Second Stone #44 - Jan/Feb 1996

Second Stone #44 - Jan/Feb 1996

44

1996

Jan/Feb 1996

THE NATIONAL NEWSPAPER FOR GAY/LESBIAN/BISEXUAL CHRISTIANS 2.95
Cyber Monks take to
the World Wide Web
PAGE 5
Early Christians also
disagreed about sexuality
issues
PAGE 7
National News
PAGE 8
World News
PAGE 14
Christian Community
News
PAGE 18
Reviews
PAGE 20
Commentary
PAGE 23
Classifieds
PAGE 24
P.O.Bo8x3 40 NeOwrl eansL,A 7 0182
ADDRESCSO RRECTION
REQUESTED
TIMED ATEDM ATERIAL
DO NOT DELAY
-Methodiswtsi llh ostg ayc hoirs
rejectebdy M as Baptists
By Melissa Williams
Associated Press Writer
DALLAS (AP) - The senior pastor of a
Methodist church said Jan. 26 that
"there was really no other choice"
but to offer use of his sanctuary to two
gay singing groups turned away by a
Baptist church for the March ~onvention
of the American Choral Directors
Association.
"We are not condoning or promoting
their lifestyle - we are simply allow-
. ing the group to sing," said Hal Brady,
· senior pastor at First.,.United
Methodist Church of Dallas.'\_''We
feel that that's what grace is about."
The 250-voice, all-male, predominantly
gay Turtle Creek Chorale and
the 125~voice, predominantly lesbian
Women's Chorus of Dallas were
scheduled to sing March 21 during the
Distributioinns omea \eass ponsoredby
O utreacPha '\110rs
\
American Choral Directors Association's
Southwest convention in Dallas.
The opening-night concert was
scheduled at First Baptist before the
SEE CHOIRS, Page 3
li/fflii'l/!5l,Dh~lliiii\i\ii.E · ' ;;fyfflt#iii!o/½iMl! f&•¥W':fi&;!Jit'iJii,%1<Nfli'ilt.@jj~ffiij,~:$,\ut~~4@~9
. One year after arr,e&t 1 , . -,c - ,; . - - • ..,
}Mel White makes return visit to CBN
DR. MEL WHITE, UFMCC Minister
• of Justice, was scheduled to return to
Virginia Beach on Monday, Feb. 5,
the anniversary of his arrest at Pat
Robertson's CBN Center. White was
to discuss the national effects of his
1995 CBN arrest, show videos of Pat
Robertson's continuing rhetoric of
intolerance, and .discuss what can be
done to end the anti-homosexual campaign
being mounted by Robertson, his
Christian Coalition and other political
and religious extremists.
"Unfortunately," Dr. White said,
"Mr. Robertson continues his antihomosexual
campaign. We have
monitored every 700 Club broadcast
since my release from the Virginia
Beach City Jail.. Pat's false and
inflammatory rhetoric against gay
and· lesbian Americans has increased.
We canr:iot sit by silently while his
toxic claims help pollute the nation's
moral environment."
. On Valentine's Day, February 14,
1995, White led a small group of
local clergy and laity to meet with
Pat Robertson at his CBN offices in
Virginia Beach. The 'Bearing Witness'
delegation carried candy, flowers,
and pages of quotes illustrating
Robertson's false claims to show how
SEE WIIlTE, Page 3
Second Stone's 1996
Resource Guide ti coming
out soon?
PASTORS AND ORGANIZATION
LEADERSM: ake sure
your church or organization
gets its FREE USTING in Second
Stone's 1996 Resource Guide
for gay and lesbian. Christians.
YOU MUST CONFIRM that
your ministry is still active. To
be listed, fill'out the form on
Page 3 and fax, e0mail or ~ail
ittous.
Mormon Church denied request to join case
against same-sex marriage
HONOLULU (AP) - The Hawaii
Supreme Court denied a request by
the Mormon Church to get involved
in the original case between the state
, and three gay couples who were
denied marriagelicenses .
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints wanted to join with
the state Attorney General's office to
BULKR ATE
U.S.POSTAGE
PAID
NEWO RLEANSLA,
PERMINT o.5 11
fight the granting of marriage
licenses to saine-sex couples.
The church argued it had a stake in
the issue because legalizing same-sex
marriage would force its ministers to
perform ceremonies that are against
their religious beliefs.
The high court disagreed, saying
the state simply authorizes marriages
and does not require the performing
of any marriage ceremony.
The lawsuit by the three couples is
scheduled for trial in July.
Meanwhile, state lawmakers have
virtually closed the door to any
action by the Legislature on the
same-sex marriage issue this year.
Welcome!
IF YOU FOUND this copy of Se;,,,ud Stone at a gay
pride event, a P-FLAG meeting, or some other event
or location, there's a Second Stone Outreach Paru1er
in your area. TI1eir brochure is enclosed. They are a
Christian church or organization with a specific outreach
to gays and lesbians. We encourage you to visit
them for their next service or meeting. In .the meantime,
you may be asking some questions like the
ones \hat follow.
When I tofd my church pastor I
was gay, I was referred to an exgay
program. What's that all
about?
Recent scientific research is indicating that sexual orientation
is innate and cannot be changed. Ex-gay programs
are effective in redirecting a heterosexual person
who has experimented with homosexual activity
back to heterosexual relationships. For a gay or lesbian
person, however, an ex-gay ministry can only
teach one how to "act as if' heterosexual, often with
painful results. An ex-gay program cannot change
your sexual orientation. Remember that most ex-gay
church counselors ·are heterosexual and cannot speak
from the experience of being gay. Also, any psychologist
or psychiatrist who offers "treatment" for homosexuality
is not following guidelines established by
the American Psychological Association or the American
Medical Association.
After all the rejection I got from
my church, why should I even care
about God?
Your church may have rejected you, but God never
has. God's nature is to draw you closer lo Him, not
lo reject you. The church is administered by pastors,
bishops, lay people, committees; people like you and.
me - sometimes com,ected with God at work among
us, and sometimes not. Sometimes the people who
run the church, because of fear, selfishness or other
reasons, are not able to follow as God leads. In the
past, the church failed to speak out against the Holocaust
and slavery. At some point in the future, the
church's present failure to affinn gay and lesbian people
and its failure to speak out against the homophobia
that leads to discrimination and violence will be
seen as a terrible wrong. As Episcopal Bishop Barbara
Harris once said, the church is a follower of society,
ncit a leader.
Does this mean I shouldn't go to
church?
Absolutely not! (It meal!s the churcb.needs you prob,
ably more than you need the _church.) There is a place
for you .in a church in your neighborhood. There are
many Christian churches-and organizations around the
country that have a specific ministry to gay and lesbian
•people. Even in the mainstream denominations
gay and lesbian people have prominent, although
sometimes closeted, places in the church as pastors,
youth leaders, choir masters, lay leaders, and so on.
Many mainstream churches across ihe country have
moved into positions of welcoming and affinning.gay
and lesbian people.
How do I know that God doesn't
reject me?
Even if you've never set foot in a church or thought
much about God, you were created by a loving God
'' ALL I HEARD FOR THE FIRST
18 YEARS OF MY LIFE WAS
HOW MUCH GOD LOVED ME.
WHEN I TOLD MY COLLEGE
FRIENDS I WAS GAY THEY
TOLD ME GOD HATED
HOMOSEXUALS . I THINK GOD
KNEW WHO I WAS ALL
ALONG AND HIS LOVE FOR
ME HADN'T CHANGED. MY
FRIENDS WERE WRONG
wl).o seeks you out. If there's a barrier between yourself
and God, it is not God's responsibility . Blackaby
and King in Experiencing God say there are seven
realities of a relationship with God: I. God is always
at work around you. 2. God pursues. a continuing love
relationship with you that is real and personal. 3. God
invjtes you to become involved with Him in His
work. 4. God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the
Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal
Himself, His purposes, and His ways. 5. God's invitation
for you to work with Him always leads you to
a crisis of belief that requires faith and action. 6. You
must make major adjustments in your life to join
God in what He is doing. 7. You come to know God
by experience as you obey Him and He accomplishes
His work through you.
If you've never really believed in God, and
want to know more, ask a friend or pastor
to talk to you. He or she may be able to
PAGE 2 • SECOND STONE . • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1 996
recommend a reading resource, a video, a
Bible study group or a church. And don't
be afraid or embarrassed to ask. Such a
friend or pastor will be glad you asked_ It
is how God works among us. If you've
never read the Bible before, start with
Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-10; and
10: 13.
But can I really be gay and Christian?
Sexual orientation - either gay or straight - is a good,
God-given part of your being. A homosexual onenta tion
is not a sinful state. The Bible condemns some
heterosexual activity and some homosexual activity;
when someone gets used or hurt rather than loved.
The Bible supports commitment and fidelity in loving
relationships.
Doesn't the Bible say homosexual
activity is a sin?
Daniel Helminiak in What the Bible Really Says
About Homosexuality says: TI1e sin of Sodom was
[not homosexuality.) Jude condenms sex with angels,
not sex between men. Not a ·single Bible tex.t clearly
refers to lesbian sex ... Only five texts surely refer to
male-male si;x, Leviticus 18:_22 and 20: 13, Romans
1:27 and I Corinthians 6:9 and 1 Timothy 1:10. All
these texts are concerned with something other. than
homosexual activity itself... If people would still
seek to know outright if gay or lesbian sex in itself is
good or evil... they will have to loo\c elsewhere for an
answer ... TI1e Bible never addresses that question.
More than that, the Bible seems deliberately uncon,
cemed abput it.
I would like explore further. What
can I do now?
While there are many good books and videos available,
there's something powerful in being "where two
or more are gathered." You may want to check out a
ministry in your area with a specific outreach to gays
and lesbians, including Second Stone's Outreach
Partner. The worship style may not be what you're
used to, but the point is to co1mect with gay and lesbian
Christians with whom you can have discussions
about where you are. Or you may want to try a variety
of churches in your neighborhood, even those of
other denominations. (There is no "one true church.")
There are gay and lesbian people in• almost every
church and God, who is always at work.around you,
· will connect you to the people you need to know - if
you take the first step.
Wouldn't it just be easier to keep
my sexual life a secret? ·
Some gay and lesbian people who are happy, whole
and fully integrated may have to be silent about their
sexuality because of their job or other circumstances.
(The day will' come when that is no longer the case.)
But a gay or lesbian person who ·cannot integrate their
sexuality 'with the rest of their being faces a difficult
struggle indeed. To deny one's sexuality to oneself
while in church or at work or witl1 straight friends,
and then to engage in .periodic sexual activity is not a
self-loving, esteem-building experience. An inability
to weave your sexuality into tl1e fabric of your life in
a way that makes you feel good about yourself and
allows you to develop relationships with others is a
cause for concern and should be discussed with
someone skilled in gay and lesbian issues.
the other '*
Front Page
cover items continued & late stories
Speakers urge churches
to listen to gays
DENVER (AP) - Churches should do
more to welcome gays and lesbians
into their congregations, two faculty
members at the Iliff School of Theology
said.
Gays and lesbians often take a big
risk when revealing their sexual orientation
to fellow Christians because
of discrimination, said Joretta
Marshall, ass istant professor of pastoral
care and counseling.
Marshall and Larry Graham , pro-
Choirs, From Page 1
choruses were selected.
In early January , when officials at
First Baptist learned that the Turtle
Creek Chorale was to perform at the
church, they notified the association
that the concert could not be held
there .
"We represent something and -we
can't change that," church administrator
Tim Hedquist said . "We're not
talking about individuals here.
We're talking about the symbol of a
group and what they stand for."
Hedquist has said the church does
not turn its facility over to groups
that "represent lifestyles contrary to
the teaching of God."
Both choruses are directed by
Timothy Seelig. He said that neither
group admits members on the basis of
sexual orientation and that he does
not even know what percentage of the
men's group is homosexual, because
the question is not asked at auditions .
The Women's Chorus is about 75 per-
White I From Page 1
intolerant speech leads to suffering
and to death.
Gene Kapp, Mr . Robertson's spokesman,
backed by a large contingent of
CBN security, refused the delegation
entry and warned Dr . White that if
he returned he would be arrested . On
February 15, the delegation returned .
Dr . White was arrested and, still
hoping that Pat would visit, spent 22
days fasting in the Virginia Beach
City Jail.
On . the twenty-fhird day of Dr. ,
White's fast, Robertson and Kapp
met with White. He asked Robertson
to announce · the rise of hate crimes
against gay and lesbian Americans
· fessor of pastoral theology and care,
spoke Jan. 26 on the final day of th e
Iliff Week of Lectures.
Christians should try to talk with
gays and lesbians about their concerns
to air the emotions and fears on both
sides, Graham said .
Those on both sides of the issue can
learn to " hear each other's fears and
complexities," said Marshall.
cent lesbian, he said.
· Reaction among members of the
choruses, which were founded out of
love for music -and camaraderie
among people often rejected by society,
have ranged from sadness to anger
to amusement, Seelig said.
"We've found plerity of humor in the
whole situation," said Seelig, who
was associate music director of First
Baptist Church in Houston before
church officiqls learned tnat he. is
gay and fired him.
"It is so Dallas. We are the world's
largest gay men's chorus. To have the
world's largest Baptist church just
down the street - it's got to come to a
head sometime."
Seelig said that the Turtle Creek
Chorale has sung in churches of many
denominations, including several
Southern Baptist churches and a
Catholic monastery .
He added that, although he
believ es that First Baptist Church
had the right to deny the use of its
sanctuary, to do so is discriminatory.
and to condemn anyone who incites or
commits those crimes. Days later, on
the 700 Club, Mr . Robertson condemned
violence against homosexuals.
"But Pat's anti-gay campaign has
continued," White says, "and it leads
to the very violence he condemns . We
don't know how to get through to Mr.
Robertson, but we must go on trying.
He and his powerful Christian Coalition
are a major source of misinformation
about gay and lesbian Americans.
the NEWS continues
onPage8
California parish leaves Episcopal
church over sexuality issues
By Patrick Hill
Episcopal News Service
ST. CLEMENT'S EPISCOPAL Church .
in Rancho Cordova, California, is
picking up the pieces after the stunning
resignations of its rector and vestry
on 'Dec. 31. The Rev. Michael
McClenagha ri· also renounced his
orders, explaining that he cannot continue
. in a church experiencing "an
erosion of biblical values ."
In his :resign\ltion letter to Bishop
Jerry Lamb 6f the Diocese of Northern
California , McClenaghan criticized
the diocese for its acceptance
and inclusion of a local chapter of
Integrity, the church's ministry with
gay and lesbian persons .
· "The diocese and the national
church have f9llowed the wide
'politically correct ' road, teaching
that not only th e person, but the
homosexual behavior is to be accepted,"
he said in · his Jetter to the
bishop. "With no teaching to the contrary,
it is clear that the church has
decided not to teach that homosexuals
can be delivered from their sin by
Christ."
McClenaghan contended that the
church had abandoned its "willingness
to exercise the discipline of the
church with those who teach erroneous
doctrine. This, in my opinion, has
led to an erosion of biblical values in
the Episcopal Church , leading the
church into acceptance of immoral
behavior and false worship.' '.·
Seven ~embers of the vestry are.
joi'ning the rector in forming a new
church, the Morning Star Community
Churd1, a part ofUie Willow Creek
Associa tion, a non-denominational
corporation headquartered in a suburb
of Chicago that promotes an
evangelical style of worship.
Bishop Lamb said that he was
"saddened that he and the others
have felt it n ecessary to leave.'' He
moved swiftly to reorganize the parish
as a mission of the iliocese.
In the five years under McClenaghan's
leadership, the parish had
shed its mission status and become a
growing, vibrant church with more
than 150 members, featuring contemporary
praise music and small group
ministries.
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1996
Resource
Guide
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PAGE 3 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
•Prayer •The Bible •Words & Deeds
ToughPilgrimage
Retiring female minister recalls
lonely path to the pulpit
BY STEVEN BARRETT / I twas hard to be the first ·female
Methodist minister in Oklahoma
but telling God no was even
harder, said Lillith Ardhuerumly.
'There was never a moment that I
felt it was supposed to be different,"
said Ms. Ardhuerumly, who now
lives in Plainview, Texas. "I've never
thought I misread him (God). I've just
wished that I had."
Her path to ordination was paved
early by prejudice, she said, some of
the worst of which came from the
board of ministry that licensed her. It
was comprised completely of men.
'They did all they could to provoke
tears or reveal weakness," she said.
The treatment was reserved for her,
the only woman candidate. "It wasn't
easy to be that pilgrim."
Ms. Ardhuerumly, who will retire
in June after 32 years in the ministry,
felt called to the ministry as a teenager.
At first she considered being a
missionary to Africa or a deaconess,
the Methodists' answer to Catholic
nuns. Her parents weren't keen on
her jumping into foreign missions,
however, and the deaconess's pledge
to remain unmarried was out.
"I liked· the boys too much," she
said .
Effectively steered away from the
min,istry, Ms. Ardhuerumly spent
.well over a decade trying to meet
God's expectations through other pursuits.
She taught Sunday school and
led youth groups at" church, not to
mention getting married and having
a daughter.
But God wouldn't wait forever.
"In my gut, l knew better," Ms.
Ardhuerumly said of her resistance to
her calling.
She was 30 when God interrupted
her solitary evening prayers at her
church, she said. She fell to the floor,
Ms. Ardhuerumly said, and when
she came to, she was behind the pulpit.
She heard her voice as ·if she were a
bystander: "I will go where you want
me to go. And yes, God, I will
preach ."
She rushed home, unsure how to
tell her husband of her decision. But
Ihsan Ardhuerumly didn't put up a
fight.
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PAGE 4 • SECOND STONE JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
"He said that whichever one God
calls who is the strongest, the other
should follow ," Ms. Ardhuerumly
said.
In retrospect, she might have
anticipated his understanding attitude.
Ihsan, a _native . of Baghdad,
Iraq, was raised a Muslim. When
they married, she insisted only _that
he attend church with her.
"He said that if I would introduce
him to that old rascal Jesus Christ,
he'd follow him," she said. And
eventμally, he did. Today, he is superintendent
of the Plainview District
of the United Methodists.
