Methodist Standards on Ordinations Sustained, Bishops say
The reinstatement of a lesbian United Methodist minister does not reverse the denomination’s standards on ordinations, according to the Council of Bishops.
The recent reinstatement of a lesbian United Methodist minister does not 'in any way' reverse the denomination’s standards on ordinations, according to a statement released by the church’s Council of Bishops.
The bishops gathered in Washington for their annual spring meeting, and responded on May 1 to the controversial ruling made two days ago by the church’s Northeastern Jurisdictional Committee on Appeals. The nine-member appeals committee voted 8-1 to reinstate Irene Elizabeth Stroud – an openly active homosexual minister who had been defrocked several months earlier by a separate church court.
“The decision of the Northeastern Jurisdiction Committee on Appeals does not in any way reverse the standards in our Book of Discipline,” the bishops wrote in their publicly released statement.
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The Book of Discipline acts as the denomination’s code of law and conduct and can be modified only by the church’s General Council -- a gathering of representatives from across the country that meets once every four years.
During the 2004 General Council, the representatives voted to uphold the church’s current resolution in regards to the possibility of ordaining a homosexual minister.
According to the bishops’ statement, they will continue to uphold the standards on ordination despite Stroud’s reinstatement.
“We as the Executive Committee of the Council, affirm our commitment to uphold all of the provisions of our Book of Discipline, while inviting everyone to join us in patience and prayer for a just and fair outcome,” the bishops wrote.
Meanwhile, James V. Heidinger, president of Good News United Methodists, the oldest renewal movement within the 8-million-member denomination, said he was not surprised by the outcome of Stroud’s appeal, but did not expect the result to stand for very long.
“The appeals court ruling that overturned the earlier decision was not totally a surprise. I think we realized that this could well happen,” Heidinger said. “But frankly I don’t expect this ruling to be sustained.”
According to Heidinger, the appeals ruling will likely be reffered to the denomination’s “supreme court” – the judicial council.
“We feel quite sure that when the United Methodist Judicial Council hears this case, it will not sustain the appeal verdict but rather sustain the earlier trial verdict,” Heidinger said.
Though the judicial council meets twice a year, it often convenes in times of emergencies - particularly for unresolved cases within the “lower courts.”
The Beth Stroud case started December at the Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference. In what most observers called an open-and-shut case, the Conference found Stroud guilty of violating the Book of Discipline’s standards on ordained ministry and immediately defrocked her.
Stroud, instead, appealed the ruling, and won her case on April 29 based on two “legal” errors.
In reversing the Pennsylvania ruling, the appeals committee took pains to note that the original guilty verdict was not in question. Rather, “the case was reversed on two questions of legal process.”
Now, the Pennsylvania Conference has 30 days to file an appeal to the Judicial Council.
The following is the full text of the Council of Bishops’ statement:
As the Council of Bishops gathers today in Washington, DC for our spring meeting, we will continue to focus on "Making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world." Most of our meeting will center upon sharpening this focus, including sharing reports from each bishop's Area about our progress in making disciples.
However, the announcement of the results of the hearing by the Northeastern Jurisdictional Committee on Appeals in the Beth Stroud case has been received, and we as the Executive Committee of the Council of Bishops want to encourage all United Methodists to be patient with the important legal processes involved.
The Northeastern Jurisdiction Committee on Appeals has reversed the Stroud trial decision based upon some technicalities. It also found that "the evidence in support of the charge was overwhelming and would be sustained in the absence of a legal error." The committee concluded that "legal error vitiates the verdict on two independent grounds." This means that the reasons for the guilty verdict were not questioned, but the case was reversed on two questions of legal process. The Eastern Pennsylvania Conference has thirty days to appeal this decision.
The decision of the Northeastern Jurisdiction Committee on Appeals does not in any way reverse the standards in our Book of Discipline. In fact, the appeal process is an important part of our Book of Discipline.
We as the Executive Committee of the Council, affirm our commitment to uphold all of the provisions of our Book of Discipline, while inviting everyone to join us in patience and prayer for a just and fair outcome.
