On May 9, 2011 ⋅ 450 comments
Today, Tuesday, May 10, marks the day now written in the Book of Life when it has become a certainty that the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) will allow ordination of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender faithful Christians as elders, deacons and ministers in the church communities that wish for these candidates to become ordained.
On Oct 1, 2010 ⋅ 2 comments
10/1 The Synod of the Pacific Permanent Judicial Commission’s decision to uphold the vote of San Francisco Presbytery to ordain Lisa Larges is now written in the book of life. The decision is worth reading prayerfully in its entirety. The decision, especially the opinion of those who dissented, prompted me to recall the summary of […]
On Sep 10, 2010 ⋅ 6 comments
9/10 Labor Day, for me, means the start of the new school year. The late summer days in September, with their slanting light and thin, spent warmth, still give me a sense of hope and anticipation for new areas of study and challenge. As I reflect, I am grateful for this week’s rise in hopeful […]
On Jul 16, 2010 ⋅ 4 comments
7/16 The 219th General Assembly — a roller coaster ride, if there ever was one — has barely been written in the Book of Life as I participate in the annual gathering of some of the most faithful Christians I know: gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Presbyterians who deeply feel a call from God to […]
On Jun 4, 2010 ⋅ 6 comments
6/4 As I watched the historic steps taken last week toward the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” – the policy that bans GLBT people from serving openly in our country’s military – I was reminded of the Presbyterian Church’s policies concerning those called to serve the church. Successful service in the military and the […]
On Apr 25, 2009 ⋅ 6 comments
4/25 So now we know the outcome of the presbytery vote on Amendment 08-B. Our church will not open ordination to GLBT Presbyterians this year. But as we say in Pittsburgh when the outcome is still in doubt, Elvis has not yet left the building!! A record number of presbyteries voted in favor of allowing […]
On Apr 24, 2009 ⋅ No comments
4/26 No matter what the outcome in the vote among Presbyterians to remove the fence keeping faithful GLBT people from consideration for ordained ministry, things will never be the same. The shift from exclusion in 2001 to acceptance in 2009 in 27 presbyteries (including places as surprising as west Texas and West Virginia) indicates a […]
On Apr 12, 2009 ⋅ No comments
4/10/09 We woke to snow on the ground the other day in my neck of the woods so avalanche comes to mind as we’ve watched both Vermont and the District of Columbia follow the good news of Iowa with civil recognition of GLBT relationships as marriage. The Vermont legislature overrode the Governor’s veto upholding the […]
On Mar 19, 2009 ⋅ No comments
3/19 Every morning I confess “I have sinned in thought, word and deed, by what I have done and by what I have left undone,” and I ponder for a bit how that is true in the past stretch of my life. I have been thinking a lot of all that happened at the Pittsburgh […]
On Mar 16, 2009 ⋅ One comment
3/16/09 In the special meeting on March 14, 2009, Pittsburgh Presbytery voted 206 to 105 against Amendment 08-B to revise the ordination requirements to emphasize obedience to Jesus’s teaching and example as illustrated for us in Scripture. This would open the door to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) people to ordination in the Presbyterian […]
