ELCA changes its position on homosexual pastors

All are welcome here.

The battle of human sexuality within the church has been raging for years. Church statements on homosexuality among members and pastors have been debated, discussed and deliberated, and congregations have struggled to remain united.

Augustana is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, or ELCA, which has also experienced recent turmoil on the issue of sexuality. As a result, Augustana has been privy to the discussion.

At the biennial ELCA Churchwide Assembly in August, a 559-451 vote, cast by ELCA leaders from across the nation, officially allowed partnered gay and lesbian pastors to be ordained and called to serve churches. Previously, the ELCA allowed only celibate homosexual pastors.

Some power is still left in the hands of the individual congregations, who are given the option to abstain from calling homosexual pastors.

There have been mixed reactions to the vote. The Community Church of Joy (CCJ) in Arizona, the 10th largest church in the ELCA, voted unanimously to leave the ELCA on Sept. 27, as a result of the ruling. With 6,800 baptized members, CCJ will leave a sizeable hole in the ELCA. At least two other churches in Minnesota and Virginia are planning similar action.

The departure of fellow Christians from the ELCA is a difficult thing for some pastors to bear. Pastor Chris Bellefeuille from Plymouth, Minn., said, "As a pastor, my heart aches when people leave in hurt and dismay."

However, many churches are happy with the decision. This includes the hundreds of congregations, seminaries, synods and other organizations who have joined the Reconciling in Christ (RIC) Program.

Started in 1984, RIC is a group that "welcomes gay and lesbian believers," and Augustana's student congregation is on its long list.

Additionally, the Augustana student congregation has a welcome statement, which opens its arms to the homosexual community. It reads, "Come to me… All who are homosexual, or heterosexual, or bisexual, and all who simply don't know… Come to me, all. I will give you rest. Come as you are. You are welcome."

Many Augustana students have responded vocally to the new ruling. Sophomore Dillon DeBoer, a member of Chapel Staff, said, "With this vote I believe the church is doing itself a favor by allowing people to be who they really are."

For DeBoer, the vote goes beyond church politics and into his very beliefs about God. "The God I believe in does not discriminate between sexual orientation," he said.

Sophomore Noelle Harris, president of the Gay Straight Alliance (GSA), wishes the ELCA had taken the ruling one step further.

"While I am overjoyed that gays and lesbians in committed relationships are allowed to become ministers of the church, the ruling specifically says that if churches don't want a gay or lesbian pastor, they need not observe the policy," she said. "I wish the ELCA would have made a more concrete decision."

Other students, though less vocal, do not agree so heartily with the new sexuality statement. Many people are averse to the decision due to its contradiction to certain biblical interpretations, and pastors across the nation are struggling to amalgamate the opposing beliefs.

"There are people for whom this issue looms too large to ignore. We will let them go with grief and with grace," Pastor Bellefeuille said.