Not . long . after making her
commitment at the church, Ms.
Ardhuerumly began attending summer
classes at Perkins College of
Theology at Southern Methodist University.
She finally earned a license
as a "supply minister" - the first
woman to do so in Oklahoma - and
was ordained 12 years later.
The job itself was comparatively
smooth, if not trouble-free. ·
A young man in one congregation
angrily opposed her appointment as
associate pastor. When parishioners
sought to silence him, Ms.
Ardhuerumly insisted that he be
allowed to say his piece. Her conciliatory
stance apparently paid off.
He later rededicated his life to Christ,
and now the two are close friends,
Ms. Ardhuerumly said.
But proving her mettle behind the
pulpit and in the day-to-day ministry
was only half her battle. An internal
theological war raged alongside the
external prejudice · she faced from
colleagues and some parishioners.
At one time, Ms. Ardhuerumly
said, she was angry with the Apostle
Paul for his instructions to women in
the churcl1. ·
In 1 Corinthians 14:33-35, Paul
writes, "As in all the congregations of
the saints, women should remain
silent in the churches. They are not
allowed to speak, but must be in
submission, as the Law says. If they
want to inquire about something,
they should ask their own husbands
al home; for it is disgraceful for a
woman to speak in the church."
For a long time, Ms. Ardhuerumly
saw this as anti-woman.
"I didn't like Paul because he said
things I didn't want to hear," she said.
"I had a theological misunderstanding
with God."
But when that misunderstanding
stood alongside what she considered
an unmistakable call to the ministry,
she had no doubt. Her interpretation
of the Bible - not-God's plans - ·had to
¢hange. · · . .
· Once she began in college to sort
out Paul's writings in the· original
languages and in the context of his
letters, she came to believe that his
harsh language toward the women in
Corinth was addressed to a specific
church to deal with a specific problem.
She likened it to modern-day
dissension. If she learned that women
at the church in Hart, her I ast pastorate,
were praying to pagan gods,
she would "tell 'em to shut up," Ms.
Ardhuerumly said.
"It wasn't because they were
. women, it was because they were
harpies," she said. "He (Paul) was
telling the men to stand and take
their rightful place.
"As time goes on, .the people. Paul
loved the most were prophetesses,
which means 'proclaimers of the
word.' He directed people to follow
these women faithfully."
In Philippians 4:2-3, Paul writes, "I
plead with Euodia and I ·plead with
Syntyche to agree with each other in
the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, loyal
yokefellow, help these women who
have contended at my side in the
cause of the gospel .. .''
Slowly, Ms . Ardhuerumly said, her
opinion of Paul as a woman-hater
changed .
"When I got into who Paul was, I
learned to love the man," she said.
Still, she is not smug about her • -
Once she began in
college to sort out
Paul's writings ...
she came to believe
that his harsh
language toward
·women in Corinth
was addressed to a
specific church to
deal with a specific
problem.
• interpretation of Scripture. Despite
her decades in the ministry, she stops
short of saying that those who believe
women should not be ministers are
wrong.
At least one person who accepts her
theology, though, is her daughter, a
Methodist minister in Roscoe. One of
her four sons is also a pastor in Fort
Wayne, Ind.
But Ms. Ardhuerumly didn't
romanticize her job to her children or ·
to herself. She gave up hopes of a
career in opera or a<:ling and even
today feels tinges of regret.
"I still listen to opera and weep,"
she said. Fortunately, following God's
will eventually let her use both music
and drama in productions at her
churches, she said, and on balance
she feels she made the right choice.
'The reward is knowing you were
obedient to God," Ms. Ardhuerumly
said.
Monks carry on ancient tradition as
scribes on the World Wide Web
BY DEBORAH BAKER
ABIQUIU, N.M. (AP) - The Monastery
of Christ in the Desert is a cluster
of adobe buildings in a remote river
canyon, where monks spend their
days praying and working and their
nights reading by kerosene lamps.
It's also a stop on the information
superhighway.
. In a modern-day twist on the
ancient tradition of monks as scribes,
the little Benedictine monastery has a
home page on the Internet's World
Wide Web.
Internet surfers can learn about
monastic life, browse the monastery's
gift shop .• even liste!l to a G~egorian
chant.
Or they can request to be remembered
in the prayers of the monks
who gather in the chapel seven times
daily, starting at 4 a.m. ]
''We get probably abou~ 10 prayer
requests a day - when we can get our
phone to work," said Bro~her Mary-
Aquinas. . I
Located along the Rio Chama in the
Santa Fe National Forest at lthe end of
13 miles of narrow, rutted dirt road,
the Roman Catholic monastery has no
phone or eledric service. '
It relies on cellular phones for its
computer linkup. The only electricity,
to the main building; is solar generated.
Heat is provided by burning
wood.
In this isolated setting, the monks of
Christ in the Desert carry on work
begun thousands of years ago by the
scribes who created and copied books
- first on clay tablets, then papyrus,
parchment and eventually paper.
As early as the fourth century, the
scriptorium - th'e room where Christian
monks did their copying - was a
source of revenue for a monastery.
And it was that age-old concern
about supporting itself that propelled
Christ in the Desert into cyberspace.
A couple of years ago, the monastery
contracted to computerize library
card catalogs.
In June, it joined the World Wide
Web, and advertised that it would
design web sites for others.
"After all," says the monastery's
home page ad, "we've been making
pages for 1,500 years."
About eight monks do the
computer work. Recent clients include
a travel reservations company, a
Christian singer and a Jungian conference
in Switzerland.
"What we're doing now is more
creative, and that's good for monks,"
said Prior Philip, the community's
superior. "If you're doing something
that's creative, it brings out a whole
different aspect of the soul."
Christ in the Desert's home page is
adorned . with intricate and brightly
colored im~ges - reminiscent_ of the
ornate decoration that marked the
work of early Christian monks.
In the monastery's scriptorium - a
small room with whitewashed walls
behind the kitchen - monks in
simple, hooded tunics and blue jeans
work quiefly on computers. They
observe the "work silence" that means
they talk only when necessary.
The monks - who call one another
''Brother," although some are priests -
spend much of the day in silence.
They are encouraged to chat only
during a half-hour recreation period
in the evening.
At least four hours a day is spent at
work: cooking, laundry, woodcutting
and other household chores, as well
as weaving, carving, rosary-making
Catchup
on the
newsyou
missed!
New subscribers can order a comP.lete set
of six back issues - and read up on a year's
worth of information of interest to gay
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. · Faith 1n Daily Life
and now computer work.
Four hours are spent in common
prayer, considered the heart of community
life, and another four are set
aside for private prayer and reading ..
''This work really fits into our tradition
- the ancient tradition of monks
illuminating information," said Brother
Mary-Aquinas, a 30-year-old former
systems analyst. ·
"It's just so ideal for our life .... We
can stay here, out in the desert, and it
fits into our schedule."
Yah~o, o~e of the gateways to the
World Wide Web, put the monastery's
home page on its list of "cool
stuff."
And several Internet surfers have
contacted the monastery to say they're
interested in becoming monks.
"Cybervocations; we call it," Brother
Mary-Aquinas said with a laugh.
The Internet isn't the· monks' only
high0tech excursion. A dozen members
of the community recently went
to an Albuquerque so1,1nd studio to
record the chants that are a staple of
their religious services.
While audio tapes made at the
monastery are available through its
gift shop, this will be the first compact
disc - and the first time the monks
have used state-of-the-art equipment
to capture the centuries-old Gregorian
QUOTABLE:
and Byzantine chants.
The compact disc will be sold
through the monastery's gift shop and
catalog.
Christ in the Desert's gift shop and
guest house used to provide enough
operating revenue, but no longer. It
costs about $200,000 a year to support
the 25 monks, who come fromseven
countries, Prior Philip said.
And the monastery is in the midst
of a $2.5 million building campaign.
The sleeping rooms, called cells, that
now are scattered around in small,
poorly heated buildings will be
concentrated in a 10,000-square-foot
building attached to the chapel by an
enclosed walkway.
With some monks in their 70s and
winters that deliver plenty of snow
and sub-zero temperatures, the improvements
are a must, Prior Philip
said.
Each cell in the new building will
be wired for a' computer - looking
toward the day when monks will get
their spiritual reading matter from
dtskettes rather than books.
"It's so obviously the way of the
future," Prior Philip said. ·
The Internet address of the Monastery
. of Christ in the Desert is:
http:/ /www.christdesert.org
Andrew Sullivan on being gay and Catholic ...
'TM OPENLY gay becauseI 'm a Catholic.A very core
moral that I was taught grawing up as a Ro1111Clna tholici s
the idea of truth and honesty. In my book I quote the Holy
Father: 'Be not afraid. Of what slwuld we not be afraid? We
should not fear the truth about ourselves.' To me,
Catholicism is about truth, and honesty beforf one's fellow
man and before God. My feeling about the equality of gay
peoples pringso ut of my Catholicism. Honwsexualityi s not
something that I chose. And if it is not something that I
chose, it's something that God made me, and if God
made me this way, I can't see that he would want me
to be ashamed of it. "
Andrew Sullivan is the editor of The New Republic.
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PAGE 5 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
Faith 1n Daily Ll1e •
My reply
to Edgar
BY RE V. SA MU E L KADE R
As past~r of one of a number of
gay/ lesbian-affirming Christian
churches in Dayton, Ohio, I recently
received a letter from a constituent of
the community we serve. Although
this person was unknown to me, and
had never been to any of our churches,
he felt compelled to write, asking a
number of pressing political-theological
questions. I could read his
intense concern about wha\ the religious
right is saying about us, and his
desire to see us respond.
He wrote: "Various religious issues
are becoming increasingly important
jn American society, the entire lesbi/
gay community will be affected by
/ the resolutio11 ,of these -issues." ·
I could see the rhetoric from the
religi,o,us right aH through the. questions
he· ;wanted·· answered. We say
those in the religious right are full of
hate and bigotry. We say they don't
know what they're talking about. ·
We say they are misguided. .But
obviously their poison is infiltrating
our system or this person would not be
wanting an antidote.
"Is this a Christian nation?" he
asked, "And/ or was it founded on
Judeo-Christian principles?"
'' Are the Biblical descriptions of the
Creation, the Garden of Eden, and the
Noachian Flood straight forward
accounts of actual events?"
"Will a person who dies a nonChristian
necessarily go to hell? If
the answer is yes, does it make a difference
if the person had no knowledge
of Christianity?"
"Was Thomas Jefferson a Christian?"
He wrote "For those questions that
can be basically answered yes or no,
please state the reason(s) for your
answer." ·
As a community we are drowning in
the barrage of rhetoric. We know
these are untruths, half truths and
distorted truths designed to get political
advantage . In the meanwhile
our people continue to get hurt and
wounded and come looking to tis for
answers. Yes and no answers will not
do. What are the reasons. What is
our doctrine. What do we believe.
What is our purpose?
When -I opened his letter, which
had a self <1ddressed staqtped envelope
for my reply, I could see how desperately
he wanted answers. I had to
really think before I just glibly wrote
down some stock answers . Here was
someone hurting from w<;>urids
inflicted by the Body of Christ, the
same body I am also a part of,
through the saving grace of Jesus
Christ. Here was someone I am
called to preach -the good news to,
who is suspicious of that news because
of the distorted views of the forerunners
wilh that gospel.
Paul said if any preach another
Gospel let them be accursed. The
problem is we so often have to undo
the damage done by the other gospel
before we can ever bring good news.
I answered Edgar's questions to the
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PAGE 6 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
best of my ability, then went on to
present soine good news.
In responding to our community's
pain and confusion we almost begin to
attack the very source of hope we
have to offer. It is so important, like
Paul the Apostle to remember that I
am not ashamed of the Gospel
because it is the power of God unto
salvation to all them that believe. I
might be ashamed of the behavior
and rhetoric of some Christians, but
- never of the Gospel or the person of
Christ.
I wrote "As to your more theologically
oriented questions such as
heaven/ hell and the role call in
each, plus the reliability of the
Bible regarding any of the stories
found therein, besides the description
of Creation, Noah's flood, the Garden
of Eden, etc., realize, of course we
are a_ Christian group of believers.
We are not focusing on the questions
the way they are posed. We're not
trying to figure out who is going to
hell. We already accept the reality
of Jesus, not only as a historical person
but as the living one who conquered
hell, death, and the grave .
He did it for -us.. All of us. In His
words, "whosoever will." There are
plenty of churches out there helping
you decide who is going to hell. But
in the process, they often throw out as
garbage some wonderful children of
the living God because •Of something
they cannot change.
Our role is not one of condemnation,
but of reconciliation. God gave us the
ministry of reconciliation. People
need to know God loves them. Really
loves them. And they need to
develop that love relationship with
God in order to have the fullness oflife
that Jesus promised when He
said He came to give us life and that
more abundantly. When we were born
we had life. But that's it. As we
develop our love walk with the Lord
we discover, not just life, but a quality
of life that far exceeds anything we
could ever know on our own without
the Lord. There are tangible results
and benefits to walking with God.
Is God's word reliable? Absolutely!
Can it be distorted by those with evil
intentions to say what - was never
actually written or intended? Absolutely!
For this reason the Bible says
about itself that we are to study it to
show ourselves approved unto God.
We need to dig into the living word to
discover the nuggets cif t ruth God has
hidden in its' pages. That's what we
do at our church.
In the process we find strength,
encouragement, and answers for living.
God has an answer for everything
we face. This is our focus. And
for those discarded by others because
of who they were born to be, we say
come ori over, you are ·welcome at this
refuge of safety. We dust off those
long sitting by the roadside where
they have been tossed. We bandage
their wounds, help them grow strong,
and give them hope. We help them
grow in their walk with the God who
made them and loves them. We help
them discover their purpose, and find
meaning in it all. We help them find
life and that more abundantly, with
quality and dignity as they grow in
love with the Author of life."
I don't know what Edgar will think
of those answers, but I encouraged
him to come talk to us. We never
know when we as Christians will be
called upon to explain what we
believe and why. It seems God is
using the turmoil of the times to open
doors to the Gospel in our community
that have long been closed . People
are at a point of crisis. We need to be
ready to demonstrate God's love in
practical ways . But we also need to
be able to explain the Gospel. We do
have good news! Life changing, •in
fact. People want answers. God has
those answers, and God will disclose
the answers needed to every heart on
a personal basis as each one commits,
then begins a relationship with Jesus
of Nazareth. His sheep know His
voice, because He talks to them! He
is still alive!
The woman at the well said, come
meet a man who told me everything I
ever did. That one encounter with
the Lord changed her life and
impacted her entire community. We
not only have something to offer, we
have Someone to offer! That makes
all the difference in the world. The
religious right is offering "another
gospel" as Peter said one which
neither we nor our forebears have
been able to live. Grace is not offered.
Mercy is forgotten. But this wonderful
loving miracle working God is also
a God who hears the cries of the
oppressed. Blessed are the merciful.
May I ever behave that way. May
my hand ever be extended, my heart
be opened to another wandering soul,
and my mouth ever be ready to
explain the Gospel, the good news of
Jesus Christ!
I wrote to Edgar, "I hope this somehow
answers most of the questions you
raise. Again thank you for your concern,
and for taking the time to contact
us. Feel free to visit. We're here
for you, and "whosoever will." Again
thank you for your concerns and your
letter. God bless you!"
Samuel Kader is the senior pastor
and co-founder of Community Gospel
Church in- Dayton, Oliio. Kader also
founded ReconciliationM CC in Grand
Rapids, Michigan and pastored otl1er
MCC churches in Dayton, Ohio and
Melbourne, Australia.
Faith 1n Daily Life
Testaments:
Early Christians also disagreed 300ut sexuality i&5lleS
By David Briggs .
Associated Press Religion Writer
"For in the on~ spirit we were all
baptized into one body . ... and we are
all made to drink of one Spirit."
- l Corinthians 12:13.
SOMETIMES IT SEEMS that if contemporary
Christian churches could
only get their minds off sex, their
denominational lives would run much
smoother. I
Denominations such as the Presbyterian
Church (U.S.A.) have struggled
for years, sometimes bitterly,
over how to approach issues of sex
outside marriage, particularly regarding
their stance on homosexuality.
Now, in advance of a legislative
reckoning later this year at its General
Assembly on sexuality issues,
the church is taking a few pages out
of the Bible to reflect on how early
Christians handled _some of these
same tensions.
The denomination recently released
a national Bible study program of
Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians.
The eight-part program
was sent to each of the denomination's
11,000 churches, and some have
already made plans to . do a Lenten
Bible study of the book.
Those who sometimes lose heart
over the dissension in churches today
may take some comfort in the fact
that Christians have been struggling
with the same issues for almost two
millenniums, or nearly since·the birth
of the church. -
"We tend to think back to the good
old days and tend to assume it was
easier to be a Christian community
closer to the time · of Jesus," said the
Rev. Kristine Haig, associate for discipleship
and spirituality for the
Presbyterian church. "It's never been
easy . It's always been hard."
The church at Corinth faced a
number of issues - from arguments
regarding permissible sexual prac- ·
tices to the role of women in the
church - that many congregations
today continue to struggle with .
Those favoring more liberal sexual
attitudes point to Paul's emphasis on
the importance of love in passages
from the 13th chapter declaring
"Love is patient; love is kind."
Others favoring traditional sexual
standards refer to the sixth chapter,
where Paul warns the Corinthians
against being deceived.
"Fornicators, idolaters, adulterers,
male prostitutes, sodomites, thieves,
the greedy, drunkards, re.vilers, robbers
- none of these will inherit the
kingdom of God:-'
Recognizing .the parallels in the
issues faced by the church at Corinth
and Presbyterians today, the · denomination's
General Assembly Council
voted last faff ·io commission the
i:hurchwide Bible study of 1 Corinthians.
In putting together the -Bible study
program, Haig avoided taking stands
on controversial issues such as homosexuality.
Instead she encourages
members to pray and reflect on how
Scripture addresses the tensions and
the spiritual foundations that unite
the community. .
For example, in the sessfon .address ing
sexual issues, Presbyterians are
asked to take time to pray about the
church's struggle with the issue:
"Simply quiet yourself and ask to be
open to the presence of the Spirit,
and then bring with you into that
loving space the image or name of
someone who has struggled with or
has been closely touched by issues of
human sexuality."
