2 churches at odds over gay unions

Congregations of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) are addressing whether same-sex union ceremonies, or holy unions, should be blessed by the church. The Tampa Bay Presbytery will vote in February.

By MAUREEN BYRNE

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 23, 2000

PINELLAS PARK -- Drive by Good Samaritan Church in Pinellas Park and Northeast Presbyterian Church in St. Petersburg and you won't see much of a difference.

They both have sanctuaries, offices and parking lots. Attend one of their services and you won't notice much of a difference either.

But there is a major discrepancy between the two congregations, both of which belong to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). It is a disagreement that went to the highest level of the 2.6-million member denomination.

The subject: same-sex union ceremonies.

Northeast Presbyterian says such ceremonies are sinful and defy Scripture. Good Samaritan believes the Presbyterian Church must be inclusive of all people in all matters of faith regardless of their sexual orientation.

It is an issue that is being addressed nationally as Presbyterian congregations across the country struggle about whether same-sex union ceremonies, or holy unions, should be blessed by the church. Opponents of such ceremonies say the church cannot sanction what the Bible calls sin. Supporters say prohibiting holy unions interferes with a pastor's responsibility to his congregation.

Last year Northeast Presbyterian filed a formal complaint in the Tampa Bay Presbytery against Good Samaritan for performing same-sex union ceremonies. The motion eventually made its way to the 212th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, which took place last month in Long Beach, Calif.

Northeast Presbyterian's request: Amend the constitution to prohibit same-sex union ceremonies in the Presbyterian Church. The resolution was one of three such proposals in the nation that were submitted to the annual convention. Charlotte Presbytery in North Carolina and San Joaquin Presbytery in California delivered the two other overtures.

By a narrow vote, 268-251, the General Assembly voted to send a proposed constitutional amendment to its 173 presbyteries that would prohibit same-sex union ceremonies in the Presbyterian Church. Each presbytery has until June to vote on the proposed amendment.

"We seem to be divided on this issue," said Jerry L. Van Marter, director of the Presbyterian News Service. "It's strictly up to the presbyteries now."

We shall overcome. We shall overcome.

Gay and straight together.

We shall overcome some day.

They stood in a circle holding hands and singing hymns. They were young and old, straight and gay.

They had gathered last Sunday at Good Samaritan at 6085 Park Blvd. to rally against the proposed amendment. They prayed. They sang. And they gave reasons as to why the proposed amendment should be voted down.

Al Frymier, an elder at Good Samaritan, attended the convention in Long Beach. He told the 45 people gathered in the sanctuary that he plans to be very busy the next six months. The Tampa Bay Presbytery, which consists of 78 churches in seven counties, will vote on the proposed amendment in February.

Until then, the 60-year-old gay man will visit as many Presbyterian churches as he can, speaking against the proposal. He said he will drop off pamphlets critical to the amendment at churches that don't welcome his words.

"Their positions are so extreme. They're intolerant," Frymier said of those who support a ban on same-sex union ceremonies.

The Rev. Joe Carey, pastor of Faith Presbyterian Church in Dunedin, attended the 90-minute gathering at Good Samaritan. "The church has to be inclusive because Jesus was inclusive," he said.

Faith Presbyterian, along with Good Samaritan and Lakeview Presbyterian Church in St. Petersburg, is a member of More Light Presbyterians, a national organization with a mission "to work for the full participation of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people of faith in the life, ministry and witness of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)."

Ten percent of the 200-member congregation of Good Samaritan is gay, said the Rev. Harold Brockus, who has performed holy unions. His public acknowledgement of performing same-sex ceremony unions, which appeared two years ago in a story in the St. Petersburg Times, fueled the complaint that Northeast Presbyterian filed against Good Samaritan for conducting such unions.

"Our congregation was enormously upset that another church would tell us how to do our ministry," Brockus said during an interview last week. "For them to impose their will on us just rackles us as a congregation."

