Coastal Carolina votes 126-86 to ban rites for gay couples
By Allison Williams, The Fayetteville Observer, December 8, 2000
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – A mother from Wilmington told fellow Presbyterians that her gay daughter is a child of God. And Presbyterian ministers pleaded with their colleagues not to alienate the denomination’s homosexual members.
But a majority of Presbyterian leaders from southeastern North Carolina decided Dec. 7 that the denomination should not allow its pastors to bless the commitments of same-sex couples. The Presbytery of Coastal Carolina supported the ban by a vote of 126 to 86.
The vote in Fayetteville brought the national tally through Dec. 7 to 6-12 against Amendment O. The vote in the 21 presbyteries matches how they voted in 1996-97 on Amendment B, which became G.6.0106b in the Book of Order – the constitutional standard that prohibits ordination of self-affirming, practicing homosexuals.
As in the past, leaders of presbyteries likely to remove barriers that reflect the denomination’s view that homosexual activity is a sin have sought to schedule their votes early to reflect a winning momentum. But if all the votes continue to match the 1996-97 outcome on Amendment B, the final count will be 97-74 for Amendment O.
The Presbytery of Coastal Carolina has 191 congregations. The congregations sent commissioners to First Presbyterian Church in Fayetteville, which recently celebrated its 200th anniversary, for the presbytery meeting. At times, the debate became heated at First Presbyterian.
Commissioners argued whether people choose to be gay and what percent of the population is gay. People cannot change being gay, one man said, any more than they could change the color of their eyes. By denying this, he said, ”We are defying the creation of God. He made people who they are.”
The Rev. Simon Scott of Clarkton Presbyterian Church said the debate is dividing Presbyterians. ”I find this amendment to be a piece of poison,” he said. ”It was not intended as such, but it is dividing us. This puts another dart of exclusivity to a segment of our church.”
Many people argued that the Bible clearly condemns homosexuality. ”God did not give Adam a man,” one woman said. ”He gave him a lady.”
A church leader from Raeford said, ”We are not condemning homosexuals. We are condemning the behavior.” A minister from Lake Waccamaw told delegates that even if a majority of presbyteries upholds the ban, he would still perform a ceremony to bless a gay couple.
”I have a higher calling,” he said. ”I’m here on record to say I would not hesitate a second.”
Reprinted by permission.