In another session, the meditation
focuses on the relationship between a
-pastor and a man with Alzheimer's
disease_. Even though the man, Clint,
initially did not recognize the pastor,
she remembered the urgency with
which -he asked her to share a piece _
of half•eaten bread with him during
qne of her final visits,
"In my car, I .sang a hymn and went
back into the world, renewe.d in
strength, peaceful about leaving
· Clint, knowing that in the depth of
Clint's shadowy valley God is with
him and in him," Glaucia Vasconcelos
Wilkey writes in the study program.
"I know, for I saw God in the breaking
of bread with my friend, and even
Alzheimer's disease was not potent
enough to . destroy that priceless
gift." _
For Haig, the lesson that comes out
of 1 Corinthians is the importance of ·
Christian community transcending
other divisions .
She rejects all the talk about how
the cli.urch would be better off if the
liberals left, or if the conservatives
left.
"For any of us to have to leave the
community, the Presbyterian community,
would be a tragedy," Haig
said. "To lose any one of the voices
would be to diminish the body."
Harvard researchers ba:ck healing value of prayer l11111'- of this
issue of
Second
Stone .
By Rachel Zoll
Associated Press Writer
BOSTON (AP) - People of faith have
always claimed that prayer and -meditation
can help cure physical ailments.
Now researchers at Harvard
Medical School say so, too.
Repeating a prayer can lower the
heill't rate, breathing rate and brain
wave activity and sometimes even
avert the need for invasive surgery or
expensive medicine, · according to
medical experts . They say the idea is
gaining new support a·mong health
organizations that are seeking ways
to cut costs.-
.'The supposed gulf betw .een science
and spirituality in healing does not
always exist," said Dr. Herbert
Benson, a Harvard Medical School
professor and founder of the Mind/
Body Medical Institute at Boston's
Deaconess Hospital.
"Scientific studies demonstrate that,
by repeating prayers, . words or
sounds and passively disregarding
other thoughts, many people are able
to trigger a specific set of physiological
changes;" Benson said.
Called "the relaxation response,"
the approach wa& the subject of a
meeting _in December called "Spirituality
and Healing in Medicine" to
teach physicians the value of meditation
and prayer as healing tools.
As evidence, Benson pointed to
studies · showing the relaxation response
decreased visits to health ·
maintenance organizations by · 36
percent. ·
Nearly 40 percent of couples who
believed they were _infertile conceived
within.six months of practicing
the technique, he said.
Benson said he now receives about
five or six calls per week from HMOs
looking to incorporate . the method in
their treatment programs.
· Benson s.tarted researching what he
calls the "mind-body response" about
25 years ago when people practicing
transcendental meditation asked him
to research the physiological effect o{
their technique. · ·
He compiled scientific evidence for
the health benefits of TM, then began
studying how a change in thinking
could heal those suffering from stress- ·
related diseases. His work is detailed
in his best-selling 1975 book, Tlze
Relaxation Response.
Benson said he found the mind
could work "like a drug," especially
among people who had strong faith
in God or a higher power .
"Eighty percent of the patients,
when given the choice of a word
sound or a prayer to repeat, chose
prayer. I discovered I was teaching
prayer," Benson said.
'We have our own .HMO's - healing
ministry · outreach," said Samue1
Solivan, .professor of Chtistian theology
at Andover Newton Theological
Seminary. ·.
"Where you don't have health
insurance, pentecostal communities of
faith have access to a healer," he said.
"Jesus Christ, the · Holy Spirit, God,
become a central resource."
But Benson said he advocates
prayer only as part of a threepron_
g~d _attack on _illness, along with
med.icme and surgical . intervention, . if
necessary.
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PAGE 7 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
.,
C
EXPULSIONS EVERYWHERE! In addition to the two Lutheran
churches expelled from their national church body (story this page}
four Baptist churches in California were expelled from their regional
body for adopting a welcoming and affirming stance toward gays and
lesbians . (See story page 10 and commentary page 23.)
Gay, lesbian clergy at issue:
Lutheran Church expels
two congregations
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Two .small
Lutheran congregations took on their
mother church over the issue of
homosexuality and lost.
At issue are three gay or lesbian
ministers who refused to take a vow
of celibacy after graduating from
official Lutheran seminaries.
Now the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America has expelled the
congregations for ordaining the Revs .
Ruth Frost, Phyllis ZilU\art and Jeff
Johnson.
The . St. Francis Lutheran Church
and First United Lutheran Church
were packed Dec. 31 for their last
services as congregations of the
denomination.
"The drama of expulsion was muted
because there were· no ·surprises," said
Jim Lokken, ·a member of St. Francis
Lutheran. "No one said anything
unexpected. We all knew this was
going to happen ; and we have had
five years to think .about it." ·
Many visitors were ori hand to
Dignity/USA:
express their encouragement and support
. The Rev . Janie Spahr, Presbyterian
minister from Tiburon who was
the focus of a public battle in her
denomination over her call to Downtown
Presbyterian Church in
Rochester, N.Y., attended.
Paul Johnson, former assistant to the
ELCA bishop -in l.,a Crosse, Wisc.,
who was asked to resign after being
outed as a gay man sevez:.al years ago,
attended with his partner, as did
David Deppe, a former professor at
Seminex and LSTC. A delegation from
St. Paul Reformation Lutheran
Church of St. Paul, Minn ., included
Pastor Paul Tidemann .and Anita Hill
of Wingspan Ministries.
Bishop Paul Egertson observed -the
irony in that just as the congregations
are being expelled from ,the ELCA
they exemplify everything that the
ELCA says _it wants-its urban congregations
to be - inclusive, multicultural,
reaching out to its . community, gospel-
centered, lively and ·imagina-
ELCA remains in fellowship
with expelled churches
OAKLAND, Cal. - The synod council
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America's Sierra Pacific Synod has
established ways to remain in fellowship
with St. Francis and First United
Lutheran Churches of San Francisco.
The two congregations were expelled
from the ELCA Dec. 31.
Disciplinary action was tak en in
1990 after th e congregations called
three perso ns who were not approved
for call and ordination by the ELCA
because they had not indicat ed compliance
with ELCA standards requiring
Gays and Lesbians to remain abstinent.
According lo a letter from the .Rev.
Robert W. Mattheis, bishop of the
synod, the council's action reaffirms
the synod's intent, expressed in a
synod assembly resolution, to "explore
creative ways to maintain a
strong bond of fellowship" with these
congregations : The ELCA Churchwide
Assembly in August affirmed
the synod's original action.
Mattheis sa id some congregations
in the synod "will grieve the loss of
live, financially healthy, growing,
with good lay and clergy leadership ,
consciou s of its place in the larger
church .
The Lutherans allow ordination of
gay minist ers - but only if they take a
vow lo abstain from having sexual
relations with members of the same
.. sex.
In 1990, the mother church suspended
·the two congregations, and
said they were officially expelled if
they did not rescind the ordinations
by Dec. 31, 1995 . . But the churches
refused. ·
James DeLange, senior pastor at St.
Francis, said no church members have
left as a result of the expulsion . And
even some higher church officials
these congregations," but "others
hop e that this will reso lve what has
been a painful issue for the whole
synod for more than five years."
Th e seve n points for the process
are: ask Bishop Robert Mattheis to
write a prayer petition for congregations
of the synod for u se Dec. 31,
1995; urge the San Francisco Confer
ence (of ELCA congregations) to
con tinu e to include the congregations
in conference activiti es as possible;
dir ect the sy nod office an<l the ELCA
to keep the congregations on mailing
lists; express hope that the two
congr ega tions will be available as resources
for others in areas of ministry ·
where they have expertise; ask the
bishop to invite clergy and members
of the coJ1gregations to attend the
syriod assembly _ as visitors and observers;
encourage member s of the
ELCA to ·make their concern for these
rnngregations concrete by worshiping
wllh th em; and ask th e \Hshop lo
continue offering pastoral care to the
clergy and member s of these congregations
.
expressed their support for the congregations.
Johnson, the gay minister who is
pastor of St. · ·Fra n cis, S;tf.S the
churches have few · alternatives. The
only other major national Lutheran
organization, the Lutheran Church
Missouri Synod, is even more conservative
than the ELCA.
"They don't even recognize gay and
lesbian" as normal orientations, he
said. "At least in this one, we're .not
sick."
"We do hope tha t those who disagree
with us remember that this is
our only point of difference with the
ELCA," said Lokken. "We continue to
be a part of the same church family,
and. one day we'll be back."
Vatican sex education document ''dangerous''
ianne Duddy, president of the group
for gay, le sbian, bisexual, trartsgendered,
and supportive Catholics .
"Not allowing Catholic students to be
exposed to solid information about
sexuality, and how to p.rotect themselves,
means that more of these
children and teenagers will have
unsafe sex. It's putting them in literally
life-threatening situations.
THE DOCUMENT, "HUMAN Sexuality:
Truth and Significance,"
released Dec. 20 by the Pontifical
Commis&ion for the Family is seriously
flawed, and even dangerous, said
leaders of Dignity/USA. The Vatican
instruc_t:ion calls on Catholics to
remove their children from . school
programs in which stamj.ard elements
of sex education, including use of condoms
to reduce risk of pregnancy and '
AIDS, are taught.
"Statistics aheady show that
Catholic women have abortions at a
higher rate -than women of other
Dignity leaders objected to the docu- faiths, probably because they don't
ment on several grounds. "First of all, get good information about birth
it's just plain dangerous," said Mar- control," Duddy said. ''Does the Pope
PAGE 8 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
want to see the same kind of statistic
for Catholics and AIDS? The Vatican
is saying that safer sex education is
'dangerous and immoral,' b_ut I
believe that th ·e Vatican's sacrifice
of our kids on the altar of outdated .
principles is what's really immoral
here ."
The group is also angered by the
document's insisten _ce that public
schools should teach that homosexuality
is not consistent with "natural
law." "The Pope is asking American
public schools to teach a Catholic
doctrine," Duddy said. " I can't
believe any taxpayer, whether
Catholic or not, will -tolerate that
kind of interventio n in public school
curricula ."
The document notes that the family
and not the schools should be the
place :where sex education occurs.
"We agree with .that ~ to a point,"
Duddy said. "The reality is that lots
of kids don't get the information at
home . Their parents may not be comfortable
talking about it. We as a
society have a responsibility to help
kids make good choices, and safe
choices. The schools definitely have
a role in what is a public health and
welfare, as well as a personal, issue."
National News
American Baptist boord votes to reestablish ties with gayaffinning
Baptist~ organization
RECALLING ITS "historic ties" with
the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North
America (BPFNA), the Board of National
Ministries of the American Baptist
Churches in the U.S.A. approved
at its November meeting a motion to
reestablish ties with the BPFNA.
This action, by a vote of 33-18 with
3 abstentions, reverses an earlier vote
last March to sever ties with the organization
in response to the BPFNA
Board's statement on homosexuality
approved in February, 1995.
In response to the Board of National
Ministries vote, BPFNA Executive
Director Ken Sehested indicated he
was "obviously very pleased," noting
that "it puts a number of important
relationships back on trustworthy
grounds. However, we don't view
this as a victory, at least not in the
normal sense. "Winning the d ebate
over the issue of sexual orientation
has never been our goal. While our
Decision in June:
board has spoken its conviction, our
long-term goal is to urge congregations
to put this matter on the table
. for discussion ."
In a related matter, the full General
Board of the ABC approved a recommendation
that a commission on
homosexuality be created to addres s
the divisive issue of church attitudes .
In response to this action, Sehested ·
noted that such a move could be
useful, but "it is urgent that they find
creative ways to coax our congregations
into this process ."
Sehested also said that there are
signs that the BPFNA's ties with the .
Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF),
a missions organization based in
Atlanta founded by moderate Southern
Baptists, may be mending. In a
November 9 issue of Baptists Today,
Carolyn Crumpler, immediate past
moderator of the CBF, not ed that
"there are many areas in which we
Southern Baptist Convention may
boycott Disney
By Lisa Holewa ·
Associated Press Writer
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - A Florida Baptist
group that asked its 1 million members
to boycott Walt Disney Co.'s
parks and products because Disney
extended health insurance to partners
of homosexual workers says it will
ask a national group to do the same.
The Florida Baptist State Convention,
which unanimously approved
the boycott resolution in November,
will present the proposal at the
Southern Baptist Convention when it
meets in Jun·e in New Orleans, said
convention spokeswoman Barbara
Denman .
That group has 16 million members
nationwide .
. The resolution asks members to
"prayerfully reconsider their continued
purchase anif support of Disney ·
products .'' It was prompted by
Disney's decision last month to extend
insuranc e benefits to partners of gay
· and lesbian employees, D e nman
said.
'That was probably the final straw,"
she said . "Historically, Bisney had
reinforced America 's values and we.
noticed there .had been an erosion in
its moral leadership." ·
The non-binding resolution also
criticized Disney for promoting combination
cruise-and-theme park vacations
with ship lines, saying that
promotes alcohol use and gambling.
It also s aid Disney hosted "homosexual
and lesbian theme nights" at
its parks and produced "questionable
material" through subsidiarie s such as
the Miramax movie company, which
Disney acquired in 1993.
Disney spokesman John Drey er
said the company "regrets (the group)
has chosen to take that position ."
'The standard against which our
commitment to family entertainm ent
should be measured is the value and ·
high quality of Disneycbranded family
entertainment that we produce and
the fact that we are the world's lead er
in producing entertainment for the
entire family," he said .
. Dis,ney said the new benefits plan, ·
effective Jan . 1, was in line with its
policy of not discriminating against
workers based on race or sexual
orientation .
As for th e group's oth er charges ,
Dr~yer said Gays and Lesbians who
· hold an annual convenfi011 in
Orlando visit the park, bu t Disney
has no official ties to that meeting.
"We host the m th e same as we host
thousands of people ·each day, all of
whom come up to our ticket window s,
buy tickets and come into the park ,"
Dreyer said.
The resolution to boyrntt Disney
was introduced Nov. 14 by t.wo
pastors.
"If we as Christians feel that they 're
shying away from traditional famil y"
values, we're going to have to shy
away from putting money in their
pockets," one of the sponsors, Rev .
Arthur Rathje of Marianna, told Tire
St. Petersburg Times.
walk hand-in-hand " with the BPFNA.
Id entifying herself as a former member
of the board of the BPFNA, and
"a current supporter ," Crumpler indicated
that "We hav e not excluded [the
BPFNA) from our number, nor from
the possibility of future funding ."
BPFNA statement on sexual orientation
is one which "we as an
organiz~tiori cannot agree." Phillips
closed his lett er by saying, 'This does
not mean we want to sever relation- ·
ship with you but means that on this
subject, we do not agree ."
The BPFNA statement has also
drawn response frorri two other Baptist
bodies . In a letter receiv ed in
mid-November, David Phillips, general
secretary of Canadian Baptist
Ministries (formerly Canadian Baptist
Federation) , noted that while "Canadian
Baptists have always valued and
respected the work that you do," the
In a unanimous vote taken in
August, the board of directors of the
Alliance of Baptists ,. a Washington,
D.C.-based missions organization,
expressed i~ "continuing support of
the BPFNA . We join you ... in
encouraging dialogue ... on issues
of discipleship, justice and peace,
including human sexuality ... .''
Alabama Presbyterians slight lesbian minister
LESBIAN MINISTER JANE Spahr
arrived in Birmingham, Ala ., on
Nov. 30 to lobby for acceptance of gay
and lesbian preachers in the Presbyterian
church, but she had little luck
finding a pulpit or an audience.
"We're here to claim our spirituality,
not just our sexuality," Spahr said.
"We're very sound biblically and
theologically." In 1993, the 2.7 million-
member Presbyterian Church
(USA), requested a three-year study
on homosexuality, bu{ many Alabama
Presbyterians seem uninterested· in
disC1:1ssing it. "There are pastors who
won't c_ome because they're afraid,"
said Lainey Rathgeber, a lesbian
Presbyterian who set up the visit.
· '"We were not able to get ·a pulpit for
her. We tried ." -· Southern Voice
WJK
I
'. '
'
1996 NEW-TITLES
We Were Baptized Too
Claiming God's Grace for Lesbians and Gays
Marilyn Bennett Alexander
and· James Preston February Paper $16.99
Foreword br Desmond M. Tutu
"This practica and powerful book belongs on m ry church library shelf and
should be read by mry minister."- Marjorie Procrer-Smith, Perkins School of
Theology, Sou1hem Methodist Uni,•ersiry · • . ·
Biblical Ethics and· Homosexuality
Listening to Scripture
Robert L. Brawley, editor February Paper $16.99
. What arn he most important hiblical texts for modem Christians to read in order
t11 arrive at responsible decisions regarding the ethics of human sexual beharior !
How should the Bihle be used in this enterprise! How should those texts he translated
f,,r today's reader' Contributors to this h<X1k, all notahle hihlical'scholars,
confront these questions as they deal with issues surrounding the ethics of sexual
heha\·ior, in gener~I, and the di\·isire is.5ue of gay/les~ian ordination_,_ in particular.
Homosexuality and Christian Community·
.Cho9n-Leong Seow, editor . - Febr.uary :- . Paper $14.99
Contrihutors tll this rnlume: all: mefubers\lf.the Princeron-TheqllJgical Se-minary
faculty, address the ratious exegetical, imerpreth·e, and practical issues pertaining
to the issue li homosexuality in the churc;h, includino the ordination l1f homosexuals
and the Plesging of homosexu.:i'! unions as welf.as ·bwader issues dealing
ll'ith the liturgical and_theological lang_uage ahi,ur God, and the ,,,le of the
church in a pluralistic society.
Uncommon Calling
A Gay.Christian 's.Struggle to Serve the Church -:-'
Expimqed and.u·irh a Nett· Preface, Conclusion, and Pho1qgraphs ..
