Please, anyone, just fight for the cause. We should not be promoting anything in a public school other than the right to learn fundamentals. Any social engineering should be deemed negative to the cause, either it be religious or secular! Granted, I promote religious training, but it should not be carried out by public schools. Otherwise, the secularists and atheists have a point! It's just tragic that they have been winning with the courts and the ACLU!
We must be vigilant in our protest, and make the courts realize that the socialists are trying to impart their religious cause, and if socialists are not determined to be a religious group, our works are worthless. We must point out that belief in no God is a RELIGIOUS view! We must also point out that belief in same sex relationships is yet another RELIGIOUS view, and if we can't prove that, then we are condemned to being part of this absurd public school system.
Please, those of you who know better, work harder to point out these truths. If not, the USA could become no better than Spain whose electorate completely ignored the fact that they could be bombed even after the socialists won.
Basically, if we lose otherwise, then we will need to encourage teens to become part of "straight" pride groups and affirm their right to be "straight" ad mist a homosexual agenda in public schools. In other words, we have to encourage "SEX"!
Stupid as stupid does. That's our education system in a nutshell.
ALL:
If you support the traditonal values of Scouting, and if you believe Scouting can be a valuable ministry to Episcopal youth, please visit the Episcopal Scouters Discussion Forum:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/episcopal_scouters/
This group is for Episcopalian Scouts and Scouters, but non-Episcopalian Scouts and Scouters are also welcome, especially those in parish-sponsored units. "Continuing Anglicans", "Orthodox Anglicans", Campfire, Girl Scouts and 4-H members are also welcome. All are welcome to discuss: Duty to God, Scouting in the Church, the religious emblems program, camp chaplaincy, etc.
I'm the moderator -- we'd love to have you join us, and please spread the word about Episcopal Scouting!
Fred Goodwin
Diocese of West Texas
Alamo Area Council
fgoodwin@sbcglobal.net
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