http://www.mcall.com/features/religion/all-
faithhershmanmay21,0,7402602.story?coll=all-featuresreligion-hed


From The Morning Call


How the Emmaus experience applies

May 21, 2005

Luke's gospel (24:13-35) reports that on the day Jesus rose from the
dead, two of his followers were walking to Emmaus, a village seven
miles from Jerusalem.

They spoke of their sadness and as they discussed the past week in
which Jesus was betrayed, arrested, tried and executed. They also
expressed confusion over the accounts of some women followers and
that Jesus' tomb was empty, and that angels said Jesus was alive.
They even claimed to have seen Jesus.

As they walked, Jesus approached and joined their conversation. But
they didn't recognize him. After listening for a while, this
supposed stranger chided them for their unbelief: ''How foolish you
are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have
spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then
enter his glory?''

Jesus then explained how the scriptures explained the meaning of the
Messiah and these very events. When they arrived in Emmaus, they
pleaded with Jesus to stay with them because it was evening. He
agreed. But it was only when Jesus was at the dinner table, took
bread, gave thanks, broke it and offered it to them that ''their
eyes were opened'' and they recognized Jesus. In a moment, he
disappeared from their sight, but they said, ''Were not our hearts
burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the
Scriptures to us?'' They immediately rushed back to Jerusalem where
they found the others assembled together. ''It is true! The Lord has
risen!'' they explained as they recounted the way to Emmaus, and how
they recognized Jesus in the breaking of the bread.

When I visited the Holy Land, I discovered that at least four
separate towns claim to be ''Emmaus.'' Perhaps this is fitting.
Several points can be made about how the Emmaus experience applies
to each of us as we make own way in life.

First, their confusion and unbelief seems incredible. They certainly
knew Jesus, heard his teaching, preaching, and predictions about
death and resurrection. They knew about the empty tomb.

Yet even Jesus commented upon their foolishness. But then, our own
unbelief is also incredible. Human history has been shaped by God's
mighty acts. Millions of transformed lives have witnessed to the
positive value of religious faith in dealing with daily trials and
tribulations, as well providing hope for eternal life. And yet so
many of us remain unconvinced!

Second, they didn't recognize Jesus until he was made known to them
in the breaking of the bread. For Christians the Word of God and
sacraments reveal God's promises. Just as few recognized Jesus'
incarnation his unknown presence on our journey through life also is
typically unrecognized. Christians believe that God is revealed
through the Word of Scripture, the sacraments of Baptism and Holy
Communion, faithful obedience and acts of love towards others.

Third, the resurrected Jesus immediately transforms their fear and
despair to faith, hope and joy. This powerful transformation drives
them all the way back to Jerusalem where others are also transformed
by the presence of Christ and the gift of spiritual peace.

As the public role of religion continues to be debated in our
society, let us remember the positive value of religious faith in
shaping our world.

Healthy religious convictions necessarily engender self respect and
positive growth, as well as charity toward others.

Trying to force religion on other people is akin to the members of a
symphony orchestra convincing people that music is beautiful by
beating them with their instruments.

Religion, like fine music, is best expressed by living it through
integrity, sharing the transforming beauty of faith by wholesome
values, peacefulness and the widespread expression of love.

The Rev. Christopher Hershman is pastor of St. James Evangelical
Lutheran Church, Allentown, and a licensed psychologist at the
Marriage and Family Institute, Wescosville.
Copyright © 2005, The Morning Call

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ELCA NEWS SERVICE



March 9, 2005



ELCA Bishops Send Message To Church On Sexuality Recommendations 05-038-JB



      DALLAS (ELCA) -- The Conference of Bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America (ELCA), acknowledging its members are "not of one mind" on
issues related to homosexuality, sent a message to the church at the
conclusion of its spring meeting here. The conference urged the church to
affirm two recommendations resulting from a three-year study on
homosexuality conducted by a task force of the church, but could offer no
definitive advice on the most controversial of the three recommendations.

