Lutheran divide

Religion | Task force wants to allow "local option" on same-sex unions | Richard N. Ostling

Handout

The nation's fifth-largest Protestant denomination, the 4.7 million-member Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), may soon join the troubled Episcopal Church in permitting clergy with homosexual partners. A task force proposed Feb. 19 that August's ELCA assembly authorize 65 regional synods and local congregations to liberalize if they wish.

Task force members took three stands. A "strong" majority recommended the local option to allow clergy in "lifelong, monogamous, same-gender relationships" (not called "marriage"). Meanwhile, some liberals wanted total churchwide acceptance, while conservatives upheld the Christian tradition against gay behavior and urged a 10-year moratorium on legislation (texts: www.elca.org/ faithfuljourney). The August vote could well hinge on a maneuver by the Church Council, which governs the denomination between assemblies. It is asking the upcoming assembly to agree that a simple majority will decide, rather than the two-thirds usually required for major actions.

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March 14, 2009, Vol. 23, No. 5

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