Chris Glaser · . . March . , Pa11_er $19.99
"Thereis'·heartache and hope' in this piercingl( l\onest book: .' . . Those who
really hear his story will be proud to support him in this powerful faith journe)'•
and 11·ill make his cnncems their own."- Sydney Thomson-Brou11 and
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Will . At ~·uiir f>oc,bwr,•, Cpk.:$h1u-~·. or ml! roll-fr,-.· 1-BOO-ZZ7-ZB72
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PAGE 9 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY / FEBRUARY, 1996
National News
FouBr aptiscth urchteask eh eafto rs tandinugp f org ays
By Bill Lindelof
Scripps-McClatchWy esternS ervice
SACRAMENTO, Calif. • Western
region American Baptists sent a
strong message to their governing
board when delegates to a special
session voted to expel four churches
for joining an association of churches
that affirms gays and lesbians.
The Bay Area churches have been
the target of a campaign by other
Baptist preachers for two years. The
vote, which actually asked whether
or not to "include" the churches in the
denomination, was 457 against and
127 for and came after spirited
debate.
"Don't talk to us about sin issues,"
shouted the Rev. Amos Brown of
Third Baptist Church in San Francisco,
who supported the four churches.
"All of us have sin. Racism, sexism
and homophobia are sins."
But the majority were not swayed.
They said the churches should not
belong to the American Baptist
Churches denomination because they
have joined the Association of Weicoming
and Affirming Baptists.
"Jesus did not affirm every
lifestyle," said the Rev. Rod Layman
of Sacramento's First Baptist Church.
"It's not the welcoming part I have a
problem with. It is the affirming
part. We need a parting of the ways."
Leaders of the four churches that
accept gays and lesbians have fought
the ouster effort.
"My stance, the stance of this
church, is that gays and lesbians ...
have a right to be full participating
members in the faith community like
anybody else," said Kay WeIH.ngton,
pastor at .San Leandro Community
Church.
The other targeted churches were
the New Community of Faith Church
in San Jose, the First Baptist Church
of Berkeley and Lakeshore Avenue
Baptist Church in Oakland.
There are 1.5 million American
Baptists in .the United States, including
55,000 members at 220 churches in
the Western region . Officials said
there are about 20 American Baptist
churches in the Sacramento area.
President'psa store lectedto heads tate convention
LITTLE ROCK (AP) - President
Clihton's pastor was elected president
of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention
as one church minister expressed
concern that his election will be seen
as an endorsement of Clinton's views
on abortion and homosexuality.
Dr. Rex Home Jr. of Immanuel
Baptist Church in Little Rock was
elected president of the state's largest
religious organization. Home defeated
Dr. Stephen Davis, pastor of the
First Baptist Church of Russellville,
482-398.
The Rev. Barry King, chairman of
the convention's nominating committee,
said he was concerned Horne 's
election would seem like an endorse·
men! of Clinton's support for abortion
and gay rights.
'That's just not where we're coming
from," said King, who was a representative
of the Second Baptist Church
in Hot Springs. '1 don't have any ax
to grind with Rex Horne. I know him
personally and Jove him as a brother.
This is not a personality issue. This is
a philosophical difference of opinion."
But Lyndon Finney, a member of
Home's church and a board member
of the convention's news magazine,
said Home is "very forward thinking"
and his election had nothing to do
with Clinton's views.
Horne said he would keep his role
as Clinton's pastor separate from his
duties as convention president. Home
has said he believes in the sanctity of
life and that the Bible speaks against
homosexuality .
Pastor, I Am Gay
By The Rev. H. Howard Bess
Order from
Second Stone Press.
See page 22.
Although more and more parishioners are
comfortable with coming out at church, many
pastors still aren't equipped to hear the words,
"lam gay." This remarkable book chronicles a
Baptist pastor's first fumbling encounter with
those words to his deep and compassionate
understanding of what is means to be a gay
Christian.
An extraordinary book... a prophetic
witness to the church ...
-James B. Ashbrook,
Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary
PAGE 10 • SECOND STONE• JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
Delegates for the special session of
the American Baptist Churches of
the West met at St. Paul Missionary
Baptist Church in Oak Park. St.
Paul, which is not an American Baptist
church, was chosen because it is a
neutral site.
The delegates first voted to amend a
church rule to allow discipline of
churches for theological and disunity
reasoris. That change also passed by a
wide margin. They then were asked
whether . membership in the Association
for Welcoming and Affirming
Baptists should disqualify the four
churches from continuing in the American
Baptist denomination.
'The association has as their purpose
the exact opposite of the denomination's
position on the practice of
homosexuality," said Western region
Executive Director Rev. Robert Rasmussen.
'They propose that .the practice of
homosexuality is compatible with
Christian teaching . The denomination
and the region's position is that
the practice of homosexuality is
incompatible with Christian teaching."
San Leandra's Rev. Wellington said
she does not believe that homosexuality
is wrong: 'Those that oppose us
feel we should say that gay men and
lesbians are sinful, that they need to
repent and ask for forgiveness . They
even go so far as . to say that if it is not
a choice, if the person was born this
way, then they must live a celiba te
life."
Speakers also said the question of
autonomy was at stake. Wellington
said there is a historic Baptist principle
that allows a church to define
its own ministry and govern itself.
The vote was advisory and will be
presented to the 68-member Western
regional board when it meets March
9. Rasmussen expects the board to
agree with the advice of the church
delegates.
The issue will then be taken by the
nationai board in June. The national
board usually accepts the recommendation
of regional bodies on
churq, membership .
It is Wellington's opinion that the
national board will stand by the four
churches. In any case, "we don't need
the region to be American . Baptist,"
she said. "We can form our own
region, we can join with another
region or we can arrange to relate
directly to national."
Texas Baptists refuse to ban
delegates from churches with
gay pastors
SAN ANTONIO (AP) - The Bapt1st
General Convention of Texas
wrapped up its annual meeting by
refusing to ban delegates from
churches with gay and lesbian pastors
or deacons .
The action in mid-November was
seen by many as merely procedural,
however, rather than a change of
policy from the traditional Baptist
condemnation of homosexuality.
The nation's largest Southern Baptist
state convention decided instead
on the last day of the two-day annual
meeting to refer the proposed ban to
its executive board for further study.
On the first day of the convention, a
messenger from a Lubbock church
had asked that any messenger from
Austin's University Baptist Church be
denied seating at the convention
because it had ordained a gay man as
a deacon.
The Rev. Larry Bethune, pastor of
University Baptist Church, said the
congregation had planned to send 11
delegates to the San Antonio gathering,
but backed off when it
appeared the messengers would be
, challenged.
Sexual consideration was not considered
an issue in the deacon's ordination,
according to Bethune. "He was
ordained because he demonstrated
himself as a spiritually focused, loving
Christian, and he has continued
todoso."
The Rev.· Roger Deerinwater,
pastor of the First Baptist Church in
Archer City, said that by referring
the motion to committee, "we are saying
we can't decide whether homosexuality
is a sin or not."
The Rev. Bruce Prescott, pastor of
Easthaven Baptist Church in Houston,
said the real issue is whether a state
convention can exclude messengers
on the basis of a local church's
decisions.
Dale Gore, executive director of the
Austin Baptist Association, strongly
disputed Bethune's contention that the
association violated the autonomy of
the local church by its actions.
'That's just not true," Gore said.
'The church is an autonomous body.
So is the association. The association
has a right to choose whom we wish
to remain in fellowship."
Bill Scarbrough of Highland Park
Baptist Church in Austin introduced
an amendment. that would have
added adultery, theft, greed and
other sins as reasons to deny seating.
f · I 1h tt ; t ll j National News
DENVER (AP) - Most churches al ready
have exclusive attitudes toward
Gays and Lesbians and that aloof
treatment will only get worse after a
ruling is made on the constitutionality
of anti-gay Amendment 2, two seminary
professors said.
Speaking at a pastoral care workshop
on how Gays are treated in the
aftermath of Amendment 2, Joretta
Marshall said churches quietly accept
homosexuals but often overlook them
when recognizing anniversaries and
other "ritual moments" of its members.
Marshall, assistant professor of
pastoral care and counseling at- Iliff
Discredited ex-gay counselor
charged with having sex with clients
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) -
A former minister who says he can
change the sexual orientation of
homosexuals offered a seminar here
in late October, drawing ire from
critics who say his methodology contains
inappropriate sexual behavior.
Colin Cook, 55, once a Seventh-day
Adventist minister, is the founder of
FaithQuest Colorado Inc., one of dozens
of Christian-based "change ministries"
across the nation.
Cook, who has been endorsed ·by
the Colo~ado Springs-based Colorado
for Family Values, ·says he himself
has overcome homosexuality.
"Christians have it wrong," bec-1use
they often preach only condemnation
of Gays "telling them they're going to
hell," Cook told The Denver Post. '1t's
us againsnhem, 1ove·tne ·srt\rter'l:iut
hate the sin. We need· to tell Gays
they can come to Jesus, not just to
'stop doing that and be celibate."' .
He said healing may take several
years.
Controversy over Cook's seminars
and points of view stem from his
ouster from the Seventhaday Adventist
church in 1974 for allegedly
having sex with . a man in the church
where he was a pastor in New York.
Following two years of counseling,
Cook later married, claiming he had
changed his sexual orientation and set
up Quest Learning Center in Reading
in 1979. Cook says he has not been .
involved in any homosexual activity
since 1986.
But th e ministry collapsed after
details of Cook's activities surfaced in
a research paper written by a Queens'
College professor.
Cook moved to Colorado in 1993,
founded FaithQuest Colorado and
began doing "Lifting the Fog" seminars
on changing sexual orientation .
But several men who have received
counseling from Cook told T11e Post
that Cook had several hours of
"phone sex" with them instead of
counseling them to become heterosexuals.
·
In taped counseling sessions obtained
by T11e Post, Cook allegedly
had prolonged discussions about masturbation
and genitalia and discussed
past sexual-liaisons in de.t<\i.l .. . . . __ _
. "He's emotionally raping people,"
said Davfd;a man in his 30s who had
phone counseling sessions with Cook
in 1993. "He thinks if he's having
erotic phone · conversations it's OK
because he's not having sex.''
The man said his sessions with
Cook end eel after another therapist he
was seeing told him the conversations
were totally inappropriate.
A national Adventist official said
the church has no connection with
Cook.
Kevin Tebedo, director of Colorado
for Family Values, defended Cook,
saying "We believe Colin's message
is valuable and the response to Colin
(at seminars last summer) has been
tremendous. All the people thought
he was top-notch."
Gay school teacher under fire
supported by his church
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich - A gay
school teacher who has been the target
of school board condemnation has
received the support of his church
congregation. The governing board of
Gerry Crane's church, Westminster
Presbyterian Church, has released a
statement supporting him.
Describing Crane as "a loved and
valued member of our congregation,"
the statement affirms Crane's "decision
to enter into a lifelong covenant
of commitment with his partner."
Unlike others who say they're
praying for Crane's conversion and
redemption, the 17-member board
stated, "We believe that Mr. Crane is
made in the image of God, baptized
into the covenant of faith and
already one of Christ's own."
An accompanying letter to be sent
out to the congregation calls the
school board's statement "an attack
not only upon the moral character of a
Westminster member, but also upon
every other homosexual teacher in
the area ."
-Grand Rapids Press
School of Theology in southeast
Denver, and Larry Graham, professor
of pastoral theology and care at Iliff,
said things could get worse after the
U.S. Supreme Court makes its ruling
on Amendment 2.
Passed by voters in 1992, the
amendment that bans governments
from passing laws protecting homo.
sexuals from discrimination has never
gone into effect. Instead, Amendment
2 has been tied up in the courts and is
now pending before the Supreme
Court. -
The ruling is expected in June and
when it comes people on both sides
will be "enraged," predicted the Rev.
Laurene Lafontaine, a lesbian Presbyterian
minister.
'There will be a range of opinions
. and everyone needs to know that
there isn't only one religious view on ·
this subject," Graham said.
Churches need to be prepared to
handle the anger, frustration, grief
and other -feelings they will find
among their congregations, the three
said.
Pat Steadman, a lawyer who helped
fight Amendment 2, predicted that
the Supreme Court ruling "will open
old wounds and the divisiveness and
bitterness" that were rampant before
Amendment 2 was passed.
Regardless of the ruling, the
speakers urged churches to evaluate
their relationships with homosexuals.
Unlike heterosexual couples in
churches, gay couples are overlooked
when their partners get sick or die,
when they need counseling or when
they celebrate their years together.
Marshall said many Gays have left
the church because it is too painful.
· Religious group vow_s to
counter extreme right
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Three religious
leaders have formed an Oregon
state chapter of The Interfaith
Alliance and say ·.they will combat
the "divisiveness and intolerance of
J he religious 'right /' .- · · '· -, ·
.· The 'alhance ·was formed in
Washington, D.C., in 1994 using see\i
money from the Democratic Party . It
now has 16 state chapters.
The Oregon chapter was launched
by Rev. Rodney Page, outgoi.ng executive
director of Ecumenical Ministries
of Oregon; Rev. Cecil Charles Prescod
of Highland United Church of
Christ, and Rabbi Emanuel Rose of
Temple Beth Israel.
The alliance intends to counter the
increasing political influence of religious
conservatives, led by the Christian
Coalition.
"Confronted by this very real threat
to both the integrity of the democratic
process and the sanctity of
Homosexuality
and
Christian
Community
Choon-Loong Soow, editor
Contributors to this volume, all
members of the Princeton
Theological Seminary faculty,
address the various exegetical,
interpretive, and practical issues
pertaining to gays and lesbians in
the church. Ideal for churches and
individuals engaged in theological
reflection on this issue.
religious beliefs, people of faith must
speak out," Page said. "We must come
together, stand together, work
together and together loudly say,
'Enough .is enough."'
'fwo ·othetgroups 0 ihei:Jregop 'C.itizens
All.farice and On\gori F\ll)'lily
Council - have used religion as a 'foun:
dation for their ·conservative political
agenda.
Rose characterized the religious
right's positions as arrogantly presenting
certain political views as
"the ones endorsed by God."
When asked to provide specific
examples, Rose had none, except to
point to Christian Coalition and Oregon
Family Council voter guides that
do not endorse candidates but highlight
stands on hot-button conservative
issues as "tax-funded abortion,"
"gay rights" and "voluntary prayer
in public schools."
Coming March, 1996; $14.99
Order from Second Stone Press, Page 22.
PAGE 11 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
/
I
\
National News I• f , ' <S ; ,'1; .-......... .
~pres.51.lfOO into silence after ooming out
By Tracy Early
Ecumenical News International
NEW YORK -\ A prominent clergywoman
who re~ently announced that
she was a lesbian has agreed - after
coming under pressure within her
church - to stop talking publicly
about the issue hqmosexuality.
Jeanne Audrey ~owers, an executive
of the United M;ethodist Church's
Commission on Cjuistian Unity and
Interreligious Concerns, announced in
July last year that she was going public
about her lesbianism as "an act of
resistance to false · teachings that
have contributed \to heresy and
homophobia withfn the church
itself." i
Conservatives in the church called
for sanctions against ~owers' commission
on the grounds ahat the United
Methodist Disciplintf forbids the use
of denominational funds "to promote
the acceptance of h,6mosexuality ."
In a statement /released from the
Commission's New York headquarters
on Jan. 3, Powers said: 'The General
Council on Finance and Administration
and the president and general
secretary of my own commission
believe it is now difficult to separate
my personal statements from those I
may make as associate general secretary
of the commission."
Accordingly, she said, she had
"decided to limit my public speaking
through General Conference to other
issues on the ecumenical and interreligious
agenda ."
The General Conference, a policymaking
body which meets once every
four years, will meet in Denver from
April 16-26, 1996.
In 1992, the General Conference, by a
substantial majority, rejected a proposal
to change the church's official
policy against homosexuality .
Supporters of a more liberal
approach on homosexuality will
again make a _major effort at the
Denver meeting to change church
policy.
The General Board of Church and
Society and nine annual conferences -
equivalent to dioceses - support moves
for the change .
Powers, who is due to retire in September
1996, said she had considered
retiring earlier "to ensure my personal
freedom to encourage a change
in the Book of Discipline." However,
she decided against that because of
Minister sues church that fired him
after performing lesbian union
NEW YORK (AP) - A minister is
suing his church and several of its .
members for $110.25 million, charging
they ·fired him for performing a
lesbian marriage .
The Rev. James Renwick Jackson,
67, also ' alleged that members of the
Congregational Church of Patchogue
discriminated against him because of
his age and called him a crook, a
drunk and an adulterer.
Church lawyer Kevin McDonough
said Nov. 7 that Jackson's firing "had
nothing to do with the wedding of the
lesbians. He was fired because he was
a poor administrator and was not
fuffilling his duties and ministry, not
handling the· needs of the congregation."
Jackson, who became pastor of the
Long Island church in 1991, signed a
three-year contract in July 1994 at
$55,000 a year plus housing. On July
31, 1995, the church voted 84-67 to
fire him.
In papers filed in Manhattan's state
Supreme Court, Jackson said he was
fired because on Dec. 31, 1994, he
"offered his blessing for the marriage
of two lesbian congregants within the
church."
Recent finding by top biblical scholars offer a
radical new view on the Bible
w~;! Bible and homosexuality.
Really Says
About
Homosexuality
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What the Bible Really Says
About Holilosexuality, $9.95, paperback
ORDER FROM SECOND STONE PRESS :
SEEPAGE 22.
PAGE 12 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY , 1996
her concern for other issues coming
before General Conference and
"because I have been vocationally
committed to the unity of the
church ."
The General Council on Finance and
Administration ruled that Powers
did not violate the Discipline by
speaking last year about her own lesbianism
.
In a statement released together
with that of Powers, Bruce Robbins,
the general secretary of the Unity
Commission, said he and the commission's
president, Bishop William
Boyd Grove, had "defended her right
to tell the truth about her sexual orientation."
"Howev er, as leaders of the commission,
we also recognize that continued
public discussion about homosexuality
by Jeanne Audrey Powers at
this time can be seen as a promotion of
the acceptance of homosexuality ."
Powers said that she had tried to
"advocate officially for th e inclusiveness
of the church and also to
participate in an educational process."
She told ENI that she had pending
invitations from four groups that had
wanted her to discuss the homosexuality
issue. Among them was one to
speak at a United Methodist Seminary,
Candler School of Theology at
Emory University in Atlanta.
MCC excluded from Key West
holiday parade
KEY WEST, Fla. (AP) - Singing the
Christmas carol "O' Come All Ye
Faithful, " some 200 gay and lesbian
churchgoers held a prayer vigi l Dec.
