What others are saying about same-sex decision
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, May 26, 2000
Few issues in the Presbyterian Church (USA) have generated as much reaction as the decision by the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission on same-sex ceremonies.
Most major newspapers in the nation, including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post gave the story prominent display. The Associated Press and Religion News Service provided detailed coverage for their subscribers.
The Layman Online is experiencing record traffic at its web site and receiving numerous letters. Nearly all oppose the decision by the Permanent Judicial Commission.
Besides letters to The Layman Online, here are some excerpts from coverage and comments about the issue:
The Los Angeles Times
Whether the decisions will stand for long remains in doubt, however. Opponents of gay ordinations and same-sex unions are proposing to add explicit prohibitions to the church’s constitution, known as the Book of Order, when the 2.6-million-member church holds its annual General Conference next month in Long Beach.
More Light Presbyterians
We’re very pleased with the decision. But nothing is ever definitive in the Presbyterian Church. The General Assembly is going to be dealing with the holy union issue in Long Beach, and we are prepared for that.
Scott Anderson, co-moderator
Pope John Paul II
Attempts to define the family as something other than a solemnized lifelong union of man and woman which looks to the birth and nurture of children are bound to prove destructive.
The Washington Times
The top court of the Presbyterian Church (USA) . . . upheld homosexual candidates for ordination and same-sex “holy unions,” opening the way for a stormy policy battle at the denomination’s General Assembly next month.
The Associated Press
The Presbyterian Church’s highest court ruled . . . that local congregations have the right to conduct religious ceremonies celebrating gay unions that stop short of marriage.
South China Morning Post
Michael Leshner failed to get the marriage licence he wanted, but he may have pushed Canada a step closer toward acceptance of same-sex marriages. Mr. Leshner, 52, was turned away from Toronto’s City Hall when he applied for permission to marry his long-time common-law partner, 42-year-old Michael Stark. The rejection has triggered a chain of events that could result in the country becoming the first to sanction homosexual marriages.
The Presbyterian Outlook
The General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission decisions . . . on Wednesday were in line with what most observers felt would happen. Since Hudson River Presbytery’s allowance of same-sex “holy union” services for homosexual couples was literally based on a 1991 Assembly action, there was little chance that the commission could rule against the presbytery. Besides, there are several overtures coming to the 212th General Assembly which will attempt to stop the practice of blessing same-sex unions. This issue will be decided by Assembly vote and – if an amendment is approved – the vote of the presbyteries.
Religion News Service
In a major symbolic victory for pro-gay Christian groups, the highest court of the Presbyterian Church (USA) ruled Wednesday that individual churches and presbyteries have the right to conduct same-sex union ceremonies for gay couples, as long as the church does not equate such ceremonies with Christian marriage in either a spiritual or a legal sense.