DES
MOINES, WASHINGTON, Feb. 23--Bishop
Jack M. Tuell, once an opponent of full ministry with homosexual persons in The
United Methodist Church, now says, "I was wrong."
A
sermon by Bishop Jack M. Tuell, Des Moines, Washington. Preached Sunday,
February 20, 2000, at the Des Moines United Methodist Church, Des Moines,
Washington
Text:
"I am about to do a new thing." --Isaiah
43:19
Religion
has never been known as a force at the cutting edge of doing new things. Avant
garde has not been a phrase used to describe the church throughout history.
Rather, the church is usually perceived as a
Conserving
force, seeking to retain the traditional values that have come from the past.
This is shown in the respect and honor we give the Holy Bible, a document
written several millennia ago. It is seen in the ancient customs of Orthodox
Christians, from time-honored liturgies to the unchanging clerical vestments of
its clergy. Islam thrives on ancient practices such as daily prayers of its
people, as five times each day they face toward Mecca. Thousand-year-old statues
of the Buddha remain powerful symbols for Buddhists. In Christianity, ancient
creeds are recited from week to week in churches around the world.
All
of this is good--there is truth and value at the center of religious faith which
is unchanging and ought to be honored and revered. John Wesley recognized this
in placing tradition as one of four guidelines for us, along with scripture,
experience and reason. But our scripture lesson for today reminds us that God is
ever ready to do a new thing. It further reminds us that the God we worship is
not a static God, capable only of speaking to us from two, three or four
thousand years ago. Rather, God is living, alive in this moment, revealing new
truth to us here, now, in this year of our Lord 2000.
God
is revealing new truth in many areas of life. One which is increasingly clear is
that He is speaking to us in the issue of homosexuality. I am aware that many
people are uncomfortable even mentioning this matter and wish it would just go
away. I am aware of that, because I have felt exactly the same way. I am also
aware that it is not the most important issue The United Methodist Church faces.
The most important issue is to make disciples, to share the love of God
in a world that is hurting. But
homosexuality is the most volatile and potentially divisive issue we face, and I
believe that God is about to do a new thing among us. The new thing that God is
doing in our midst right now is to show us that homosexuality is not simply an
act or acts of willful disobedience to God's law and commandments, but it is a
state of being. It is an identity
that God has given to some of His children. It is who they are.
How
does this assertion--this new thing--stand up against John Wesley's
Four
tests of Christian truth: scripture, tradition, experience and reason?
SCRIPTURE:
Twice in the Book of Leviticus and once in the Book of Romans are condemnations
of homosexual activity. One in
Leviticus indicates that death is the penalty for such acts.
In truth, there are instances of homosexual acts which should be
condemned, even as there are instances of heterosexual acts which should be
condemned. I do not doubt that the writer of Leviticus and that St. Paul had
good reason to write as they did. But when we turn to the scripture, we need to
turn to the whole of the scripture. When
we do that, the central and over-whelming message is God's inclusive love for
all of humankind. Scholars of all opinions have agreed that one verse of
scripture is truly the "gospel in a nutshell"-- the beloved John 3:16:
"God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that everyone who
believes in him may not perish but have eternal life (NRSV)."
The
overwhelming love of God in Christ sweeps some specific prohibitions away, even
though they are in the Bible. Do
you believe that? Anyone here divorced? Jesus
ruled out almost all divorce. Anyone here a woman? Well, Paul didn't rule you
out, but he ruled you out of speaking in church. Anybody here eat pork? Specifically prohibited! Look, the sovereign message of the
Bible is God's redeeming, all-powerful love that overrides all else, and places
specific prohibitions in the context of the time and place and situation in
which they were written.
TRADITION:
We remember Tevya in Fiddler on the Roof singing, "Tradition."
Regarding homosexuality, it is not so much that tradition has been actively
against it, but that tradition has been actively covering it up.
The tradition is that it is a taboo subject--shrouded in
mystery--unspeakable--unmentionable--a subject to be crammed down into the
nether regions of our consciousness and forgotten. As a consequence, our real tradition is ignorance.
So to that extent, church tradition doesn't help much. In another way,
however, we have a long tradition of change.
Some 150 years ago, in many of our churches, Methodists believed slavery
was scriptural and ordained by God. Until
1920, The Methodist Church in its Discipline prohibited (or tried to prohibit)
"dancing, theater-going, and card-playing." But we have a long, long
tradition of finally sorting out what is truly important over what is either
incorrect or only marginally important. In the long run, we have always been
able to discern when God is doing a new thing in our midst. This capacity to
change is among the noblest of our traditions.
EXPERIENCE:
Of all the 4 tests of Christian truth, experience is in some ways the deepest
and most far-reaching. It is the
thing that can move us when nothing else can. John Wesley was an academic,
legalistic, guilt-ridden and slightly repulsive Anglican priest before he
experienced the love of God in his heart of hearts--before his heart, as he
wrote, was "strangely warmed." It
turned his life around. It made the difference between his ending up a forgotten
cleric of the Church of England and what he is--a man remembered, respected and
followed by millions, one of the great spiritual fathers of the human race. What
is the role of experience in the issue we speak of today?
