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On Monday, the United Methodist Church convicted Rev. Frank Schaefer on two counts against the Church for officiating his son’s same-sex wedding. On Tuesday, the impaneled jury determined his sentence: Schaefer is suspended for 30 days, and if it at the end of that time he has not renounced his support for marriage equality, he will be defrocked.
Schaefer, however, was unapologetic, refusing the invitation to “repent of your actions”:
SCHAEFER: ([The Church] needs to stop judging people based on their sexual orientation. We have to stop the hate speech. We have to stop treating them as second-class Christians.
I will never be silent again. This is what I have to do.
I have to minister to those who hurt and that’s what I’m doing.)
Three of Schaefer’s four children identify as gay.
continue to source article at thinkprogress.org
Watch Rev. Schaefer’s remarks from after the sentencing, committing himself to being an “outspoken advocate” for the LGBT community. He also added that if a same-sex couple asked him to marry them in the next 30 days, he would do it:
youtu.be...
ketsuko
Ah, I see. Let's not be misleading with the headline. The United Methodist Church is pretty liberal, but they see marriage as between a man and a woman, not any two people.
He is not being called on to denounce his children. He is being disciplined for going against the church's beliefs by having married them in defiance of church doctrine.
@grimpachi.
The examples used are not applicaple to modern christians. That was for the israelites/hebrews alone. And the way the pages of that book look it appears it is cherry picked and out of context. I t needs explanation and clarification.
The new testament tells christians what to do in it. Christ came AFTER the commandments right? Now going with that fact that the NT was specifically for all after the death of Jesus your comparison does not hold up.
the OT is specifically for the hebrews/jews. there is no room for interpretation in this. the hebrews were Abrahams people correct? Jesus did not dismiss the commmandments of course,BUT he condensed them into 3-4 so it would be easier to follow and keep them for christians/gentiles who were not hebrew and directly related to Abraham. Of course you will ignore this and try to troll me again,but this is your last reply though so it does not matter.
Grimpachi
reply to post by Thought Provoker
Well isn’t the church supposed to be doing that already? Taking things chronologically.
Ours is a big faith, one that embraces a diversity of background and belief. Here your conscience, your experience, and your identity matter. We affirm seven principles, the first of which is a deep recognition of each person’s inherent dignity and worth. We put our faith into action through social and environmental justice work in our communities and the wider world.
Our congregations are places where we gather to nurture spirits and change lives. We strive to welcome deeply people of all ages and classes, sexual orientations, gender identities/expressions, races/ethnicities, and abilities. There is no formal conversion process, so becoming a Unitarian Universalist is simply a matter of deciding that these are the people you want to grow with. Membership is voluntary and does not require renouncing other religious affiliations or practices – in fact, we celebrate the religious or philosophical identity you bring.
The theology of individual Unitarian Universalists ranges wildly, including Humanism, Atheism, Agnosticism, Pantheism, Deism, Christianity, Judaism, Neopaganism, Buddhism, and many more...
This core doctrine (of Universalism) asserts that through Christ every single human soul shall be saved...
Unitarianism... may refer to any belief about the nature of Jesus Christ that affirms God as a singular entity and rejects the doctrine of the Trinity...
Current concepts about deity, however, are diverse among UUs. While some are still Monotheistic, often from a Judeo-Christian perspective, many profess Atheism or Agnosticism. UUs see no contradiction in open Atheists and Agnostics being members of their community because of the rich Unitarian legacy of free inquiry and reason in matters of faith. Still other UUs subscribe to Deism, Pantheism, or Polytheism. Many UUs reject the idea of deities and instead speak of the "spirit of life" that binds all life on earth....