Milwaukee Presbytery approves ordination of lesbian activist
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, February 23, 2005
The Presbytery of Milwaukee voted 104-20 on Feb. 22 to approve Elisabeth “Eily” Marlow, a lesbian activist, for ordination as a minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA).
In a news release about the vote, the presbytery said Marlow had informed the presbytery “that she was a lesbian. Currently, the Presbyterian Church (USA) prohibits self-avowed, practicing homosexuals to be ordained to the offices of elder, deacon or minister of Word and Sacrament.”
However, the news release added, “Marlow agreed to abide by the Presbyterian Church USA Constitution G-6.0106 which includes … ‘Among these standards is the requirement to live either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman, or chastity in singleness. Persons refusing to repent of any self-acknowledged practice which the confessions call sin shall not be ordained and /or installed as deacons, elders, or ministers of Word and Sacrament.'”
Marlow, who serves as a chaplain at Macalester College, a Presbyterian-related school, once said that the final decision on her quest for ordination would determine “whether mine is a story of resurrection or one of rage.”
Marlow was formerly employed by That All May Freely Serve, an organization that seeks the repeal of the denomination’s constitutional requirements that prohibit same-sex marriages and the ordination of self-acknowledged, practicing homosexuals.
The presbytery’s packet for commissioners to the Feb. 22 meeting included material that suggested that Marlow was eligible for ordination because she had not self-acknowledged that she was in a homosexual relationship with another woman.
Besides her efforts to repeal the denomination’s ban on ordaining homosexuals, Marlow has been a long-time activist for the Re-Imagining god women’s movement, which the General Assembly declared in 1994 to be beyond the bounds of the Christian faith. The movement was renounced after Presbyterians in the pews expressed shock over elements of the conference, including Sophia-worship, a denial of the atoning sacrifice of Christ and the use of milk and honey (feminist symbols) in a communion-like ritual.
The backlash to the PCUSA’s involvement in the Re-Imagining movement and defense of it cost the denomination millions of dollars in lost revenue.
In 1998, Marlow was one of the leaders in a successful effort that convinced the 210th General Assembly to rescind an adjournment-eve vote that ended denominational support for the National Network of Presbyterian College Women. The network is an activist group that promoted homosexuality and many of the elements of the Re-Imagining movement.
On the Saturday morning session, just before adjournment, the commissioners voted for a compromise, giving the Presbyterian college women a second chance and establishing a task force to review the organization and report back to the 212th General Assembly.
The 212th General Assembly approved the task force’s report, which included discontinuing use and dissemination of the network’s published material that promoted Sophia-worship rituals and lesbian relationships.
In 2003, Marlow was one of the speakers at the 10th anniversary celebration of the national Re-Imagining god conference that was co-sponsored by the PCUSA. Marlowe told the participants at the 10th anniversary celebration that some conservatives were “naming us demonic, the prodigal daughters who won’t repent. It was some of the most ostracized that came to our cause – the crones and a handful of lesbians. Our struggle to maintain the integrity of our faith had been carried on the broad shoulders of women, as well as the very broad shoulders of our beautiful god Sophia.”
Marlow has been employed as director of outreach of the Minnesota Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, an organization that promotes unrestricted abortions. She has also held a number of staff jobs in the denomination, including the PCUSA’s United Nations Office and as a program assistant in Louisville, Ky., the headquarters of the denomination.
Upon her ordination, Ms. Marlow will be transferred to the Presbytery of the Twin Cities, where she will continue her ministry at Macalester College. An ordination date has not been set.
The Presbytery of Milwaukee consists of 50 churches affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) in southeastern Wisconsin. The presbytery consists of equal numbers of pastors and lay elders representing the congregations and specialized ministries within the area.