It is the personal encounter with the anguish, the pain, the hurt, the
suffering, the despair which harsh and judgmental attitudes can have on persons
of homosexual orientation. How does this encounter come about?
One way is when parents realize that their child is a person of
homosexual orientation. They share intensely and intimately in the struggle,
perhaps the denial, often the anguish, but ultimately the acceptance of the
child whom they bore and whom they love. It is little wonder that such parents
gather together with others in groups such as PFLAG (Parents, Families and
Friends of Lesbians and Gays) to bring about understanding and change. For they
have experienced first-hand some of the deep, deep hurt that accompanies this
issue in our church and in our society. In my own case, based on my limited
understanding, I went along with the prevailing view, although never including
any hatred. I said to myself, "After all, God created men and women
different, complementary to one another physically and perhaps emotionally. From
my viewpoint as a heterosexual person, hetero-sexuality must be what God expects
of all His creation." It was just common sense to me. I was wrong. It was
experience that showed me I was wrong. Actually, several experiences were at
work.
A
year ago, when Bishop Joseph Sprague of Illinois asked me to come and preside
over a church trial, experience made its compelling points with me. The Reverend
Gregory Dell was pastor of the Broadway United Methodist Church in Chicago, a
congregation made up of about 40% gay and lesbian persons, situated in a
community of similar makeup. Under the law of our denomination, Reverend Dell
was charged with "disobedience to the order and discipline of The United
Methodist Church," for conducting a service of holy union for two members
of his congregation, two gay men. These two men were active in their church as
ushers, finance committee members, and regular participants. They had been
living as partners for several years, but had been having trouble in their
relationship. They came seeking spiritual counsel from their pastor, and wanted
to have some kind of service of prayer or blessing of their commitment. They
felt it would strengthen them and make them better partners. Reverend Dell
agreed to conduct a small, informal service, which took place in September of
1998. The facts of the case were never contested. For conducting this service,
the trial court found him guilty and suspended him from the exercise of
ministry. Ecclesiastically speaking, the decision was correct. As I understand
the Spirit of God, it was wrong.
For
two long days I watched this trial of a dedicated, energetic, compassionate,
caring and able minister, with 30 years of loyal service to our church. This
experience, along with other experiences I am sure, caused me to change my mind.
I began to see the new thing God is doing.
REASON:
Reason cuts both ways. For a long
time, reason told me that God's creation of male and female ruled out anything
but hetero-sexuality. But reason, enriched by experience, actually told me
otherwise. I have often taken issue with arguments which equated prejudice
against homosexuality with prejudice against race. I took issue because race was
clearly a condition one was born with, while homosexuality involved behavior
which is subject to human will. Having said that, is it reasonable to believe
that God would create some with an orientation toward the same gender, put
within them the same strong drive of sexuality which is present in heterosexual
persons, and then decree that such a drive is to be absolutely repressed and
denied? This not only defies reason, but is cruel, unfeeling and
arbitrary--qualities foreign to God as we know Him in Jesus Christ. Reason
supports a belief that God is in the process of doing a new thing.
At
the trial of Gregory Dell, the two men who were the participants in the service
of union appeared as witnesses. On the stand, in response to questions, one man
told about his father, a pastor in the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church, one of
the most conservative denominations in America. He asked his father to conduct
the holy union service. The father regretfully declined, on the basis of his
denomination's position, yet he attended the service. Afterwards, at the
reception, the father led in a public prayer of blessing for his son and his
partner. Whatever our beliefs about homosexuality, can we as Christians do any
less than to affirm the committed relationships of our sisters and brothers in
Christ?
In
a few weeks 992 delegates will gather in Cleveland for the General Conference,
marking 216 years of our church's life. These are good people, dedicated United
Methodist Christians earnestly seeking God's will for our church. They have been
elected by their fellow clergy and laity from all over the world and entrusted
with a heavy responsibility. They will have differing perspectives on this and
many issues facing them. It is impossible to predict what actions they may take,
because the Spirit moves at its own pace-- "the wind bloweth where it
listeth (John 3:8)." But I believe that if the delegates are listening
carefully, above the competing pressures of this group and that, they will hear
the still, small voice whisper, "I am doing a new thing," and they
will respond faithfully.
Amen.
PROVIDING
THE SERMON
"Friends of Bishop Tuell" is a small ad hoc group of local neighbors and church members, plus some national friends who appreciate his message circulate it with his permission. They include: LOCAL NEIGHBORS & CHURCH MEMBERS: Betty & Paul Beeman, Mary & Steve Boyd, Joan & Marshall Campbell, Doris-Lee Dimick, Genieve Farmer, Ed & Blythe Stanton, Ed & Betty Starr.