      The ELCA Conference of Bishops is an advisory body of the church,
consisting of the 65 ELCA synod bishops, ELCA secretary and ELCA presiding
bishop.  It met here March 3-7.

      The report and recommendations, released Jan. 13, provides possible
answers to two key questions on homosexuality:  Should the church bless
same-gender relationships?  Should the church allow people in such
relationships to serve the church as professional lay and ordained
ministers?

      The task force recommended that the ELCA:

      + concentrate on finding ways to live together faithfully in the midst
of disagreements.  The Conference of Bishops called on the church to affirm
this recommendation. "We understand that this recommendation commits us to
continuing our journey together for the sake of God's mission," the bishops'
message said.

      + continue to respect the pastoral guidance of a 1993 statement of the
ELCA Conference of Bishops opposing the blessing of homosexual relationships
but remaining open to pastors wanting to provide pastoral care for gay and
lesbian Lutherans. The bishops asked the church to affirm the 1993 statement
"leaving it as it was intended -- a matter of advice and counsel," the
message said.

      + continue under current standards that expect unmarried ministers to
abstain from sexual relations -- defining marriage as being between a man
and a woman -- but respecting the consciences of those who find these
standards in conflict with the mission of the church, the ELCA may choose to
refrain from disciplining gay and lesbian ministers in committed
relationships and from disciplining those who call or approve partnered gay
or lesbian people for ministry.

      "We acknowledge that as a conference we are unable to offer a
definitive word of advice on recommendation three," the Conference of
Bishops said. "Some bishops are convinced there should be no change in the
practice and policy of our church. Other bishops favor changes both in
policy and in practice though there is no consensus as to how such changes
should take place."

      The bishops acknowledged their differences on homosexuality.  "We hold
each other in love and respect. We recognize that our differences are rooted
in deeply held convictions. We honor the integrity of these convictions of
conscience and faith 'with all humility and gentleness, with patience,
bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity
of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Ephesians 4:2-3),'"

the message said.

      "For the sake of the unity of this church and its mission, we are not
divided by these differences," the message said. "As evidence of this, we
point to the extraordinary engagement of this church in God's mission in the
world and our full participation in that work. We thank God for this."

      The Conference of Bishops' message said they "see throughout this
church that a commitment to the authority of Scripture is not solely the
concern of those who seek to maintain the tradition. Similarly compassion
for gay and lesbian persons and a commitment that they be treated justly are
not solely concerns of those advocating change."

      Between now and the churchwide assembly, the conference called on ELCA
members to unite in prayer, read Scripture and Luther's Large Catechism,
participate in weekly worship, study theology, practice forgiveness, invite
people to a faith community, and "serve and love in Christ's name."

      "We understand in all of this that we have responsibility for the
stewardship of the unity given to us by the Lord Jesus Christ. We also
understand that we exercise that stewardship with brothers and sisters of
the whole Church throughout the world," the message said.

      "We further understand that we have a responsibility for protection of
the most vulnerable. This includes not only the poor, the widow, the orphan,
and the stranger, but also all who feel estranged by virtue of their deeply
held convictions," the message concluded.

      The one-page message was intended to advise the boards of the ELCA
Division for Church in Society, ELCA Division for Ministry, and the ELCA
Church Council, as each considers what to do with the task force report and
recommendations on homosexuality.  Eventually, the report and its
recommendations, along with proposals on how to consider the issues, will
make their way to the 2005 ELCA Churchwide Assembly, Aug. 8-14, in Orlando,
Fla.



Long Hours to Craft Message

      The Conference of Bishops debated and discussed the task force
recommendations over several hours during their meeting here.  Those
sessions included a two-and-one-half hour closed, off-the-record session
March 6; an unplanned, informal two-hour writing session the same day
attended by more than 40 bishops; and more than two hours of debate and
discussion March 7 before the conference adopted the statement by consensus
and adjourned.