2 to protest their exclusion from the
city's annual Christmas parade .
About 400 people dressed as angels
and shepherds marched past the vigil;
the parade also had five floats and
proceeded peacefuHy down Duval
Str!!et. ~ . , .·.
The parade's organizer, the Lower
Keys Ministerial Association, has
angered many residents by refusing
to allow the Metropolitan Community
Church from participating.
So the church and many gay
groups held a vigil to "express a message
to those hateful right-wingers
what love, togetherness, and Christmas
are all about," said a statement
released by the Lambda Coalition.
"I know some people are here·as a
political statement, but I'm here to
celebrate the birth of my Lord," said
Eric Steckel, who participated in the
vigil.
Trouble began in November when
Metropolitan Community sought permission
to march in the parade,
though the church has never partici-
.mtted ,bef9r~. '.· .. _ . . , ..
"I thought it was time for us to be m
this community parade," said the
Rev. Steve Torrence, pastor of the
120-member congregation. "We had ,a
wonderful float."
But the association refused permission.
Allowing the drnrch to participate
would mean the association condones
homosexuality, said the Rev.
Gary Redw ine, the parade's organizer.
Duke's gays frustrated over same-sex
union ban at chapel
DURHAM (AP) - Gays and Lesbians
at Duke are angry that the university
chapel does not allow same-sex marriage
ceremonies, a restriction the
school's head chaplain said likely will
remain intact.
'This is one demand we're not
going to be able to meet," said the
Rev. Will Willimon, an ordained
United Methodist minister.
Gays and Lesbians who want to
hold a ceremony claim the ban at the
Gothic-style church discriminates
against Gays and violates their freedom
of religion . The off-limits decision
was affirmed by Willimon with
support from Duke President Nan
Keohane.
The issue sparked a war of words in
the student newspaper and on fliers
posted across campus , The New s &
Observer of Raleigh reported.
'This chapel policy legitimizes
heterosexual love and delegitimizes
homosexual love," says Seth Persily, a
senior from New York who is
president of the 60-member Duke
Gay, Bisexual and Lesbian Association.
"Until -we're treated the same as
heterosexuals, we're not going to stop
fighting ."
The gay student group has been
negotiating unsuccessfully with the
university for almost a year _to change
the policy. The issue arose· after two
gay Duke alumni were refused for
their wedding.
Duke Chapel, whose historical ties
are to the United Methodist Church,
serves more than 15 religious groups,
some opposed to homosexuality.
'The se groups may someday
modify their stance, but it would be
arrogant and inappropriate for Duke
Chapel unilaterally to decide now
that all these groups are in error,"
Willirnon's statement said.
National News
Ordination filues may divide Christian Refonned Church
DETROIT (AP) - A conservative faction
of the Christian Reformed
Church of North America is demanding
that church leaders reverse their
recent decision to allow women to be
ordained as ministers and elders.
The faction, representing 110 of the
church's 985 parishes, also wants the
church's governing body to break
with the mother church in the Netherlands
because it permits Gays and
Lesbians to be ordained.
The group says that if its demands
are not met, it might leave and form
its own church.
The threats probably wiH be counterproductive,
said David Engelhard,
ge neral secretary of the Grand
Rapids-based church, who called the
move divisive.
"I don't think any deliberatin g
body has to work under such a
threat," he said.
Of the church's 86,132 members in
the United States, about 29 percent
come from western Michigan. There
are 250 Christian Reformed churches
in Michigan.
The conservative faction voted on
the demands during a meeting of 290
members Nov: 6-7 in a Chicago suburb.
Engelhard said many of those at
the meeting w ere not official representatives
of their parishes and that
most repres ented the minority view
of the church's 294,000 members in
the United States.and Canadi
Toi, one of those who attended the
meeting, said he disagreed with allowing
women and homosexuals to
lead churches . "I guess I'm old-fashioned."
He supports a proposal that would
allow parishes to reorganize according
to their beliefs.
"I think that would be a workable
thing," he said. 'There would be a lot
of bugs to work out."'
But Engelhard said the concept of
dividing th e church according to
beliefo is contrary to church teachings.
The church wants people w ith different
backgrounds and ideas working
together, he said . ·
The role of women and ·homosexuals
in church leadership has been
an issue in many Christian denominations.
"It's happening in every church, "
said James Preston, outreach coordinator
of a United Methodist Church
program that helps congregat ions
adapt to the church policy of ordaining
Gays . The church began ordain.
ing women in the late 1950s.
Hearing for Bishop Righter set for Feb 27-29 "Gay and lesbian folks are coming
out now in every church," Preston
said. ''They're in every congregation,
which has been the case all along." THE TEACHINGS AND tenets of the
U.S. Episcopal church will soon be
tested in Wilmington, Del., the site
of a preliminary hearing on a heresy
charge of a retired bishop who
ordained a gay ma n. A panel of
bishops will preside over a hearing
for Bishop Walter Righter, of
,Alstead, N.H., who has been charged
with ·"teaching a doctrine contrary to
that held by the church."
The hearing is set for Feb. 27-29.
The t~ial is scheduled . t9· .begin. May
13. .
The heresy trial is only the second
of its kind involving a bishop since
the church was founded in 1789. The
first bishop to be tried for heresy wa s
William Montgomery Brown of Arkansas,
who was deposed iil 1924 for
preaching that communism superseded
Christianity.
Righter, 72, ordained an openly
gay man as a deacon in 1990 in
Newark, N.J. The deacon, the Rev.
Barry Stopfel, later became a · priest
and is now rector of a church in
Maplewood, N.J.
Righter retired as bishop of Iowa
about a year before he ordained
Stopfel, but continued to perform
church functions as an assi s ting
bishop.
The charges were brought against
Righter by a group of 10 bishops, as
required by church law. Sixty-six
other bishops later signed on to the
charges, or presentment as it is called
in the church. 'The total number was
more than the 25 percent · of the
church's bishops needed to call for a
trial. There are 297 bishops in the
· U.S. Episcopal Church.
Righter has stood by his decision to
ordain Stopfel and called the charges
against him "narrow-minded and
mean-spirited ." ·
"I did nothing wrong," said
Righter, who described Stopfel as a
terrific priest. He said Stopfel's church
Gay group stirs dissension at
Texas Wesleyan
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) _ A gay
and lesbian student group's attempt
to gain official recognition at Texas
Wesleyan University has stirred controversy
at the Methodist-affiliat ed
school.
The group, known as Gays, Lesbians
and Extras, won approval from
the Student Government Association
and a Student Life Committee, but
Texa s Wesleyan President Jake
Schrum vetoed the decision, citing a
conflict with United Methodist doctrine
.
Since Schrum 's ruling was announced
Oct. 5, the issue has stirred
debate across campus. Strongly
worded letters on both sides have
been printed on the opinion p,age of
the s tudent newspap er. Each side has
accused the other of being closedminded
and un-Chri stian.
The controver sy reflects the ongoing
debate within the United Methodist
Church over how to treat homosexuality,
an issue that is expected to
surface again in Apr il when th e
church holds its quadrennial general
conference in Denv er.
About 900 of the 3,000 U.S. colleges
and universities have gay and lesbian
student organizations, according
to the National Lesbian & Gay Task
Force.
In a statem ent explaining hi s
d ecision, Schrum said he encouraged
"the university community to resp ect
the rights and dignity of all people."
But he said that, because the United
Methodist Church does not s anction
homosexuality or fund gay groups,
the university "will not officially authorize,
sanction or fund any campus
group that avows homosexuality."
has grown by 30 -percent since he
became rector about 18 months ago.
A church policy adopted in 1979
states that ordination of practicing
homosexuals is not appropriate, But_
turning that policy into church doctrine
has been voted down repeatedly
by church delegates. .
It is that point on which Righter's
defense will be based, said attorney
Michael F Rehill, who also is an
Episcopal chancellor for the Diocese of
Newark.
'Tli:ere"is no such. doctrine," Rehill
said . 'lt 's on:ly. in the minds of the
people who brought the accusations.
If, in fact, doctrine means as little as is ,
suggested in these charges, then
virtually everything is doctrine."
Since he was charged, Righter said
the entire process has been costly and
an intrusion into his life. He added,
however, he is .heartened by the
support of people across the country.
'They have written me letters of
support and they're holding my wife
and I up in their prayers," he said .
''The church is brave enough to
continue t hrough all the stuff that has
gone on in the last year. The central
core of this church, which is far more
than a: majority, is going on with its
life."
Ecymenical & Inclusive
·i;~-·~:,Mif'.rl_· il~t :~;'.· .. ,~ ~ H .. • . ..
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We · are a Christian community of men
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Protestant traditions involved in minstries
of love, compassion and reconciliation.
We live and work in the world,
supporting ourselves and our ministries.
We are inspired by the spirit · of St.
Francis and St. Clare. Like the ecumenical
Taize Community we are not canonically
affiliated with any denomination.
Join us on retreat June 7-9, 1996, at
Xavier Center, Convent Station, NJ.
Vocation Director
Dept. 55, PO Box 8340
New Orleans, LA 701[2
Mercy of God Community
BIBUCRL ETHICS RND HOMOSEHUALITY
Listening to Scripture
Robert L. Brawley, editor
This bold new book offers a challenge to the
church to give heed to the multiplicity of voices
that are engaged in biblically· responsible and
constroptive debates about the volatile issues
regarding sexuality.
Contributors include Robert Brawley, J.
Andrew Deannan, Elizabeth Gordon Edwards,
Dale B. Martin, Ulrich W. Mauser. Sarah J.
Melcher, Choon-Leong Seow, Jeffery Siker and
Hennan C. Waetjen.
Biblical Ethics and Homosexuality,
$ 16.99 , paperback
ORDER FROM SECOND STONE PRESS.
SEEPAGE 22,
PAGE 13 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
Anglicang ays and lesbiansc laim
growings upport
By Cedric Pulford
Ecumenical News International
LONOON - A senior bishop of the
Church of England has signed a motion
submitted to the church's General
Synod and supported by gay activists,
according to Richard Kirker of
the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement
(I GCM). _
Kirker, LGCM's general secretary,
said that the Bishop of Chichester,
Eric Kemp, was among the signatories
to the motion, which at the
Church of England General Synod in
London gained 131 signatures - more
than a fifth of synod membership.
Kirker acknowledged that not. everyonE?
w ho had signed tl).em otion supported
gay emarn:i_pation in .. t~e
Churc:I)o. f England. ..
The motion is expected .to be called
fpr ~ebate at,.the ne)(f~ynod 'meeting
in July. · · ·
·, Proposed by the Archdeacon . of
Wandsworth, David Gerrard; the. motion
declares that a statement by
Church of England bishops in 1991,
Issues in Human Sexuality, is "not the
last word on the subject", and asksfor
"prayerful study and reflection on the
issues".
The bishops' statement held that
gay relationships fell short of the
Christian ideal. The statement formed
the basis for the Church of England's
current policy not to accept active
homosexuality among clergy.
Despite the apparent blandness of
ArGhdeacon Gerrard's motion, it is
certain to be bitterly resisted at the
next meeting of the synod. The issue
of gay rights has emerged·as the most
divisive issue in the Church of-England
.after the ordination of women
priests in the church.
Newly enthroned Archbishop
David Hope warned against homophobia
· in the church and called on
every parish to take part in a debate
on homosexuality. ·
The main tactic now used by gay
activists within the churches is to
, engage Christian fundamentali~ts
with thefr own \ :hief weat>on ° fhe
Bible. In Reconsider, a pamphlet
distributed to every member · of the
church's General .Synod, the LGCM
argues that biblical texts - induding
the . account · of the destruction of
Sodom and Gomorrah - have been
misinterpreted.
Ethical controversies threaten
church unity, Anglicans told
By Stephen Brown
and Cedric Pulford
1 Ecumenical News International
LONDON - The Chur.ch of England
on Nov. 30 heard a warning from a
senior ecumenical leader that church
unity is "threatened" by controversies
on ethical issues.
These new church divisions include
the acceptance - "or otherwise" - of
homosexual members in the Christian
community, according to Konrad
Raiser, general secretary of the World
Council of Churches, speaking in
London. ·
Addressing the general synod of
the Church of England, Raiser said
that many churches were "deeply
divided and even threatened in their
quality of its life as an inclusive
community" were at stake.
The issue of sexual ethics in general,
and of homosexuality in particular,
is also very controversial within
the WCC, whose 330 Anglican,
Protestant and Orfhodox churches
have widely differing stances.
Raiser told the general synod that
given the lack of a "basic consensus,"
the WCC could not be expected to
draw up an "authoritati_ve" ecumenical
position. Instead, he said, the
WCC had to create a "dialogue"
where controversies could be faced
"honestly" and whe.re the different
parties could "talk to and with each
other."
unity in the face of conflicts about the He ·,warned that neither the WCC
ethics of life, of procreation and sexu- nor the wider ecumenical movement
ality ." was prepared to face the challenges of
These new conflicts were replacing the new millennium and said that a
the traditional doctrinal divisions be- "new vision" was necessary to "renew
tween churches, Raiser said, warning the visionary energy" of the ecumenithat
the "unity of the church and the cal movement.
PAGE 14 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
Gay activists win seats in Church of
England's general synod
LONOON (ENI) - Strong supporters of
gay rights were elected in October to
several seats in the Church of England's
governing body.
An openly gay clergyman,
Malcolm Johnson, was elected to the
synod by the diocese of London. The
neighboring diocese of Southwark
elected Jeffrey John, a clergyman who
. in his election address gave support
to same-sex marriages. Another supporter
of gay rights, Brian McHenry,
was chosen by Southwark diocese as
one of i~s lay representatives in general
synod.
In other dioceses, however, gay
rights activists failed to make headway,
while the conservative evangelical
vote made considerable gains,
according to the Church of England
Newspaper.
Johnson, aged 59, said in a statement
after the announcement of his
_election: 'The new synod is certain to
discuss sexuality, and as a gay man I
hope I can contribute tothe debate.
"More and more people are being
open about their homosexuality, and
that can do nothing but good. I am
glad the Bishops' Report, Issues of
Human Sexuality, [published in 1991]
affirms relationships amongst lay
homosexual Christians and hope soon
they will affirm all committed lesbian
and gay relationships."
Philip Hacking, a clergyman and
chairman of the evangelical group ·
Reform, which is strongly opposed to
homosexuality, told ENI: "If the gay
rights campaigners bring things to a
head at the synod, it will put the
bishops on the spot. In a way I'd
welcome it, as a means of clearjng the
air.'1
Commenting to ENI on the success
of the gay rights candidates, Richard
Kirker, of the Lesbian and Gay Christian
Movement, based in London,
said: 'These results indicate the
church is much readier for and closer
to a full debate on homosexuality.
The bishops should not try to obstruct
the natural •wish of the electorate,
which is becoming clearer all the
time ."
Activist nails theses to cathedral door
By Rex Wockner
Contributing-Writer
GAY ACTIVIST Peter Tatchell of
London's OutRage! grol\P nailed°"Four
Theses Against Church Homophobia".
to the door of Westminster
Abbey during the Anglican Church
General Synod.
In 1517, the Protestant Reformation
was launched when Martin Luther
nailed "Ninety-Five Theses" to the
Catholic cathedral in Wittenberg,
Germany.
"What's needed is a new Reformation
to eradicate homophobia from
the Church of England," . Tatchell
said. "Anglican endorsement of anti"
gay discrimination is a corruption of
morality and,a viol_ation of th~ dignity
of lesbian and gay peop)e."
The document demanded the church
"stop pe~secuting qpenly gay cle~gy in
honest and loving relationships, e"nd
the Children's Society ban on lesbian
and gay foster parents, withdraw
support from anti-gay cults which
attempt to 'cure' que-ers of their sexuality,
[and] sack the bishops in the
House of Lords who voted agaipst an
equal age-of-consent" for gay and
straight sex.
New Zealand Presbyterians ordain open gay
THE NEW ZEALAND Presbytery of
Dunedin licensed an openly gay student
at Knox Church, Dunedin, on
November 5th, opening up the possibility
of his ordination.
In a ceremony attended by his par.
ents, his partner and his partner's
parents, Martin Dickson, 28, said the
ceremony was everything he had
hoped for and more. His legal counsel
Judith Medlicott said, "It was a
human rights case and the issues
have been thrashed out already."
Martin's case .was argued on the
basis of equity or justice under sections
of the Human Rights Act which deal
with employment and possible exceptions
to the Act. Without the existence
of the Act the outcome may have
been different, she said. "On the
'other hand, we also argued the case
on the basis of equity: Martin had
been open at all times during his
training about being gay. He was
encouraged to continue with his studies
by senior members of the Presbyterian
Church with no questions
asked,"
The B.Theol degree with distinction
he received in 1993 was conferred
by Ms. Medlicott, who is also Chancellor
of Otaho University.
Currently in Auckland, Martin
intends to return to London where he
and his partner are presently working.
He returned home to New Zealand
specifically to be licensed at
Knox Church in Dunedin and would
probably consider returning to a New
Zealand parish in 18 months to two
years, if called.
. • I
World News
Adventisdtsi ffeor vers tatuso ft hree-· women) :xlStors
By Patricia Lefevere
Ecumenical News International
NEW YORK - A Seventh-day
Adventist Church in the United
States has ordained three women as
pastors, despite a vote by the World
Congress of Seventh-day Adventists
rejecting wc:nen 's ordination.
Some church officials are already
calling the ordinations, at the 3200-
member Sligo Seventh-day Adventist
Church in Tacoma Park, Maryland,
an "unsanctioned ceremony."
There are now widely differing
views within the church regarding
the status of the three women pas-
Fired bishop goes on line
PARIS (AP) - Fired by the pope from
his job as bishop of Evreux last year,
the Rev . Jacques Gaillot has
responded by creating a diocese in a
place where even the pontiff has no
control: the Internet.
Gaillot was forced to step down as
head of the Roman Catholic church
in Evreux, 60 miles west of Paris. He
had ignore<l Vatican orders to tone
down his social activism, from his
blessing of gay marriages to his militant
work for the homeless.
