UMC church attended by Clintons to hold same-sex union ceremonies

[displacedtexan]

link

The church is historic Foundry UMC in Washington, D.C., which Bill and Hillary Clinton attended during his presidency. Here's the story, a version of which appeared first in the Dallas-based United Methodist Reporter:

Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington, D.C., has changed its policy to recognize same-sex unions in special ceremonies that fall just short of an official wedding.

Though it is among a handful of United Methodist churches that do so, the action, which became effective Feb. 1, has made headlines in The Washington Post and other newspapers. Foundry was the church attended by President Bill Clinton and his wife, now-U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), when he was in office.

In a pastoral letter to the congregation last November, the Rev. Dean Snyder, senior pastor, announced his plan to begin leading services that "recognize and honor lesbian and gay committed relationships."

That's a big step for Methodists.

Cool news, huh?

[LostinVA]

1. YUp, the UMC is very divided internally about this -- good for that church!

(Countdown to the "Fellowship" stuff: 1....2....3...)

[displacedtexan]

2. The national confab in Ft Worth will make more news this summer.

This is one debate I look forward to.

Growing up in TX (as an Episcopalian), I visited Methodist
churches. The Methodists were always polite and seemed rational to me.
They sang "Crown Him King, Lord Of All," passed the plate, and went home for Sunday dinner...
Just like we did.

Isn't it interesting that churches always go through major turmoil around
the turns of the centuries?

[LostinVA]

3. Maybe this will be a new "Great Awakening" re: GLBT rights

I went to a Methodist college, and one of my friends is a Methodist minister. MANY clergy and congregations would at least tolerate same-sex unions (although, I would prefer acceptance), but the bigwigs appear to be more torn.

Twill be interesting!

[displacedtexan]

5. I certainly hope so; however, My UU congregation was split by

the vote on becoming a "welcoming congregation" or not.

Some longtime members quit the church over that vote. And it
wasn't because they didn't like the gay members.

It was their stupid "tradition of the congregation" loyalty.

It was sad.

[LostinVA]

7. That is very, very disappointing

As you may or may not know, I met Haruka on DU, moved to NJ last Summer, and was married by DU's own Pacifist Patriot (a UU minister). I know her congregation is a welcoming one, as is the local UU here.

I understand the "tradition" thing, but I also think that NOT becoming a WC would fly into the very face of the values and beliefs of the huge majority of UUs.

[displacedtexan]

8. The "tradition" thing bothers me a lot.

Also, the last UU church I attended decided to start every freakin'
committee meeting with a prayer-like affirmation. There's nothing
"traditional" about that.

[Lucinda]

4. It is very cool.

:hi:

[JerseygirlCT]

6. That is cool news. Good for them! nt

[ElsewheresDaughter]

9. The Leaders of the Methodist Church also send letters of condemnation of Bush to Bush

A group of Methodist clergymen have written a letter condemning the actions of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, both ostensible Methodists. They are sending out the letter as part of a petition to get Methodists to encourage Bush and Cheney to change. The media liked to report on conservative Catholic opinions about Kerry, so why did they ignore this?



We, the undersigned, are also very much disturbed by President Bush's many references to the significance of Christian faith in the decisions that he has made as President of the United States. George W. Bush has called Jesus his "favorite philosopher", said that Jesus changed his life, and that his decisions are often guided by prayer. In fact, we feel that most of his actions as president have directly contradicted the philosophy of Jesus. Jesus said to feed, clothe, and shelter the "least of these", not to starve, strip, and bomb them.

We are also concerned that the respondents seem completely ignorant of their denomination's stances on many weighty moral issues and have consistently ignored the advice and pleadings of their own Council of Bishops. We, the undersigned, recognize that the Methodist tradition is founded on both support and accountability. Our leaders and our members have tried to support the respondents with prayers and petitions, but we fear it has been to no avail. At this point, we cannot be expected to "encourage and enjoin obedience to the powers that be" (2000 Discipline, p.66) when they are reckless and irresponsible with power given them by our democratic process.

The letter quoted extensively from the "Doctrinal Standards and General Rules" to argue how Bush and Cheney had violated Methodist principles or standards. I don't know exactly just how strong their argument is, but it seemed strong enough to be worth making and for Methodists to take seriously. It was at least as strong as the arguments that were offered by conservative Catholics against John Kerry and his support for legal abortion. Curiously, though, Kerry's issue had gotten a lot of attention while Bush's had not.

[elixir]

10. When was the last time you saw a minister during a marriage ceremony say...

"Hillary was never called n****!!!" And there's that humping thing, throw that in too.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

11. that was way over the top and highly offensive.......disgusting

[elixir]

12. why is quoting Rev. Wright disgusting? I'm making the point that

a minister that performs marriages for same sex couples is not to be compared w/ Rev. Wright.

[elixir]

13. I was responding to the OP.

[From The Left]

14. That'll Play Well in TX, LA, MS, & AL in the General

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

15. Good for them. Score one for Hillary. She's still trails by a (Swift)-boat load.