Volume > Issue > Note List > God's Love Is Unconditional for Homosexuals (& Therefore for Everyone)

God’s Love Is Unconditional for Homosexuals (& Therefore for Everyone)

The Rev. Bradley Schmeling told his bishop and his congregation about his homosexual orientation before he was hired as pastor of the oldest Lutheran church in Atlanta, Georgia. After he had been on the job, he announced that he found a homosexual partner. His congregation gave a party for him and his partner.

Bishop Ronald Warren of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) asked Schmeling to resign. Schmeling did not resign, so Warren started disciplinary action.

According to a report in the Guardian (Jan. 18), “The ELCA…bars unmarried clergy — whether gay or straight — from having sex. The denomination believes that sex is reserved for marriage, and marriage for heterosexual couples. Still, many Lutheran churches support ordaining partnered gays, and perform same-sex blessing ceremonies despite the policy…. In 2005, delegates to an ELCA national meeting rejected a proposal to allow sexually active gays and lesbians in committed, long-term relationships to be ordained. Schmeling and his supporters say the policy barring sexually active gay pastors is discriminatory by forcing them to refrain from sex, while heterosexuals only have to wait for marriage.”

Enjoyed reading this?

READ MORE! REGISTER TODAY

SUBSCRIBE

You May Also Enjoy

Briefly: March 2009

Review of Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana... Awe-Filled Wonder: The Interface of Science and Spirituality... Ransomed from Darkness: The New Age, Christian Faith, and the Battle for Souls... The Quest for Shakespeare

The Final Sixth

Our online readership has grown since the rollout of our new-and-improved website last October. With your prayers and support, we'll keep growing.

The Drama of the Oxford Movement

John Henry Newman, Rob­ert and Henry Wilberforce, and Henry Manning came to realize that their struggle was nothing less than the eternal question of "whom shall ye serve?"