His removal drew angry outcries,
and about 300 people rallied ' at the
Evreux cathedral for the first anniversary
of Gaillot's dismissaL They
demanded Pope John Paul II reinstate
him as bishop .
tors: Penny Shell, chief of chaplains
at Shady Grove Adventist Hospital
in Maryland; Kendra Haloviak, a
doctoral candidate in the Graduate
Theological Union in Berkeley, Cali~
fornia, ·and Norma Osborn, an associate
pastor at Sligo church,
The ceremony came just months after
the rejection of a proposal - to allow
the church's territorial divisions to
ordain "qualified individuals, without
regard to gender" - by the Adventist
World Congress, held in July ih
Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Alfred C. McClure, president of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church in
Now, Gaillot has gone over the
pope's head to find a place for his
flock. Gaillot announced on the
French televisjon network TFl that
he had . created a "virtual diocese"
called Partenia on the Internet.
Just the name of his new diocese
seemed designed to tweak the pontiff:
Partenia is the now nonexistent
diocese in the middle of the Sahara
desert that the Vatican awarded
Gaillot when it removed him from
Evreux.
Compared to North America or Germany,
use of the Internet in France is
relatively limited, with about
200,000 users. But the market is growing
rapidly.
Swiss church approves gay
ceremonies but not gay marriages
BERN, SWITZERLAND (ENI) - The
Protestant church of Bern, the Swiss
capital, has rejected proposals for
homosexual marriages but has announced
that it welcomes "services of
intercession" for homosexual couples.
The debate in the church, the
Evangelisch-reformierte Kirche des
Kantons Bern, followed national publicity
and protests by some church
members, after one of the church's
ministers, Klaus Baeumlin, presided
at a marriage-style ceremony for two
men last July.
The Bern church received 176 protest
letters after the ceremony, many
of them threatening a mass exodus
from the church. The church is to
<lraw up liturgy for the services of
intercession by 1998'.
The church's leaders said in a
public statement that the treatment of
homosexuals was a "test case for our
conviction that a: diversity of opinions
need not mean abandoning unity in
Christ."
A church executive, Ruedi Heinzer,
told a press conference in Bern that
the Bible was the guide for the treatment
of homosexuality, but interpretation
was the key to the issue. It was
not sufficient to quote a number of
Bible passages and then reach the
conclusion that homosexuality was
sinful.
"On the same basis one could say
that in general slavery is seen in a
positive way in the Bible," he said.
The church rejected the service of
blessing by Baeumlin because it
imitated a wedding service, but
called for a liturgy for gay couples
living in responsible partnerships -
without blurring the difference with
heterosexual marriage.
Baeumlin will continue to organize
blessings for gay couples in his
parish, Reformiertes Forum, a weekly
Protestant newspaper, reported in
Zurich.
"I can imagine that the ceremony
might be different to that in July, so
that it is more clearly distinguished
from a marriage," he told Reformiertes
Forum. "But a service of intercession
ma:kes gays too much like ill people
and people with disabilities."
North America, said after the 'Sligo
ordinations: "Our ecclesiology has not
changed in regard to ordination, and
local churches _ do not have the
authority to ordain to the ministry of
the world church."
Sligo's senior pastor, Arthur R. Torres,
who presided at the ordinations,
has explained in an open l etter that
the "ordination was one to the local
church only ... We make no claim
that this ordination is to the world
church, or that it has any authority
outside our local area."
Although the Adventist World
Congress rejected the ordination of
women, about 100 Adventist women in
North America,- Europe and Australia
serve as commissioned ministers,
according to Monti Sahlin, assistant
to the president of the Seventh-day
Adventist Church in North America.
"Functionally these women are
clergy persons," Sahlin said.
In Sweden, about 40 per cent of
Adventist clergy are women. However
Stella Gregg, an Adventist academic,
believes that the ordinations
which took place at Sligo church
were authentic. Gregg, a professor of
English and linguistics · at Andrews
University, an Adventist institution
in Berrien Springs, Michigan, said
that Adventist ordinations consisted
of two parts: on the one hand, a public
ceremony in which hands were laid
on the head and shoulders of a qualified
candidate and "God's spirit and
blessing is invoked as the person is set
aside for ministry", and, on the other
hand, the granting of a document recognizing
the ordination.
The· three Sligo women's request for
credentials was refused. But· Gregg
believes that more such ordinations
will occur in North America "when
con9regations feel they can no longer
deny the work of the Holy Spirit ."
Although there are many in the
world church that want to keep the
question of the ordination of women
off the formal agenda of the next
Adventist World Congress in Toronto
in the year 2000, Gregg said the issue
would not go away "as long as the
Holy · Spirit works through women
and blesses their ministry. You can't
keep denying them ."
While some argued that women did
not need ordination in order to have
their ipinistry recognized, "then why
ordain men?" Gregg asked.
However Deborah Harris, a profes-sor
of special education at the University
of Southern Florida in Tampa,
believes the Sligo event "is much
ado about nothingi'Womeh did not
need a ceremony or a piece of paper to
be ordained, she said.
"When he calls you, he ordains
you," Harris said. 'The ceremony is
only a ceremony."
Dutch Lutherans say 'yes' to
blessings for gay couples
By Paul Strikwerda
Ecumenical News International
UTRECHT -The Dutch Lutheran
Church has decided to allow official
church blessings of gay relationships.
The church has declared that "there
are no theological arguments against
blessing two people who are strongly
committed to one another, faithful
and dedicated."
This ruling, froIJJ the church's synod
on Nov. 3, makes the Lutherans, with
more than 20 000 members, the second
Dutch church to give official recognition
to gay blessings. Until now in The
Netherlands, only churches of the
Remonstrant Brotherhood, a small
protestant church, offered blessings
for gay couples.
The Dutch synod also called for the
theological reconsideration of notions
such as wedding vows, fidelity, and
blessing.
Church of Norway vetoes senjce for gays
OSLO, (ENI) - The Church of
Norway's general synod has ruled
that people in homosexual relationships
cannot hold church positions.
The synod of the Lutheran church
which met in Bergen in mid-November,
also decided that "it is not a
subject of current interest to introduce
a church prayer ceremony for homosexual/
lesbian couples."
The Church of Norway Information
Service described debate on the issue
,, as "emotionally charged." _
It said 58 of the 79 delegates voted
to issue a statement declaring that the
synod "does not find enough convincing
theological reasons that the
Church of Norway can change its
present practice in regard to the
appointment of individuals who live
in homosexual cohabitation. Neither
does the Church of Norway find
. grounds to suggest any liturgical
arrangement for a church intercessory
ceremony for people who live together
in a homosexual relationship."
PAGE 15 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
Delaware students make quilts for
babies with AIDS
By Theresa Humphrey
Associated Press Writer
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) - For the
past two years, students at Wilmington
High School have been making
quilts for babies with AIDS.
Two years ago they made . about 20.
Last year, approximately 90. This
year, they'll be lucky if they produce
any.
There's only one sewing machine
'and it's nearly 10 years old. The other
three that have been used over the
years broke down and can't be fixed.
Sandy Wightman, the home economics
and special education teacher
who has been coordinating the quilting
project, said she would like to see
the students make JOOth is year.
'Td like fo say our goal will be 100,
but I'm really a dreamer. If we make
.50 quilts, we'll be doing good/' Miss
1Wightman said. · · ·
The quilts are for ABC Quilts,
which stands for At-Risk Baby Crib
Quilts. Based in Northwood, N.H.,
the project was started in 1988 by
Ellen and Clarence Ahlgren, who
started delivering a half dozen quilts
to a ·local hospital,
· · · It has since become a m1tionwide
project, with hand- and machinestitched
quilts being distribubid to
hospitals that have ' babies who are
HIV infected, suffering from AIDS or
fetal alcohol SY.ndrome or other _drug
addictions.
Wilmington High is the largest
contributor in Delaware. On Dec. 7 ,
students presented about 90 brightlycolored
quilts to Rita Dietrich, the
state's ABC Quilts coordinator.
She was astounded at the volume
and the quality of the workmanship .
'The quality of these, they're
beautiful. It gives you goose bumps,"
Mrs. Dietrich said.
The teachers involved with the
project said about two dozen girls and
two boys made the quilts last year. It
wasn't hard to get participation, once
the students were told the quilts were
for babies with AIDS. They sewed
during home economics classes and
after school.
"Many of our students have
children of their own and they can
relate to a project for children," said
·Pat Hershey, a .French teacher.
When the students learned the
babies would be buried in the blankets,
Miss Wightman said she s;,iw a
change in attitude .
'When the students found that out,
it put a whole .different light on the
caring and giving of making something
for someone who may not be
with us that long," she said. "I saw
some real changes, a maturity in the
kids last year." .
Tina M. Hughes said she jumped at
the chance to participate and made
seven of the quilts.
"I've known people that have AIDS
and they have kids who are infected
and I've known people who have
died from AIDS," the 16-year-old
sophomore said. ·
· The. quilts are distributed to the A.I.
duPontlnstitute, Christiana Hospital
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or Informationa bout mallingl abels, pleases end a self-addresseds tampede nvelopet o
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You can order directly from ihe ad. dress above, or you can find us your local gay-friendly bookstores.
ttty_ou wish to order byphoney1ith ·a credit card, please call A DIFFERENT LIGHT 1-800-343-4002;
.fAX(2 12) 989-215~; outside . USA and 9anada call 1-212-989•4850. _(AD 1ffere~tL ight has stores 1n
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·1W isha. ll my readersh ad a copy of this_v ery_us~f~Iv olume.I f you,/ive_inN owheresvill;e US.A.; and hav ent a clue
'a" bout how to find otherg ay folks, this book is ihdispensable_.r t,ere'sn o.w ay to r.emafnis olatedi f you make use of
the information contained in-the Gayeflow Pages.~· Pat Ca/Ilia, T~e Advocate ACW1sor ·
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publications,b usinessesa nd more. In short, if an e_ntitwy elcomesg ay, lesbiana nd bisexualp eople, no matter how
unlikelyt he serviceo r remotet he town,i t's probablyl isted in the GayeflowP ages. .. •_ Hardlya weekg oes by-thati t
is not consulted in the Out offices.• · Reviewed by Jeff Howells, OUT (Pittsburflh, PA), December 1994
•For over 12 years Gayeflow Pages has been our most-used resource book. We recommend it to every performer,
author,p roducer,b usinessp erson, communHx.organiz.earc, tivist,a nd educatorw e come in contact with. It's the
perfect coming out gifW Romanovsky &-Phlflips, Fresh Fruit Records, March 1995
PAGE 16 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
University of California begins
AIDS archive
LOS ANGELES (AP) - An archive
documenting the early years of the
struggle against AIDS is being established
at the University of Southern
California.
City officials said they are donating
thousands of papers to the university
to create the archive.
'These archives in some ways are a
testimonial to their living and fighting
for the fulfillment of their needs,"
said city AIDS coordinator Ferd
Eggan, the driving force behind the
archive's creation. "I believe that
deserves to be part of the historical
record."
In 1985, a month after actor Rock
Hudson disclosed that he had the disease,
Los Angeles became the nation's
first government entity to adopt antidiscrimination
laws to protect people
infected with AIDS and HIV.
'The fact that Los Angeles was a
pioneer in these areas made me think
we needed a record for the future that
and St. Francis Hospital.
Each one is 3-by-3 feet and on the
back, the project requires the quilter
sign each one with "Love and Comfort
to You," followed by the quilter's
name, state and year.
. Lontoya L. Gregory's name is on
about a half dozen of the quilts. The
■ . I" ... . .
"I care about the
people who have
AIDS. I'm glad I was
able to help the
babies ... "
■
19-year-old senior said she didn't
have to be asked twice to start
sewing.
"All I could think of was my son
and me being in that situation,., she
s.aid :
Aretha C. Carn, an 18-year-old
could be used as an example of how
government and residents of the city
can . create real improvements in the
ways people's lives are led," said
Eggan.
The archive, which will be housed
with the university library's special
collections, will include city documents,
items from local AIDS activist
groups, and material from Michael S.
Gottlieb and Joel Weisman, the Los
Angeles doctors who wrote the . first
account of AIDS cases published in
medical literature.
Earlier .last year, USC became home
to one of the world's largest gay
archives when it agreed to house two
merged Los Angeles collections of
gay history.
Besides the papers, the city also is
donating $40,000 to the university to
pay for a part-time archivist and
$10,000 to the fine arts school to subsidize
an artwork project by people
with AIDS.
senior, doesn't have any children. But
she said the project helped her fulfill
a graduation requirement of 30 hours
of community service.
"l care about the people who have
AIDS. I'm glad I was able to help the
babies because they don't know what
they have,". Aretha said.
Odet N. Cadogan, a 17-year-old
> senior, who -has a-son, , made . three, or
four of the quilts.
She and the others said they would
like to meet the babies who receive
their quilts. But confidentiality rules
prohibit such meetings. .· .
_'Tm always thinking what would I
do if I saw someone who had the
quilt," Odet said. "It would put a
smile on my face, but I don't know if I
would say ·anything because I know
why they got it and they might be
offended.."
Anyone who wants to contribute
sewing machines or materials, including
fabric and scissors, for the quilts,
should call Sandy Wightman at the
Wilmington High School guidance
center (302) 651-2705. ·
The 365 Daily Meditations For
Lesbians and Gay Men
Word
The [lible
Reclaimed for
Lesbians and Is ..
Out
'Author Chris Glaser fearlessly liberates the Bible
from those who would hold it hostage to an antigay
agenda. In this inspiring .collection of- 365
daily meditations. the Bible's good news "comes
·out" to meet an of us with love, justice. meaning,
and hope; ·
Chris Glaser is the author of Uncommon
Calling and Coming Out. to God He is a graduate
of Yale Divinity School.
The Word Is Out,
$12, paperback
ORDER FROM
SECOND STONE PRESS.
SEE PAGE 22.
Christian Responses to AIDS
Dr. Bob Wood continues personal, public fight against AIDS
SEATTLE (AP) - Dr. Bob Wood says
his life is AIDS.
Professionally, he's starting his second
decade as director of the SeattleKing
County Health Department's
AIDS Control Program.
Personally, ·he's a gay man with
HIV.
Colleagues say Wood's tenacity and
compassion have given science the
upper hand over politics in this
region 's public -health debates over
how to respond to AIDS, which is
now the No . 1 killer of young men
aged 25 to 44.
He has work ed closely .with community
organizations to bring education,
condoms and clean needles to
street youths, drug addicts and prostitutes
- the people most at risk, yet
least likely to have access to health
services.
"I think Bob's real contribution has
been recognizing the importance of not
waiting for the people who are most
at risk to come into the clinic," said
Martin Fishbein, the chief of
behavioral intervention in the division
of Sexually Transmitted Disease
Prevention at the federal Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention in
Atlanta .
"He's been able to keep a sustained,
focused• interest -in controHing the -disease
long after. the sexy media coverage
has disappeared," added Dr.
Bill Lafferty, former chief epidemiologist
for the state's HIV-AIDS
office. "I really think that if we
hadn't had the outreach programs
we've had, it would be much worse
here."
When Wood took the job in 1986, he
said he didn't expect he would be
able to keep it long. Most people live
only 10 to 12 years after they are
inf ected with HIV, the virus that
causes AIDS.
But Wood still works 60-hour
weeks, overseeing a division with an
annual budg et that has grown during
his tenure from $650,000 to $13 million
.
" ] joke with people that the stress
of this job has kept my immune system
strong," he said.
Dr . Hunter Handsfield, who
recruited Wood, said he was a natural
for the job: an openly gay physician
who was one of the first doctors
in Washington to see AIDS patients
■
gram, said Patricia Mclnturff, who
headed the health departm _ent's
regional division then. "Everybody
knew how much Bob cared about this.
He wa sμ't just another bureaucrat
who thought it would make a great
research topic."
Not a ll of his efforts have gone as
smoothly.
In 1993, Wood supported a state proposal
that would have required medical
labs to notify local health
departm ents when patients ' blo'od
tests indicated they had AIDS. At
stake was the amount of federal fund-
Colleagues say Wood's tenacity and
compassion have given science the
upper hand over politics in this region's
public health debates nver how to respond
to AIDS, which is now the No. 1 killer
of young men aged 25 to44.
in 1982; a University of Washington
medical school professor; arid a
proven researcher . who separated
·himself from the emotion surrounding
AIDS and used science to fight for
· sound public health policies. ·
.When Wood wanted to start a needle-
exchange program to prevent drug
addicts from sharing HIV-contaminated
needles, critics charged it
would promote drug abuse and was
perhaps illegal.
"Bob was the bridge" to getting
opposing factions to agree on a pro-
■
ing the state would receive for AIDS
care .
But AIDS activists protested, arguing
people would be less likely to get .
tested "bec·ause their confidentiality
would be compromised.
It was during that debate that
· Wood revealed publicly he was HIVpositive,
to make the point that the
activists did not speak for everyone
suffering from HIV or AIDS.
The state board of health
ultimately adopted a compromise in
which laboratories conceal the identity
of patients with a code before
notifying health departments.
''.This very vocal minority vilified
Bob for being a traitor to the gay community,"
Handsfield recalled. " It
was very courageous of him to reveal
his HIV status then. It allowed .him
to counter some of the more extreme
views of AIDS activists, but it wasn't
something he had necessarily wanted
to bEJ_ totally public."
In another case, some King County
Council members balked at a grant to
pay prostitutes to give free condoms
to other prostitutes to prevent the
spread of HIV. But ultimately, after
hearing testimony from Wood and
others, the council allowed the
health department to keep the grant.
Wood says he finds it discouraging
to have to fight for programs he
believes were proven valuable years
ago.
"Politics often have more sway over
public health programs than science,
and the losers are disenfranchised
communities," he said, noting the
disease hits disproportionately
among homosexuals, drug . users and
poor minority populations .
"Who is going to. organize ·the poor
and the disenfranchised? I don't
know ."
Wood said his· greatest fear is the
complacency that seems fo be settling
in about ·AIDS. When· he first · began
his job, he.was asked to speak to community
groups about the disease two
or three times · a week. Now he gets a
request about once a month.
