Chris Paige and Beth Stroud
*****************************************
Additional Links for Reference:
Harvard-Epworth United Methodist Church
Rev. Scott Campbell:
Ad hoc group releases book on 'United Methodism at risk'
The book's study guide, written by White and the Rev. Scott Campbell, pastor
of Harvard-Epworth United Methodist Church in Cambridge, Mass., notes, "The
leaders of the conservative renewal groups operate with a narrowly focused
theological and socio-political agenda. Many receive large grants from
non-church organizations with a distinct political and ideological agenda
unrelated to making disciples of Christ."
Scott Campbell on Faith: “Why I Am Still A United Methodist”
I
stay because I can still preach what I am called to preach and still
teach what I am led to teach. I took a pledge when I signed the New
England Declaration a couple of years ago that I would preach and teach
a Gospel of inclusion. I am not ready to surrender that voice.
*****************************************
New PRESS ARTICLES since last
NIC VOICE
News Update:
Defrocked Lesbian Minister Re-Elevated on ‘Legal Errors’
Pauline J. Chang
pauline@christianpost.com
Saturday,
Apr. 30, 2005 Posted: 6:58:35AM EST
<snip>
“The evidence in support of the charge was overwhelming and would be
sustained in the absence of legal error,” the appeals panel wrote. “The
verdict and the penalty are reversed and set aside.
The first legal error surrounded the denomination’s law regarding the
rights of “members in full connection.” According to the law, ordained
elders have a right to minister in the church.
The panel decided that since the words “practicing homosexual” was not
defined under this law, Stroud would be considered a “member in full
connection” and would therefore have “the right to an appointment
pursuant.”
The second legal error found that the denomination’s standard
prohibiting sexually active homosexual ministers violated a
constitutional law that had already been in place. Under the First
Restrictive Rule, found in the church’s constitution, the denomination
cannot establish new standards or rules contrary to the church’s
existing standards of doctrine.
The Rev. William "Scott" Campbell, pastor of Harvard-Epworth United
Methodist Church in Cambridge, Mass., and chairman of the committee,
said the appeals committee would not comment further on its ruling
because it may be appealed.
Dissenting Opinion
The only dissenting opinion was made by the Rev. LaGretta Bjorn, from
Spring Valley, N.Y. Bjorn said the law that says "self-avowed practicing
homosexuals are not to be accepted as candidates, ordained as ministers
or appointed to serve" the church does not violate the First Restrictive
Rule.
<snip>
Read More
***********************************************************
Defrocked gay minister wins appeal
Methodist panel’s
ruling sharpens debate of role of homosexuals in church; ‘There’s not an
easy consensus’
By Stephanie Desmon
Sun Staff
Originally published
April 29, 2005, 9:27 PM EDT
<snip>
Lawyers for the church said they would speak with the bishop of the
Eastern Pennsylvania Conference before deciding whether to appeal to the
Judicial Council, the denomination's highest court, but "my guess is
he'll probably want to appeal," said the Rev. Thomas Hall.
"It does not change church teaching," said a stunned Hall, who
represented the church at the committee's hearing. "It does send a
message that we're going to have to look more seriously at this issue.
We do need some clarification."
The ruling returns attention to a growing rift over the role of
homosexuals in the 8 million- member United Methodist Church, which
resolved last year not to let the issue of gay clergy rip apart the
denomination.
The divisions are typically regional -- with church members in the South
and Southwest often objecting to change and those in the Northeast
embracing it.
<snip>
Read More
***********************************************************
Gay clergy pushing for greater inclusiveness face uphill battle
BY JIM REMSEN
Knight Ridder
Newspapers
PHILADELPHIA - (KRT) - When Bishop V. Gene Robinson, Beth Stroud and
Sister Jeannine Gramick take their places of honor at Sunday's Equality
Forum interfaith service, worshippers will see three gay-rights warriors
battered in the struggles over homosexuality that wrack much of
Christianity.
Robinson, who will preach at the service at Christ Church in
Philadelphia's Old City neighborhood, is the gay bishop from New
Hampshire whose ratification by the Episcopal leadership has made that
denomination a pariah in most of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
Stroud is the United Methodist minister from Germantown, Pa., whose
defrocking for her lesbian relationship was overturned by an appeals
panel Friday. Gramick, a Catholic nun, was ordered by the Vatican in
1999 to cease her ministry to gays and lesbians, though she continues to
speak out.