Brockus said Good Samaritan is also a member of United Church of Christ, a mainline denomination that is fully inclusive of gays.

And for those who say their argument against same-sex unions is based on Scripture, Brockus responds, "The heck it is.

"It's based on their interpretation of the Scriptures."

At the recent gathering at Good Samaritan, Carey explained that it was a critical Bible study that led his congregation to publicly proclaim in June its inclusion of gays and lesbians and join More Light Presbyterians.

"We're elated it comes at a time when our church seems to be moving in the opposite direction," he said.

The Rev. Bill Martin became concerned when he read the Times article in which Brockus said he performed same-sex union ceremonies.

"The impression was generated that the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) endorses this," said Martin, pastor of Northeast Presbyterian Church at 4400 Shore Acres Blvd. NE.

That's not the case, he said.

"We believe the performance of same-sex unions, or holy unions, is inconsistent with biblical, confessional and constitutional standards of (the Presbyterian Church)," Martin said. According to the Bible, he said, sex outside the covenant of marriage is sinful.

Eventually a meeting was arranged for the leaders at Northeast Presbyterian and Good Samaritan. "We wanted to find out what Good Samaritan Church was doing," Martin said.

The meeting, which was moderated by Dr. Bruce Robertson, a member of Tampa Bay Presbytery, took place Jan. 17, 1999. Nothing was resolved and neither church budged on its position of same-sex unions.

Northeast Presbyterian Church also refused to accept Good Samaritan's reasoning that a holy union service for heterosexual and same-sex couples is not equivalent to a marriage service. Northeast Presbyterian then filed a complaint the following month with the Tampa Bay Presbytery, asking for an investigation into the issue and a ban against performing holy unions.

"We felt like we had no choice but to complain about it to the local presbytery," said Ed Goebel, 44, an elder at Northeast Presbyterian, which has 491 members. "The issue is not homosexuality. The issue is really biblical authority and reliability. What they're doing challenges the very authority of the Bible."

Local presbytery leaders responded to the complaint saying there was no language in the constitution that prohibits the performing of holy unions. "Which is why we filed a resolution seeking a constitutional change," Martin said.

The local presbytery, which is composed of ministers and lay delegates, approved the resolution and forwarded it to the national assembly.

Goebel, an upholsterer, attended the one-week convention to advocate for the prohibition of same-sex union ceremonies. He had 5 minutes to state his case to the General Assembly, also made up of lay and clergy members.

The overture the General Assembly voted on was the motion sent by the San Joaquin Presbytery. It reads: "Scripture and our Confessions teach that God's intention for all people is to live either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman or in chastity in singleness. Church property shall not be used for, and church officers shall not take part in conducting any ceremony or event that pronounces blessing or gives approval of the church or invokes blessing of God upon any relationship that is inconsistent with God's intention as expressed in the preceding sentence."

Martin said he is pleased with the decision made by the General Assembly, but he wishes the vote had not been so close. He says he realizes the issue is controversial, but it is not a matter of how one interprets Scriptures.

"Whatever the surrounding culture is doing with an issue does not mean the church of Jesus Christ has to coincide with the opinions of the secular world," he said.

The Presbyterian Church is not alone in dealing with same-sex union ceremonies. The issue also is at the forefront of other mainline denominations.

Earlier this summer, the United Methodist Church upheld its positions against same-sex unions and gay ordination and Southern Baptists added new wording to their Faith and Message statement condemning homosexuality. In March, the nation's Reform rabbis voted to allow the blessing of same-sex unions.

Last week, the Episcopal Church passed a sweeping statement supporting relationships "outside of marriage" that are either gay or straight. While the carefully worded compromise did not mention same-sex unions directly, it was the church's first major statement in support of relationships other than marriage.

"It's a much wider issue than the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)," Martin said. "All mainline churches are struggling with this."

- Information from Times wires was used in this report.

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