But he still has faith that publichealth
professionals can help change
behavior and save lives, and that
AIDS could be contained if youths are
consistently bombarded with the
message to use condoms,
Baptist resource kit helps congregations cope with AIDS
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) · A Southern
Baptist organization hopes to ·educate
its church congregations about AIDS
and how they ·can ·respond when the
disease touches someone in their own
congregation. . · .
"It's just a matt.er of time until every
church .has a person who is infected"
or is a .close relative or friend of someone
with AIDS, said Chip Miller, a
minister who is director . of the Kentucky
Baptist Convention's Sunday
School program .
His son, Stephen, died of AIDS in
1989.
· "We get .calls almost every week
from pastors across the state" who
have seen AIDS surface in their congregations
and "who say, 'What do
we do now?"' Miller said.
To answer that question, the
Woman 's Missionary Union of Kentucky,
an organization representing
nearly 60,000 Baptist girls and
women, released a new resource kit
that can be used by churches, civic
organizations and other grou:ps to
educate people about AIDS. ·
The resource kit states: "As Christians,
it is time that w~ stopped
judging others based on their lifestyle
and started ministering to them
through the eyes of Christ. We must
accept people as they are not as we
would like them to be. And we must
extend the hand of caring ministry to
their loved ones . . .. Let us remind
ourselves that we have all fallen short
of the high standards set by Christ."
The resource kits, which cost $5,
contain informaiion on how the disease
is spread, Bible passages related
to Jesus' ministry to the sick and estimated that more than 4,000 Kensuggestions
of ways that individual tuckians already had been infected
churches :Can. minister to people with . with HIV. ••.··
. AIDS and their.families. . 'This is· not just a gay problem. It's
'The Bible describes Jesus' ministry -. not ·just a problem in Africa. It's a .
to the sick and infected of His day," worldwide epidemic" that increasingthe
resource guide states. ''He touched Jy is claiming the lives of hetero-
. them, spoke to them, comforted them, sexuals, women · and children,
healed their souls as well as their Gilliland said. . .
bodies. He noticed them. A former president of the Southern
"Christian~ today are face_d with the Baptist .Convention, the Rev. Jimmy
Allen, has written a book describing .
choice of noticing PW As (people with how AIDS struck his family c · and
AIDS) and their families and minis- how even churches whose pastors he
teeing to their needs or of turning had mentored turned Allen's relatives
away and pretending HIV will never away, refusing to enroll his young
touch them . We have the choice of grandson in Sunday School. .
whether to act as Jesus would act or of 'There are plenty of horror stories
ignoring our Lord's example and that we could bring up," Miller said.
command t.o care for others."
Dee Gilliland, executive director of
the Kentucky affiliate, said it was
PAGE 17 • SECOND STONE• JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
MEW AP&
Church & Or anization News
Reconciling Congregations
Program adds
100th church
THE RECONCILING CONGREGATION
Program reached a milesto~e
late last year as Pacific Beach
United Methodist Church in San
Diego became the 100th United
Methodist congregation to publicly
welcome all persons, regardless of
sexual orientation . This national
movement, begun in 1984; now encompasses
103 Reconciling Congregations.
In addition, 11 campus ministries
have declared themselves "reconciling."
The year 1995 was a record year for
the program with 18 new Reconciling
Congregations and six new Reconciling
Campus Ministries . "The tide is
turning in the United Methodist
Church," said Mark Bowman, program
coordinator. "Several hundred
more churches and campus ministries
are considering becoming 'reconciling.'
More and more United Methodists
recognize that gay and lesbian persons
and their families are being driven
away from churches and want to
invite them in instead." .
A new program initiative, the Open
the Doors campaign, directs this message
of welcome and hospitality to
the United Methodist Church's General
Conference in April, 19%. This
1,000-member assembly, which meets
every four years to write church law, ·
has adopted unwelcoming policies
toward gay and lesbian persons and
their families in the past. Reconciling
Congregations are calling on the
General Conference to "open the
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doors" of United Methodist churches
to all persons.
More information about the Reconciling
Congregation Program and the
Open the Doors campaign is available
from RCP, 3801 N. Keeler Ave.,
Chicago, IL 60641, voice 312-736-
5526, fax 312-736-5475.
Supportive Congregations
Network adds
12 churches
TWELVE MENNONITE AND
Church of the Brethren congregations
from across the country have received
the designation of "publicly affirming
congregations" for their public
positions welcoming gays.
The churches are part of a
Mennonite/Brethren coalition called
the Supportive Congregations Network,
which links gay-welcoming
churches with other congregations at
their level of support. The 12 openly
supportive churches are at the
"publicly affirming" level, followed
by 27 others at the "accepting" congregation
level. The network also
has a level for "exploring" congregations,
or those which "are discussing
the welcome of gay, lesbian and
bisexual members." ·
The 12 publicly affirming congrega tions
are located . in eight U.S. states
Events
Announcements in this section are provided
free of charge as a serv.ice lo Christian organizations.
To have an event iiSted, send
informalio11 to Second Stone , P.O. Box
8340 , New Orleans, LA 70182, FAX lo
(504)891-7555, e-mail secstone@aol.com.
Other Sheep Retreat
FEBRUARY 10-11, Other Sheep Ministry
hosts "Coming Out To God : A Day of
Reflection and Sharing on Spirituality,
Sexuality and Community" at Christ
Church Cathedral in St. Louis. Author
Chris Glaser is facilitator. For information
call 314-822-32% or314-645-9967.
Southeast ACTS Weekend
FEBRUARY 16-18, Advance Christian
Ministries· sponsors "Getting To Know
One Another", a spirit:filled weekend of
worship and fellowship. The Best Western
Bayside Inn in Panama City; Aorida is
the. setting. For inj'onnation contact Family
of God Ministries, 3911 Everitt Ave.,
· Panama City, FL 32401, 904-784-4851.
St. John's MCC
20th Anniversary
FEBRUARY 23-25, St. John's MCC in
Raleigh, North Carolina celebrates its
20th anniversary with a concert, banquet
and special worship. The concert features a
rare joint .appearance by Marsha Stevens,
are one Canadian ·province: Arizona,
California, Colorado, Iowa, Massachusetts,
Michigan, Minnesota,
Oregon and Ontario.
The Supportive Congregations Network
will have its first international
meeting June 28-30 at Manchester College
in North Manchester, Indiana.
Information about .the network and
the upcoming meeting is available by
writing to P.O. Box 6300, Minneapolis,
MN 55406 or by calling or em
a i I in g 61.2-305- 0315,
SCNetwork@aol.com .
Church offers external
seminary coursework
THE EV ANGELICAL ANGLICAN
Church in America has reached an
agreement with St. Alban Theological
Seminary in San Diego, California
that allows the EACA to offer
gay and lesbian persons a recognized
theological educational experience .
"We cons ider our . external learning
program to be among the best available,
especially to those within the
gay, lesbian and bisexual community,"
said the Rev. Craig S. Bettendorf
. Individuals outside the EACA
may also register for coursework . For
information contact the EACA, 2301
Artesia Blvd., Ste. 12-213, Redondo
Beach , CA 90278.
Delores Berry, David & Jane and Randa
McNamara. Rev. Troy Perry is guest
speaker. For informaii.on call 9i9-834-
261l.
PLGC
Midwestern Conference
MARCH 1-3,.Presbyterians for Lesbian
and Gay Concerns sponsors . "Nothing Can
Separate· Us From the Love· of God in
Christ:- Not .Even the Church" featuring
author Chris Glaser. The Geneva Center in
Rochester, Indiana is the setting. For
information call 317-236-1170.
UCC Third National
Meeting of Women
JUNE 27-30, The United Church of Christ
presents "Voices and Visions: Third
National Meeting of Women" featuring
Barbara Ehrenreich, June Goudey, Bernice
Powell Jackson and Christine Smith. For
information call 1-800-653-0799. '
UCCL/GC National Gathering
JUNE 30-JULY 4, The United Church
Coalition for Lesbian/Gay Concerns meets
at Massachusetts Institute of Technology
in Boston. Rev. Dr. Joan Martin and Rev.
Dr. Carter Heyward are featured guests.
For information contact the UCCUGC,
18 North College Street. Athens, OH
45701, 614-593-7301.
Dignity/USA wins
National AIDS
Caregiver Award
DIGNITY /USA has been selected as
a winner of the National AIDS Caregiver
Award from Mary Fisher ' s
Family AIDS Network . A $15,000
cash grant accompanies the award .
Family AIDS Network made the
award to Dignity/USA in honor of
the work of Wayne April of Dignity/
San Francisco. April has been active
in Dignity and AIDS caregiving since
1984. He is founder and current director
of the Richard M. Cohen Residence
in San Francisco, a home for
people with AIDS which fills the
gap between independent living and
hospice care.
Dignity/USA, working through its
chapters nationwide, will sponsor
seven retreats providing rest, renewal
and spiritual support for AIDS caregivers.
Scholarship funds totaling
$1000 per retreat will be made available
to help defray registration fees
for AIDS caregivers who wish to
attend.
The Family AIDS Network was
founded by artist -and activist Mary
Fisher, who long has focused keen
att ention on the important role of
caregivers in response to HIV/ AIDS.
Ms. Fisher, an HIV-positive mother
_of two sons, tours the country to
- encourage AIDS.prevention and . cheer
on HIV/ AIDS caregivers.
Clinical Pastoral Edu-cation
program offered
CAMILLIAN BROTHER STEPHEN
Braddock has announced the development
of a CPE program at St. Camill
us Health Care Campus in Wauwatosa,
Wisconsin . CPE is theological
and professional education for
ministry . In CPE, theological students,
ordained clergy, members of
religious orders, and qualified Jay
people minist er to people in crisis situations
while being supervised . The
St. Camillus CPE program will offer
students opportunities to specialize in
ministry to persons infected and
affected by HIV/ AIDS. Extended 25
week units are scheduled April 29 to
October 19 and October 28, 1996 to
May 2, 1997. Information on this program
is available by calling Kate
Sullivan, Director of Clinical Pastoral
Education, 414-259-6575,
Wingspan offers . .
1mmers1on program
WINGSPAN MINISTRY of St. Paul,
Minnesota· has undertaken curriculum
development of a gay /lesbian/ bisexual
immersion program to be hosted
Names Makin News
Bishop Thomas Gumbleton
DETROIT AUXILIARY BISHOP
Thomas Gumbleton, who has been ·
outspoken in his support for the inclusion
of gay men and.lesbians in the
Catholic church, received the 1995
Bridge Building Award from New
Ways Ministry. Gumbleton, 65,
received the award at a reception
held during the National Conference
of Catholic Bishops. Although the
reception was not sanctioned by the
conference, 200 people signed up to
attend. Gumbleton, who has a gay
brother, said he feels the Catholic
church should support gay people the
way God'made them to be.
Sister Jeannine Grammick
SISTER GRAMMICK, a nun with the
Franciscan 'sisters of the Poor, has
been elected as chair of the National
Coalition of American Nuns. Along
with Fr. Robert Nugent, Grammick is
co-founder of New Ways Ministry.
She has been investigated by the
Vatican three times under suspicion
of heresy for her positive statements
about gays and lesbians, as well as
her criticism of homophobia. Grammick
currently works as an advocate
for the poor at Detroit Central City
-Community Mental Health.
Adele Starr and
Peg Beissert
ST ARR AND BEISSERT are the
, recipients of the 19% Lazarus
Awards presented by The Lazarus
Project of Los Angeles. Starr is the
founder of the P -l'LAG'chapter in Los
Angeles and, along ,;-ith husband
Larry, assisted in the formation of
parent groups in over 200 cities. Rev.
Beisser! has served as interim pastor
of West Hollywood Presbyterian
Church and is the former director of
The Lazarus Project. Beisser! has
worked tirelessly not only seeking justice
and ful) inclusion for gays and
lesbians in Presbyterian churches, but
in trying to help her church denomination
toward a truer fulfillment of
it's mission by overcoming it's injustice
toward gays and lesbians.
Rev. Don Clarke
REV. CLARKE has been elected pastor
of Joie de Vivre MCC in Baton -
Rouge, Louisiana. Clarke is the
former interim pastor of All Saints
MCC in Atlanta. He spent 17 years in
ministry with the United Methodist
Church.
at ·st. l'aul=Reformation Church for
students of Lutheran Seminaries and
local colleges. The goal of the program
is to raise awareness and skills
development around gay and lesbian
issues for persons training to be helping
professionals, Forinformation on
t:.is program, contact Pastor Anita
Hill, 612-224-3371. .
Texas congregation
selects builder for
new church
TRINITY METRO POLIT AN Community
Church of Arlington, Texas
has selected J. Clark of Firestone
Services and Terri Werner of Church
Design and Interiors as their builder
and designer of their new church .
Trinity MCC's new church home will
be located off 1-30 and Collins in
North Arlington . Rev. Jim Norwood,
Trinity Development Director, said
the new church will be a hexagonal
shaped multipurpose building with a
sanctuary and overflow area seating
a total of 325 people. ·
Rev. Jo Crisco, senior pastor, said
she is especially pleased with the
landscaping Mr. Clark has designed
for the parking lot, and said -that the
overall -design will eventually allow
th.e. church. to host outdoor concerts
and have --a children's playground
area.
"This is an exciting time in the life
of the church. My dream for Trinity
has always been -to have a place to
call our own. For the last few years, I
have felt-an urgent call placed on my
life to reach more of our people than I
ever dreamed possible 11 years ago
when we began this ministry in
Arlington," Crisco said.
King's House moves
to new location
THE KING'S HOUSE Praise and
Worship Center in San Jose, Califor-
Christian Communit News
nia has moved to the Billy De Frank
· Center at -175 Stockton. King's House
pastor David Harvey began his ministry
in 1975 when he became a youth
pastor in an Assembly of God church.
Harvey was ministering in a church
that was not gay-affirming when he
felt called to begin a specific -outreach
to the gay and lesbian comll),unity
in 1990.
Evangelicals Concerned
seeks
best homily
EVANGELICALS CONCERNED is
sponsoring a homily contest commemorating
EC's 20th year of ministry.
The organization is calling on seminarians
and other students to submit
homilies on the integration of evangelical
Christian faith and homosexual
intimacy. The writer of the winning
homily will receive .$1000. The
panel of judges includes R. Maurice
Boyd; Peggy Campolo, Kathryn
Lindskoog, M. Mahan Siler, Jr., and
James Wilcox. Entries may ,be sent to
EC, Inc., 311 E. 72nd St., New York,
NY 10021 before Fe_bruary 29, 19%.
Transitions
JOEL WORKIN passed away Nov. 29
in Los Angeles after a three-year battle
with AIDS. Workin was one of
three openly gay seminarians from
Pacific Lutheran Seminary who were
certified for ordination in 1987 but
because of a merger of church denominations
in 1988 was not eligible for a
call because they would not commit to
lifelong celibacy. Workin was preceded
in death by his partner Paul,
who died of AIDS three years ago.
Bishop Paul Egertson of the Southern
Californi_a Synod of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America presided
at Workin's funeral.
HealingJo
·THE FLOOR OF HEA V EN·
Guided meditation and music for l1eal1ng and restoration with voculs
by The Rev. Deanne Aime and music by James Rass The power to
heat lies w1th1n the spmtual und psychological nature of every person
Tap into your healing power and potential t11rougl1 t11e process of
spiritual deepening as you ex perience guided med itation.
'/he Flucir ( J/l -1'-111·n1. \ 12, c;1,,cllr..'
(Jl<lll,R I IW.\t SJ:( U\)) SJ O~l l ' "IS S
SI.I I' \<,I: 22
educated -folk, you'll find more progressive
views on social issues," Carroll
said. ''The Triangle area is atypical
of the rest of North Carolina."
North Carolina's Research Triangle focus of book
Hartman, 29, who said he became
openly gay while a Duke graduate
student, devotes single chapters to
Triangle congregations and how each
of them dealt with a gay-related
issue. He offers advice to other
churches on how to handle such disputes
in the future.
CongregatioinnC s onflict
By Gary D. Robertson
Associated Press Writer
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) - What happens
when a mainstream church discovers
its new minister is gay? What
if a lesbian couple wants to be blessed
by the parish pastor?
As congregations grapple with these
issues, an author on the subject counsels
that good communication and
decision-making skills can help unify
Christians, even when they agree to
disagree over homosexuality.
Book Sale!
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TOORDER
PLEASES EEP AGE2 2
"How do you resolve a conflict that
keeps everybody in the community of
faith and say at the end, 'It's been a
good process?' " says Keith Hartman,
whose Congregations in Conflict: The
Battle Over Homosexuality, will be
published in February by Rutgers
University Press.
Hartman used the Research Triangle
area of North Carolina for his
research on homosexuality, which he
calls "the most divisive element facing
the church today."
The Triangle has been transformed
over the last 40 years from a sleepy
Southern region to a thriving urban
and academic center of 1 million people
. The influx of academics- and
high-tech jobs has brought with it
new residents with differing
attitudes about Christianity.
Jackson Carroll, a professor at Duke
University's divinity school, says
the Triangle exemplifies the theological
wrestling in the New South
over ethical issues that once went
unquestioned.
"Anytime you get an area where you
get three or four major universities
and an industry that brings in !tighly
"You've got some culturally progressive
people. You got people who vote
for Jesse Helms arid like Jesse Helms
and those folks go to the same
Books
church," said Hartman in a recent
telephone interview from Atlanta,
where he now lives.
Some of his book takes a look at the
most highly visible actions involving
gays and the nation's largest Protestant
denomination, the Southern
Baptist Convel)tion.
Pullen Memorial Baptist Church in
Raleigh and Binkley Memorial
Church in Chapel Hill were kicked
out of the 15 million-member denomination
in· 1992 for their stands on the
issue.
Pullen Memorial endorsed same-sex
marriages in its church, while Binkley
ordained openly gay Pastor John
Blevins, a friend of Hartman's .
Hartman ,-using personal experiences,
interviews and newspaper clippings,
paints a picture of churches
Music
David & Jane
release new
recording
The tape was recorded in New
York City with a live band and
produced by Daryl Kojak, who
is known to gay Christian music
fans for his work on David &
Jane's debut recordin 6 · J\iot
Ashamed." ·
"IN OUR OWN WORDS," the
newest recording by David &
Jane, received an enthusiastic
response at its debut last summer
at the UFMCC General
Conference in Atlanta. The new
recording is made · up almost
entirely of original material
and original arrangements of
familiar hymns by artists Jane
Syftestad and David Heid.