"In the long run," Stroud told reporters Friday, "I know that the church
will come to a place of doing justice and becoming more inclusive."
At
present, at least for gay clergy, such an outcome is far from certain.
Read More
***********************************************************
BETH STROUD TO SPEAK
MAY 21ST AND 22ND AT THE NEW YORK ANNUAL
CONFERENCE
Beth
is being invited to speak by the Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN) of
New York Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church and Memorial
United Methodist Church in White Plains, New York.
Beth will be speaking at the Patchogue United Methodist Church on Long
Island on Saturday, May 21st from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM (10 Church
Street, Patchogue, New York - 631-475-0381) and at Memorial United
Methodist Church in White Plains from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. (250 Bryant
Avenue, White Plains, New York - 914-949-2146)
Beth will preach at Memorial United Methodist Church on Sunday morning
at 10:00 AM, and then she will speak at Christ Church United Methodist
in Manhattan from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM. (520 Park Avenue - 60th and Park
Avenue - 212-838-3036)
Beth Stroud is currently the Associate Minister for Education and Youth
Program at First United Methodist Church of Germantown, near
Philadelphia. She was ordained as an Elder in the United Methodist
Church in 2000. Beth is a graduate of Union Theological Seminary in New
York City. She and her partner, Chris Paige, share a home in
Philadelphia.
The process leading to the trial was triggered by Rev. Stroud's
sermon on April 27, 2003.
In the photo below, children from
First United Methodist Church of Germantown
greet Beth during that worship service.
EVERYONE IS INVITED TO THE ABOVE OPEN, AFFIRMING AND WELCOMING
GATHERINGS!!!
***********************************************************
Ex-pastor wins appeal of her defrocking
BY JIM REMSEN
Knight Ridder
Newspapers
Although the evidence of her same-sex relationship was "uncontradicted
and overwhelming," the panel ruled, the defrocking must still be
nullified because several key terms under which Stroud was disciplined
have never been adequately defined by the proper church bodies.
<snip>
"We are clearly disappointed," said the church's chief counsel, the Rev.
Thomas Hall. He acknowledged that the ruling "does send a message that
we are going to have to look more seriously at this issue and we do need
some clarification on certain words." The appeals panel did not send the
case back to the church's Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference for a
retrial, as it could have done. Instead, it challenged that conference
and the denomination's principal legislative body, the General
Conference, to clarify the meaning of two phrases central to the case:
"practicing homosexual" and "status."
The church constitution calls on Methodists "to be inclusive of all
people regardless of race, gender and status." Stroud's defense team
argued that status, meaning a person's innate condition, should
encompass homosexuality, and the appeals panel called on the church
conferences to clarify the term and consider whether it would supersede
other parts of the church discipline affecting gays.
It
also ruled that the Judicial Council's instituting of the term
``self-avowed, practicing homosexual'' has never been properly vetted by
the General Conference.
"Since neither phrase has been defined by either of the requisite bodies
in this case," the panel ruled, "the verdict and penalty must be set
aside."
Until the conferences take action, the panel said, sanctioning Stroud
would violate her due-process rights.
It
is not clear how quickly that action might occur. The General Conference
is not slated to convene again until 2008. The Eastern Pennsylvania
Conference is set to meet here in mid-June, and is currently setting its
agenda, a spokeswoman said Friday.
With conflicts over gay rights roiling in the 8.5 million-member
denomination, and much of American religion, the Stroud case has been
closely watched around the country. An estimated two-thirds of
Methodists support the ban on non-celibate gay clergy - which is based
on Scripture and church tradition - despite repeated efforts by a
dissident camp to repeal it.
<snip>
Read More
***********************************************************
Methodist Appeals Panel Decides to Reinstate a Lesbian Minister Who Was
Defrocked
By FOSTER KLUG
The Associated Press
<snip>
Stroud said she hoped the verdict would lead to greater acceptance of
gays in the church, but added that she won't resume ministerial duties
until the appeals process is completed.
"It's not something that I can take off and put on again like a suit of
clothes, so I will wait until it's completely over," said Stroud.
