Defrocked Lesbian Minister Re-Elevated on ‘Legal Errors’
A United Methodist appeals committee on Friday nearly unanimously overturned an earlier church court ruling that stripped a sexually active lesbian pastor of her ministerial credentials.
A United Methodist appeals committee on Friday nearly unanimously overturned an earlier church court ruling that stripped a sexually active lesbian pastor of her ministerial credentials.
Citing two “legal errors,” the nine-member Northeastern Jurisdictional Committee on Appeals voted 8-1 to reinstate Irene Elizabeth “Beth” Stroud. The decision was announced after an open-public trial at the Sheraton International Hotel near Baltimore-Washington International Airport that began on Thursday.
Stroud is the third lesbian United Methodist minister who faced the church court since the denomination passed a law in 1984 banning openly homosexual pastors from the pulpit.
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During her December trial at the United Methodist Church’s Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference, Stroud admitted she was living in a physically active relationship with another woman. She was soon found guilty and was immediately defrocked in what observers called an “open and shut case.”
Legal Errors Overturn Court Decision
The appeals committee agreed with the court’s findings but overturned the verdict on two “legal errors.”
“The evidence in support of the charge was overwhelming and would be sustained in the absence of legal error,” the appeals panel wrote. “The verdict and the penalty are reversed and set aside.
The first legal error surrounded the denomination’s law regarding the rights of “members in full connection.” According to the law, ordained elders have a right to minister in the church.
The panel decided that since the words “practicing homosexual” was not defined under this law, Stroud would be considered a “member in full connection” and would therefore have “the right to an appointment pursuant.”
The second legal error found that the denomination’s standard prohibiting sexually active homosexual ministers violated a constitutional law that had already been in place. Under the First Restrictive Rule, found in the church’s constitution, the denomination cannot establish new standards or rules contrary to the church’s existing standards of doctrine.
The Rev. William "Scott" Campbell, pastor of Harvard-Epworth United Methodist Church in Cambridge, Mass., and chairman of the committee, said the appeals committee would not comment further on its ruling because it may be appealed.
Dissenting Opinion
The only dissenting opinion was made by the Rev. LaGretta Bjorn, from Spring Valley, N.Y. Bjorn said the law that says "self-avowed practicing homosexuals are not to be accepted as candidates, ordained as ministers or appointed to serve" the church does not violate the First Restrictive Rule.
Verdict Affects 40,000 Clergy Across Church
Tom Hall, a clergy member from the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference who served as counsel for the church in the appeals case said he was “clearly disappointed.”
"This affects 40,000 clergy across the church,” Hall explained.
According to Hall, the denomination’s policies regarding homosexual ministers are still in place despite the contrary verdict.
He also said that while he is unsure whether the case will be appealed to the church’s highest court – the Judicial Council – there will soon be a “clear ruling on the requirements for ordination.”
Stroud Feels “Relief”
After the verdict was announced, Stroud said she felt a sense of “relief.”
"This is just one step in the whole process," she said, "but it gives me hope that the United Methodist Church has resources to do justice."
Stroud also said she will not begin ministering as an ordained person until “the whole process is concluded."
"I will not exercise the functions of the ordained ministry," she said, "until this whole process is concluded. Ordination is a sacred trust. You can’t just take it off or put it on like a suit of clothes. To do so would be to trivialize it. I’m going to wait."
Stroud also said she believes the verdict sends “a message of hope” to the church.
"I know our church is divided on this issue," she said. "This is a process the church has been struggling with for a long time and will struggle with for a long time in the future. I believe the decision today sends a message of hope to the church."
Origins of the Case
Stroud’s case began in April 2003 when she wrote a letter to her congregation saying she was a lesbian living in a committed relationship. She also presented this information during a sermon at her Germantown church that same month.
A complaint was soon filed and Stroud underwent a series of meetings with conference officials, according to the United Methodist News Service. However, when the meetings did not bring a resolution to the complaint, the head of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference brought the issue to the church court.
Bishop Peter Weaver, then-leader of the Conference, began the judicial complaint process in March 2004, which ultimately led to the December trial at Camp Innabah near Pughtown, Pa.