Heid is Director of Music at
St. John's MCC in Raleigh,
North Carolina, and served as
music director for the UFMCC
gathering in Atlanta. Syftestad
is a gospel artist and music
teacher who also serves as
Director of Music for MCC/Los
Angeles.
"In Our Own Words" is available
for $11.25 from David
Heid, 1410-105 Brookside Dr.,
Raleigh, NC 27604.
Guided meditation tape heals, empowers
''THE FLOOR OF HEAVEN" is a new
guided meditation by Rev. Deanne
Ai.me, a gifted practitioner of the
healing arts, who brings experience
and gathered wisdom of over 35 years
in nursing, teaching and ministering
to this recording for healing and restoration.
Aime earned degrees from the Baptist
Theological Seminary in New
Orleans, the University of ·the State
of New York and Tulane University.
She was ordained by the St. Charles
Avenue Baptist Church in New
Orleans and presently serves as minister
to the Our Home Universalist
PAGE 20 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
trying to reach a consensus. Sometimes,
members supporting homosexuality
receive hate mail. And some
conservatives feel threatened by
what they view as libera\s destroying
their theology and leave the
church they have attended all their
lives.
Hartman says most rifts within
churches are between old and young
members, with longtime members
most opposed to accepting gays and
lesbians. Denominations that are conservative
theologically are most
resistant to change.
"The state of the movement is that
you're getting a generational shift
across the state," Hartman said.
''The flash points are at the most liberal
congregations when they come
into conflict with the older generations."
Groups such as the Quakers are
leading the way toward tolerance,
while Roman Catholics are lagging
behind, he said. .
'l'wo Quaker congregations in Durham
and Chapel Hill took several
months of detailed discussion before
deciding fo allow same-gender marriages
. And congregations like the
Metropolitan Community Churches
have provided gays with a safe
place to worship.
Hartman predicts greater acceptance
of homosexuals in both secular
and religious society in the future.
Meanwhile, he urges church members
to respect each other when dealing
with the issue.
David & Jane: "In Our Own Words"
Unitarian Church in Ellisville, Mississippi.
Aime is the guide for the healing
journey of ''The Floor of Heaven" and
James Bass provides the music for
this empowering recording.
~! n :,
KnoWM NYa meA: Gayl lreratiOOTheology
By Richard B. Gilbert
Contributing Writer
When I was functioning as a
hospital chaplain I thought I became
exposed to the bleakest human
experiences We call wilderness. Gunshot
wounds. Automobile accidents.
Traumas. Stillbirths. Cancer. Heart
disease. How long do I have to make
this list? I think I have seen it all.
Life is a wilderness journey.
What makes these exposures to
"wilderness" so difficult is not only
the challenge to respond through an
empathetic ministry of presence, but
the powerful way in which someone
else's wilderness experience becomes
a beacon to shine on the shadows of
my own wilderness, the scars of my
own hurts, the challenges of my own
burdens.
Such has become this demanding
book by Richard Cleaver. Know My
Name: A Gay Liberation Theology
isn't easy reading. You have to work
at it. You have to reflect and think.
It is also tough because the insights
offered show so clearly how poorly
the church and the public have
resp_on~ed t_o th~ -~~.eds., of., ~h~. gay,
community, and also _have become yet
another burden for that community.
Cleaver is a Roman Catholic and
long time peace and gay rights activist.
Cleaver spent seven years in the
70s and 80s with the Catholic Worker,
most of them as a new convert to
Roman Catholicism, the latter years
as an editor and writer for.CW publications.
In writing Know My Name Cleaver
Media
Gay youth have
webme magazine
YOUTH ACTION Online has announced
the onhne world's newest
gay and ·lesbian youth mag,izine,
Oasis.
YAO (localed on the web ·at
http://www.youth.org) features an
abundance of gay and lesbian youth
information.
"Oasis will serve as a forum to provide
even more queer resources for our
young readers," said Jeff Walsh,
its editor. "We will still have a ma.in
feature and Profiles in Courage each
month, but now they will be two
stories among many, many others."
Oasis is still looking for writers,
photographers and poets. Persons
interested in contributing may reply
to Oasis Editor, Jeff Walsh at: PA Jeff
25 (on AOL), or jeff@youth.org
Books
believes he is filling a gap left by
previous works on lesbians and gay
men in the Christian churches. Here
he has applied the methods of liberation
theology to the situation of gay
men in North America. Many of the
scripture passages that he covers has
little to do with sexuality as such,
but are employed to describe "a
widening spiral from personal identity
and coming out, to developing a
class consciousness· as members· of an
oppressed group, to solidarity with
other such groups." (from Cleaver's
own description of the book.)
The toughest part of Know My
Name - and its very gift - is that it
became a wilderness mirror for my
journey. It helped me understand my
pain, my challenges, and, yes, my
healing. The last six months have
been packed with significant personal
and professional losses, transition,
and some wide open doors
awaiting my first steps into new
adventures. All of this has introduced
new measures of discovery, self
assurance and healing. It became the
gW 9f \hi~ bo'2~- .
Cleaver writes (p.62), "Liberation is
not a matter of what we know or who
we are but what we do with who we
are and what we know - our practice."
It is a matter of theology, of living
our faith (whatever community we
find ourselves in) and the freedom to
be the children of God that we all
are. It has become my journey. I can
offer excuses, even blame. I can spend
the rest of my life struggling to justify
my crosses because of parents, or some
other common cause. The freedom is
not in claiming our crosses, but in
walking through them, theologically
grounded, as we Jive with or for others.
My life long struggle has not been
edge of scripture and history, and
could learn something about freedom
through him), and also the harsh
realities of what church has often
meant to the gay community.
He insists that theology is what
often sets people apart, and can also
bring them together. It is the challenge
to those in the gay community
to recognize their wilderness, and
emerge through it. The healing, a
resurrection event, for the church is to
recognize her ( iind those of each of
her member~) own wilderness reality
and pathway .
It is a tough book to read through.
You will be blessed, challenged and
kicked. You will read some har!.h
words about the church, and, before
you get to cheering on the author
about that (if that · is your inclination),
you wili also be tugged to
address for yourself what you intend
to do about these gaps. You are
reminded that "You will be hurt in
the pr~cess," It is when we live in
the resurrection experience that we
heal, others heal, and we come to
. healing together. Salvation is not
personal (that will shock a few too
many folks!), but communal, and,
reminds Cleaver, "Christ's resurrection
-is therefore completed in community."
My only regret or caution about
Know My Name is that it may be
more than some can bear at this time.
There are many hurting in and for the
gay community who will look for a
simple pathway to finding God and
being embraced by God while also
Videos
La.t in. America
m1ss1on now
on video
sexual. It is the reminder that IN 1994 TWO GAY missionaries trav-
Cleaver speaks to many more than eled over seven months by bus
the folks in the gay community, or throughou ·t Latin America searching
the religious community. My life long for potential leaders to develop new
sh;uggle has been with being adopted, Christian ministries and meeting
and the damning cross of trying to with lesbian and gay leaders in each
live with the fact that "someone country they visi_ted. The journey of
didn't want me," and the resulting Jose Hernandez and his life partner
downward spiral of my self esteem. John Doner is now available on video.
My emergence to healing has been to , · One of the purposes of "Mission Jesus
affirm my story, recognize it as both· Style: A N~tworking Tour of the
my wilderness and my wholeness, and Americas" is to stimulate a concern
to live it not by being stuck, but for our sisters and brothers in Latin
emerging from it. America and to develop a sense of
Cleaver reflects profoundly on the partnership with them.
theology of the church . He clearly The recommended 54-minute video
knows his scripture (some right wing is available from Sources of Hop~
folks will be hard pressed to speak on Bookstore in Dallas. For ordering
Cleaver's level of 'skill and knowl- information call 800-501-HOPE.
Gatherings
· gay. This book has that gift, but it
will require some diligent reading fo
get to it. Stay with it, if you are that
reader.
· Richard. (;ilbert is· director of .C.911;
nections: Spiritual Links, a spirituality
education resource and pastoral
care/chaplaincy organization basec/
in Valparaiso, Indiana.
Theasret isatslhl ave
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PAGE 21 • SECOND STONE JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
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Biblical Ethics And Homosexuality by Brawley, $17 paperback.
What The Bible Really Says Abo.ut Homosexuality by Helminiak, $1 O paperback.
The Floor Of Heaven by Aime, $12 cassette tape.
Pastor, I Am Gay by Bess, $15 paperback.
Homosexuality And Christian Community by Seow, $15 paperback.
Uncommon Calling: A Gay Christian's Struggle To Serve The Church,
newly expanded, by Glaser, $20 paperback.
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PAGE 22 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
Reflections on getting "dissed"
By Martha L. Olney
Guest Comment
The language of war
ON JANUARY 6, 1996, a majority of
the delegates at a meeting' of the
American Baptist Churches of · the
West voted to recommend '·to the
region's Board of Managers the exclusion
or "disfellowshipping" of four
congregations including my own, First
Baptist Church of Berkeley. Prior .to
this vote, a slightly larger majority
of the delegates voted to change the
Covenant of Relationships binding
the 224 (soon to be 220) churches in
the region by, among other things,
· inserting one clause that said member
churches were expected to adhere to
the "theological convictions" of the
ABC-USA and ABCW and another
clause that granted to the Region's
Board of Managers the power to take
action as they saw necessary to preserve
the unity of the region.
By Blake Whittington
Guest Comment
"TALK OF WAR is everywhere." So
begins John D. Woodbridge in a cover
article last year in Christianity
Today entitled "The Dangers of War
Talk." Woodbridge defines himself
as an evangelical Christian concerned
by the rhetoric he hears from his fellow
conservatives . He notes examples
of what he calls culture-war
rhetoric coming from · evangelical
leaders and writers.
Woodbridge suggests, however, that
for the evangelical community to use
the language of war is dangerous. He
lists five dangers.
First, culture-war rhetoric can be
self-fulfilling prophecy, exacerbating
the very conflicts it seeks merely
to describe. Repeated recourse to the
language of war makes it harder to
love our enemies - and it is already
~ hard to do_ so - beca u se it inflames
angry feelings .
Second, culture-war rhetoric leads
us to distort others' positions, fo see
enmity in place of mere disagreement.
It leaves no room for nuanced positions,
or for middle ground. ·
Third, culture-war rhetoric distorts
our own posihon, too - making our
message seem mainly to be angry
criticism when it ought to be mainly
the reconciling gospel of Jesus Christ.
Fourth, culture-war rhetoric plays
into the hands of extremists on the
Left, who would like to convince
Americans that "the Religious
Right" seeks to impose a theocratic
state on them.
Fifth, culture-war rhetoric tends to
create division among Christians,
~~ Pontius' Puddle
even evangelical Christians - for in
war, there is no room for question or
hesitation, and those who are slow to
march in lockstep seem to be cowards
or traitors .
As gay Christians we find ourselves
caught in the culture war on the other
side of Woodbridge and his associates
. We can testify to the truth of
· his assertion that a real war exists
and that conservative Christians
regularly use the language of war.
We often feel the force of that language
directed against us. This war
occurs on more than just the superficial
plane of cultural discussion. Gay
people are systematically ostracized
in our society.
There is also no denying that we
often use language reflecting our own
felt intensity of this conflict. We
decry in the strongest terms leaders of
Christian organizations when their
political agendas . include ~nti-gay
effoffs: · · - · ·
But do we not, in our own use of war
rhetoric, face the same dangers
Woodbridge suggests for those who
are sometimes our opponents? Change
a few words in his fourth danger and
the whole list could apply to us .
Consider the language used in fund
raising letters sent out by gay leaders
and organizations. Sometimes the ·
language meant to garner financial
support flames our anger, rather than
our love, toward our enemies. All too
often we label any objections as
homophobic without giving adequate
consideration to the validity of
opposing positions.
Blake Whittington is editor of The
Greater Los Angeles ConnECtor, the
newsletter of Evangelicals Concerned.
We decline to be excluded, thank
you very mi:ich. First Baptist Church
of Berkeley is an American Baptist
church, has been an American Baptist
church, and will remain an
American Baptist" church. We will
continue to witness to the redemptive
power of God's inclusive love in our
world. We will continue to support
,J\Jn.~r\~!l!l Baptist _!TI.i.ssions at home
and throughout the world . We will
continue to work toward the restoration
of Baptist principles in our
region and our denomination.
A few people have asked why we
would stay where we are not wanted .
This strikes me as an odd question. If
you had a disagreement with members
of your family, would you leave
the family? Write them off. Forswear
your bonds? Forget the history
you have shared? Or would you,
with God's redeeming love as your
guide, strive toward reconciliation,
knowing that we do not need to agree
on every issue in order to be.family
one for the other?
Our relationship to the region and
the denomination is no different.
Indeed, our understanding of Baptist
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polity is exactly that: we do not need
to agree on every issue in order to be
family one for the other. .
Ln my -own case, I figure being a Baptist
is in my blood. Thomas Olney, a
direct ancestor, .was with Rog~r Williams
when they founded the Baptists
in Rhode Island. The First Baptist
Church of America is on Olney
Street in Providence, RI. I probably
have more Baptist heritage in my
little finger than some of our regional
leaders have in all their degrees .
Others have asked us to drop our
membership in the Association of
Welcoming and Affirming Baptists.
Some have intimated that we come
to this issue along a secular
"politically correct" path and that
we have "thrown out the Bible."
In the months since the assault from
the region began; we have revisited
the question of our membership in the
Association. We· -believe we are
called-·to .witness to God's inclusive
love. It's not a popular stand in the
denomination, but that makes it no
less right. We are being the people
God calls us to be. What more or less
can we ask of anyone?
Martha L. Olney is a life-long American
Baptist, Treasurer of the First
Baptist- Church of Berkeley, and is
employed as an economic historian at
the University of California, Berke-
1 ey.
SECOND STONE Newspaper, ISSN
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1996 by Second Stone, a registered
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· SECOND . STONE, a national ecumenical
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newspaper with a specific outreach to
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PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Jim Bailey
PAGE 23 • SECOND STONE • JANUARY/FEBRU 1RY, 1996
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OPEN HANDS, an ecumenical quarterly maga•
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312/736 -5526. FAX-312/736-5475. TF
"THE CHURCH OF CHRIST AND GAYS"
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Detailed •mphasis is paid to Church of Christ
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EMPLOYMENT
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FR !ENDS/RELATIONSHIPS
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BORN AGAIN, spir itually healthy gay
female seeks fellowship/pen pals . Are there
any others out there? I love the Lord, and his
word is a light unto my path. Write Ann,
Guiding Light Ministry, 251 Townline Road.
East Northport, NY 1173 I. 2/96
IN LOVE WITH LIFE, compassionate, poetic,
age 28, ebon, seeking someone to communicate
with (not to), someone unprejudiced and
concerned about justice, especially as related
to prisons. Please write Kenneth Johnson
#515059, F-3, Route 2, Box 4400, Gatesville,
TX 76597. TF
GAY TEACHER desires a caring, sharing
male friend-first. At 50 I enjoy home, travel,
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diversity. Your heart's desire? Write tonight!
Dave, Box 18122, Rochester, NY 14618 .
PROVERBS SAYS "There · is a friend who
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meant to be shared. Let's discover what
interests we have in common and begin
building the relationship God has in store
for us! Please write: P.O . Box 68005,
Rochester. NY L4§_18.
WARNING REGARDING PRISON CORRESPONDENCE:
While most prisoners seeking
correspondence are genuine in · their intent,
some are not Readers are cautioned to prochecks
or money orders to prisoners and do
not cash checks or money orders from prisoners.
Persons cashing altered ctiecks or
money orders a re responsible for the difference
between the issue amount and .the
altered amount. 2. Do not reveal personal
information about yourself that would be
harmful to you if passed on to employer.
family or others.
GENERAL INTEREST
COMMITMENT CEREMONY questions?
FREE report gives you the answers. Call
today for your copy! 704-568-2673 . 4/96
CAMPING RETREATS for environmental
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INVITATION: OPTIMISTIC writers willing
to share short personal prayers or reflections
(biblical or natl with those facing death, loss, _
terminal illness, coming out. Information:
AMDG Enterprise, Box t2754, San Antonio,
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PAGE 24 • SECOND STONE JANUARY/FEBRUARY, 1996
world-wide . Over 7400 items. Magnificent
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ORGANIZATIONS
INDEPENDENT CATHOLIC religious order.
Men/women, lay/clerical , gay/non-gay.
Optional ce libac y, non -residentia l, ec umenical.
·O rdination possible. Father Abbot,
Order of St. John the Divine, 166 Jay St.,
Albany , NY 12210,
CHRISTIANS IN COMMUNION with Creation.
An Organization for "Green Christians.''
Membership with monthly mailings,
$35. Roger Wharton, 1404 Arnold Ave., San
Jose, CA 95110. 408-451-9310. 2/96
BECOME A PRIEST° - Gay, Lesbian and
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ordination. An incardination process is
available for those already in Orders. Those
interested in this program for personal fulfillment
' without interest in ordination may
also reply._ EACA - Vocations, 2401 Artesia
Blvd., Ste. #106-213, Redondo Beach, CA
90278. 2/96
CONFERENCE FOR CATHOLIC Lesbians
(CCL) is a national organization for lesbians
of Catholic heritage. Quarterly newsletter.
Supportive network. Advocates for lesbian
iss ues in political and Church forums. For
member sh ip information please contact
CCL-SS, P.O. Box 436, Planetarium Station,
New York, NY 10024, (212) 663-2963, FAX
(212)268-70J2 , 2/96
GAY PRINCIPIANS GROUP - Gay, Bi, Lesbian
and StraighVSupportive Alumni of Principia
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(St. _Louis) Co ntact: David White #124. 2900
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20008-1404, 202-31! 7- 7250, E-mail
Mrblanc@aol.com. 2/96
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION of Catholic Diocesan
Lesbian and Gay Ministries - Ne twork
for diocesan and parish ministri es, newsletter,
annua l meeting. 433 Jeffer so n Street,
Oakland, CA 94607. 5I0-465-9344. 2/96
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