The Rev. Thomas Hall, the counsel for the church, said he would consult
with the church's bishop in eastern Pennsylvania, where Stroud's church
is located, about the next step, but he said "we will probably appeal."
<snip>
Mark Tooley, of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, an advocacy
group for conservative mainline Protestants, called the opinion a
"short-term issue," predicting the high court will overturn the verdict.
"Politically and demographically, the church has shown itself to be
moving in a more conservative direction and not in the direction of Beth
Strouds," Tooley said.
The decision to reinstate Stroud was made by the Northeastern
Jurisdiction panel, which hears appeals from 12 states and the District
of Columbia. The panel heard three hours of arguments on Thursday before
beginning deliberations.
<snip>
Read More
***********************************************************
April 30,
2005
Methodists Reinstate Defrocked Minister
By LAURIE
GOODSTEIN
New York
Times
<snip>
The seesaw in church courts is only the latest sign of the divide over
homosexuality in the United Methodist Church, the nation's third-largest
Christian denomination, with 8.2 million members. For years, gay members
of the clergy in the denomination have functioned under a "don't ask,
don't tell" policy. But in the past year two lesbian ministers,
including Ms. Stroud, who disclosed their gay relationships were brought
to trial.
"There's a lot of confusion right now because of this decision today,"
said the Rev. Thomas Hall, who represented the church in prosecuting Ms.
Stroud. "Right now, the message that's been sent to our 40,000 United
Methodist ministers is that we can't trust parts of the Discipline," the
church's book of rules that includes the prohibition on practicing gay
clergy members.
<snip>
"You have a radical group of people that are determined to force
homosexual practice on the church," said Dr. Ira Gallaway, associate
director of the Confessing Movement, a conservative Methodist alliance.
"It's a tragedy, it's destructive of the church and brings division. But
I'm sure the Judicial Council will overturn this decision."
<snip>
Read More
***********************************************************
Methodists reverse, restore lesbian pastor
Jen Christensen,
PlanetOut Network
Friday, April 29, 2005
/ 03:56 PM
SUMMARY:
A
Methodist Church panel overruled a decision that defrocked a lesbian
minister for talking about being in a covenant relationship with her
partner in one of her sermons.
<snip>
Soulforce, a national nonprofit dedicated to ending what it calls the
religious oppression of gay people, protested outside the defrocking
trial in December. Today, Laura Montgomery Rutt, Soulforce media
coordinator, said she was pleased with this latest decision, but the
group strongly admonished the church's prior actions.
"The United Methodist Church has a long way to go on this issue,"
Montgomery Rutt said. "The church needs to stop putting LGBT people on
trial, because the very act of the trial is a kind of spiritual violence
-- it is an insult to the dignity and worth of these ministers."
<snip>
Read More
***********************************************************
Defrocked Lesbian Minister Reinstated
WBOC.com
<snip>
One local Methodist minister says the issue of gays in the ministry has
been a controversy for years. Epworth United Methodist Church
Reverend Jack Abel said, "The role of gay and lesbian persons in the
ordain ministry has been a question that's been of controversy and
difficulty in the decision in the United Methodist life for probably the
last 15 to 20 years."
Gay activist Steve Elkins is a member of the Epworth Methodist Church.
He says Friday's reinstatement is a step forward for the gay community.
"What is exciting to me is that it gives us hope that there are people
that are willing to take another look at a situation that is troublesome
to a lot of people."
<snip>
Read More
***********************************************************
Methodist lesbian wins appeal to stay a pastor
Alan
Cooperman
Washington Post
Apr. 30,
2005 12:00 AM
<snip>
For Stroud, 35, the decision was a victory that could prove temporary.
In theory, she could immediately put on her clerical vestments and
resume her duties as an associate pastor at First United Methodist
Church of Germantown, a liberal parish in Philadelphia. But she said she
would not do so because she expects her bishop to appeal the case to the
church's highest court, the Judicial Council, and will wait for its
decision. advertisement
"To me, ordination is something very sacred and very holy, and to take
it up, knowing that I might need to lay it down again, would feel like
trivializing," she said. "It was hard to take the robe off and stop
celebrating communion once. Before I take it up again, I want to know
that the United Methodist Church is really ready to affirm my
ministry."
