|
United Methodist Church votes to lift ban on LGBTQ clergy, marking historic policy shift
[FoxNews] Delegates also voted to remove mandatory penalties for conducting same-sex marriages.United Methodist delegates repealed their church’s longstanding ban on LGBTQ clergy with no debate on Wednesday, removing a rule forbidding "self-avowed practicing homosexuals" from being ordained or appointed as ministers. Delegates voted 692-51 at their General Conference — the first such legislative gathering in five years. That overwhelming margin contrasts sharply with the decades of controversy around the issue. Past General Conferences of the United Methodist Church had steadily reinforced the ban and related penalties amid debate and protests, but many of the conservatives who had previously upheld the ban have left the denomination in recent years, and this General Conference has moved in a solidly progressive direction. Applause broke out in parts of the convention hall Wednesday after the vote. A group of observers from LGBTQ advocacy groups embraced, some in tears. "Thanks be to God," said one. Related: United Methodist Church: 2023-12-18 Why have thousands of United Methodist churches in the US quit the denomination? United Methodist Church: 2023-11-21 Methodist Church approves split of 261 Georgia congregations after LGBTQ+ divide United Methodist Church: 2022-07-28 Over 100 Florida Churches File Suit to Leave United Methodist Church Posted by: Skidmark 2024-05-02 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=698043 |