Gay Lutheran pastor removed over partner

AP via Yahoo! ^ | 2/8/7 | DORIE TURNER

[SmithL]

ATLANTA - The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America said Thursday it is removing from the clergy a gay minister who announced he has a partner.

The Rev. Bradley Schmeling, who has led Atlanta's oldest Lutheran church since 2000, will be removed from the roster effective Aug. 15, according to a report from the ELCA's disciplinary committee.

Schmeling, who was open about his sexuality when he took the job, announced last year he had found a lifelong companion. Bishop Ronald Warren asked the 44-year-old pastor to resign, but Schmeling refused.

Warren then began disciplinary proceedings last year against Schmeling for violating church rules barring sex outside of marriage.

Schmeling had told both the bishop and the congregation at St. John's about his sexual orientation before he was chosen as pastor. He didn't have a partner at the time.

[SmithL]

FYI

[lightman]

Lutheran Ping!

DEO GRATIA!

[PeterPrinciple]

Repeat after me.........Homersexuality is a behavior, it is not an orientation

[lightman]

Thanks be to God, the disciplinary panel had backbone and enforced the standards of "Visions and Expectations" (V&E) and "Standards and Guidelines for Discipline". Pr. Schmeling was questioned repeatedly about abiding by V&E at every step through candidacy so he cannot claim ignorance.

The cloud in an otherwise very bright sky is that he will now be viewed as some type of martyr or cause celebre for the revisionist camp, causing them to crank up the "Memorial" machine to request this summer's Churchwide Assembly to revise V&E or something similar so as to advance their agenda. Rumor has it that PBp Hanson's # 1 concern is being re-elected and that he will stand for nothing that might spoil his coronation...thus, the revisionist lobby may find he very unsympathetic. Time will tell.

[RebelBanker]

Well how about that! I must admit I am pleasantly surprised.

All the Doubting Thomases out there will probably say it was not enough and that the ELCA should do this, that or the other, but at least they are following the rules that they established. It's a start!

By the way, I forwarded your "E-L-C-A" song to my pastor, who had the choir singing it at practice last week ;-)

[lightman]

Naughty choir director!

[redgolum]

I must admit, I expected them to cave. Praise be to God!

Next question is, how will the more liberal districts handle this?

[lightman]

The Metro NY Synod had a special assembly in October in which they requested that the ELCA simply stop enforcing the existing guidelines until 2009 when the Sexuality Statement is to be adopted. That will have to be addressed by the 2007 Churchwide Assembly this August in Chicago.

Watch the website of the gay lobby group Lutherans Concerned North America www.lcna.org because they will surely offer boilerplate Memorials to filter up through the 65 Synods as they meet in assembly late April through mid June.

[Kenny Bunk]

Too bad Max Schmeling is not on hand to straighten out this intrepid navigator of the windward passage.

[Conservativegreatgrandma]

Me, too. This is very good unexpected news.

[Kenny Bunk]

OK, I stole it from Ambrose Bierce's Dictionary
That's a footnote, so I'm not a plagiarist!

Sodomite.....Intrepid Navigator of the Windward Passage.

[madprof98]

I don't think this report is accurate. The radio news here in Atlanta at the top of the hour said that the decision will be put "on hold" pending reconsideration by the ELCA of its anti-gay policy.

[Redleg Duke]

I am surprised that the ELCA took such "drastic" and "insensitive" action!

I guess they are afraid of over-population in the LCMS.

[lightman]

I don't think this report is accurate. The radio news here in Atlanta at the top of the hour said that the decision will be put "on hold" pending reconsideration by the ELCA of its anti-gay policy.

The AP still has the story SmithL posted verbatim on their website, timestamped 2:29 PM. Who is right? I'm hoping and praying the AP!

[Kenny Bunk]

Say "hello" to everyone in Gallipolis and Marietta, but wake them up first.

[SmithL]

All of the wire stories are similar to the one I posted. I assume that the decision will be appealed, and they are hoping the the action will be put on hold. Some synods have already asked for the ELCA's policy to put on hold pending the ELCA Sexuality Study presentation in 2009.