<snip>
In
Friday's 8-1 ruling, the church's Committee of Appeals for the Northeast
Jurisdiction did not question the lower court's findings of fact. But
after deliberating for a day at a hotel near Baltimore-Washington
International Airport, it said the decision had violated Stroud's right
to due process because the church has never clearly defined the terms
"practicing homosexual" or "status."
The word "status" appears in the church's constitution, which includes a
broad pledge not to discriminate on the basis of "race, color, national
origin, status, or economic condition." Stroud's church counsel had
tried to argue in the original trial that "status" includes sexual
orientation, but he was not allowed to make that argument.
The appeals panel also said the lower court erred by treating the
church's prohibition on gay clergy as a matter of "doctrine." It said
that for a new rule to be elevated to the status of doctrine, the
General Conference must vote that it is not contrary to any existing
standards. Read
More
***********************************************************
Methodist Lesbian Minister Wins Appeal to be Reinstated (click link
for pictures)
Christian (not
Christianity) Today, UK
April 30, 2005
Irene Elizabeth Stroud has won her appeal against the ruling to defrock
her last year in December for she confessed that she was a "self-avowed,
practicing lesbian." A regional appeals panel that consists of five
United Methodist church ministers and four lay people overturned her
removal from Philadelphia ministry by an 8-1 vote.
<snip>
More than two thirds of Methodists have been reported to support the ban
of non-celibate gay clergy, which it is said is based on Scripture and
Church tradition, even though there have been many efforts to repeal it.
Read More
***********************************************************
Confessing Movement
Beth Stroud Appeal by Dr. Ira Gallaway
The Northeastern Jurisdiction Committee on Appeals has refused to follow
the teaching of Scripture, two-thousand years of Judeo-Christian
tradition, and the clear teaching of The Book of Doctrine and Discipline
of The United Methodist Church with regard to homosexual practice.
Beth Stroud is a self-avowed practicing lesbian living in a relationship
with another woman by her own testimony. By reversing the Clergy
Court verdict, the Jurisdictional Committee has brought great harm to
The United Methodist Church.
Surely the Judicial Council will take a careful look at this action and
reverse this decision. The Council has already ruled in 2004 that
a clergy person found to be a practicing homosexual by a Church trial
may not be appointed to serve as a United Methodist pastor.
How tragic that a radical minority within The United Methodist Church
seem determined to divide the Church.
Wesley Blog (The United Methodist Site your Pastor WArned you About)
The Beth Stroud Appeal: Why Aren't the Real Liberals Crying Foul?
Those of you who were longing for a full communion relationship with the
Lutherans last week might want to redirect some of that zeal toward
keeping our own flock together. After today's decision to set aside last
year's Beth Stroud verdict, I'm hearing calls for schism. I'm against a
split, by the way, but I understand the frustration of conservatives who
have invested years into changing our denomination and have played by
the rules only to see activists in our judicial branch undermine General
Conference statutes.
Never mind that 70% of the 2004 General Conference delegates were
against ordaining practicing homosexuals. That doesn't matter when
you've got the courts in your hip pocket. In a way I guess some on the
left see this as fair. After all, conservatives can pass all the laws
they want as long as liberals can play dirty and ignore those laws
(justifying themselves with, ironically, the law).
Let me say that there are liberals I respect and who have shaped some of
my opinions in the past. These are the liberals who remind me that faith
is action as well as having good theology when I go off on one of my
orthodoxy rants. These are the liberals who read this blog regularly,
disagree like gentlemen (sorry ladies...couldn't think of a gender
accurate word that captured the meaning I was looking for there), and
who keep me from going over to the schism camp myself.
But these aren't the same kind of liberals who were on this appeals
committee. Real liberals don't win their battles on technicalities. Real
liberals don't use any means necessary to achieve an end. Real liberals
value honor and integrity over some sleazy judicial victory like the one
that went down today. Real liberals know that church law is a double
edged sword, so they respect it and don't abuse it, knowing well that
one day the tables will turn and they may find themselves sliced to
shreds. Real liberals care about keeping an already over-fragmented Body
of Christ from splitting into even more pieces. If you're a real
liberal, then I hope you join me in condemning the tactics used by the
Northeast Jurisdictional Conference Appeals Committee in this case.
That's all I have for now. I won't attempt to tear apart the 14 page
ruling (good grief... that many pages to tell us that they're not sure
what "practicing homosexual" means?) Some of you have made thorough
arguments in the comment thread of the previous post, so I encourage
readers to check out those discussions.
I'll have more when I sort it all out.
Posted by Shane Raynor on 04/29/2005 at 08:48 PM i
***********************************************************
Affirmation
For Immediate Release,
April 29, 2005
The United Methodist Northeastern Jurisdictional Committee on Appeals
has restored the clergy credentials of Irene Elizabeth "Beth" Stroud.
The committee's decision was announced on April 29. A church trial court
on December 2, 2004, had found her guilty of violating church law and
removed her credentials.
Peggy Gaylord and Vivian Waltz attended the proceedings as observers for
Affirmation: United Methodists for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and
Transgender Concerns. The Rev. Gaylord, Co-spokesperson of Affirmation,
said, "After waiting almost twenty-four hours for the Committee on
Appeals to complete its deliberations and announce its decision, I
started to feel hopeful that, maybe, something positive would come of
this decision-- that discussion must be going on [in the committee
review] and not just dead-ended. Still, it was with mixed surprise and
relief that many of us heard their decision to reverse and set aside the
former verdict and penalty."
"Not that the struggle is over, or Beth's struggle is over," she
reflected, "but someone has heard that there are other spiritually-led
perspectives... especially what it means to welcome full participation
of everyone at all levels of the church. While we would love to be
rejoicing at this 'victory,' it still feels like crumbs from the
Church-- when we're hungry for the Bread of Life."
Beth Stroud's response at the press conference immediately following the
committee's announcement of its decision. Following are some excerpts
from that conference, reported by Vivian Waltz, chair of the
Communications Committee of Affirmation:
*
* *
Beth Stroud:
"I am grateful to the committee for their hard work... [what] today's
ruling means to me... [is that] in enforcing the rules and covenant with
each other, the church is not free to disregard the standard of justice
and inclusiveness that is in the gospel and our church... this is just
one step in what may be a longer process, but the ruling today gives me
hope that The United Methodist Church does have the resources to do
justice... in the long run, I know the church will do justice...."
Question from reporter:
What did you feel when you heard the words [of the decision]?
Stroud:
"...I'm so glad I don't have to make the next decision [on an appeal]...
this has been so long and hard... I felt relief and hope and
encouraged."
Reporter:
Yesterday you said if the ruling is in your favor, you will not be
functioning as a pastor... is that true?
Stroud:
"I will not exercise the functions of a pastor until the process has
come to a complete conclusion... ordination is a sacred trust, not to be
put on and put off like suit of clothes-- that trivializes it...."
Reporter:
Does this decision give you confidence and hope... and will it move
forward as a real debate in your church?
Stroud:
"Yes, the ruling shows that the case and the concerns we brought were
genuine and substantive."
Reporter:
Yesterday you said [some lgbt] people [don't want to have anything to do
with the church]...will this change as result of decision?
Stroud:
"Yes...[this] sends a message of hope that our church, as divided as it
is, does have the resources to do the right thing."
*
* *
Click here for pictures and more information at Affirmation web site
*****************************************
CorNet:
2917
UMNS Bulletin: Appeals committee reverses Stroud verdict
umcornet umcornet
Apr 29, 2005
2918
Decision: Committee on Appeals Reverses Stroud Verdict and Penalty
umcornet umcornet
Apr 29, 2005
2919
Appeals committee reverses church trial verdict in Stroud case
umcornet umcornet
Apr 29, 2005
2920
Beth Stroud's Appeal: Initial Report from Affirmation
umcornet umcornet
Apr 29, 2005
2921
Update from Chris Paige and Beth Stroud
umcornet umcornet
3:24 pm
*****************************************
For reference: UMNS Coverage
Stroud
Appeal Coverage
The
latest coverage of the April 2005 Beth Stroud appeal as reported by the
United Methodist News Service.
*****************************************
News Updates Previously Released by
NIC VOICE
Regarding Beth Stroud Trial:
Pre-Trial Updates (posted at the NIC VOICE Forum at Faithful
Christian Laity)
Collection of Trial and Appeal Press Reports at Beth Stroud’s Web Site
*****************************************