      The bishops took a series of "straw" votes, intended to determine the
possibilities, if any, on which they could agree regarding recommendation
three.  For example, by a vote of 36-22, the bishops present favored that
there be no votes taken at the churchwide assembly on sexuality issues. On
another possibility, they narrowly favored by a vote of 36-26 all three
recommendations provided there were a series of precise "exception"

procedures that would allow people who are gay and lesbian and in committed
relationships to serve as professional lay and ordained leaders.

On still another possibility, the bishops favored 29-26 possible legislative
language that would create a "provisional" clergy roster, which would limit
the types of service for which these leaders would be eligible.

      "The third recommendation ... is so problematic for us," said the Rev.

E. Roy Riley, bishop of the ELCA New Jersey Synod, Hamilton Square, and
chair of the Conference of Bishops, in an interview with the ELCA News
Service. Many conference members seemed willing to create "space" for people
who are gay and lesbian and in committed relationships to serve as
professional lay and ordained leaders, but "there's simply no consensus on
how that might be done," he said.

      "There are, of course, members of the conference who believe that we
would be better off not creating any space whatsoever and would be more
affirming of simply continuing the welcoming kind of stance that we have
been in for gay and lesbian persons in the church," Riley added.

      Calling the message "significant" for the conference, Riley said he
believes the bishops' struggle was similar to what the voting members will
experience at the churchwide assembly in Orlando.

      "It will just be a much larger gathering.  But I think there's a lot of
trust ... and confidence in the Spirit's work among the people of God as
they gather in assembly in Orlando," he said.

----

      The full text of the Conference of Bishops message is at
http://www.elca.org/sr/bishopsregardtostudy.html on the ELCA Web site.









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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

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http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=2a5ad089-4d2a-
4b1b-8061-48f0e6390253



Polygamy, the next debate

Government launches urgent study as same-sex unions open door to Charter
challenges claiming plural marriages are a religious right

Chris Cobb

Sound Off, The Ottawa Citizen

Thursday, January 20, 2005



CREDIT: Photo Montage: Robert Cross, The Ottawa Citizen Across all cultures:
Polygamy is practiced, clockwise from top left, under the jurisdiction of
the Palestinian Authority, in Senegal and Cameroon, and among some Mormons
in Utah. Outlawed in Canada, polygamy typically means a man having several
wives at the same time.



Just weeks before it introduces divisive same-sex marriage legislation, the
federal government has launched an urgent study into the legal and social
ramifications of polygamy.



Critics say the study underscores a deep concern in the Martin government
that legalized homosexual marriage may lead to constitutional challenges
from minority groups who claim polygamy as a religious right.



It also suggests that the government is suspicious that multi-marriage is
more commonplace in Canada than widely realized. Polygamy, outlawed in
Canada but accepted and practiced in many countries, typically means a man
having several wives at the same time.



"In order to best prepare for possible debate surrounding Canada's polygamy
policy, critical research is needed," says a Status of Women Canada
document. "It is vital that researchers explore the impacts of polygamy on
women and children and gender equality as well as the challenges that
polygamy presents to society."



Conservative party justice critic Vic Toews says there is a direct link
between the Status of Women concern and the same-sex marriage legislation
due to be introduced by the government in February.



"This government understands it has a problem on its hands," said Mr.

Toews, a former Manitoba constitutional lawyer. "What they are looking for
is evidence to demonstrate that polygamy is inconsistent with Charter and
Canadian values. If I was a lawyer prosecuting a polygamist that's the type
of evidence I would be looking for."



Sayd Mumtaz Ali, president of the Canadian Society of Muslims, said he
opposes same-sex marriage but said if it is legalized in Canada, polygamists
would also be within their rights to challenge for their choice of family
life to be legalized.



"This is a liberally minded country with regards to equal rights," said Mr.
Ali. "And literally millions live common law."



Multiple marriage is legal in most Muslim countries, he said, but a Muslim
man who takes more than one wife must prove to a court that he is capable of
treating them all equally.



He said he knows of some "but not too many" Muslims who live in Canada with
more than one wife but knows of no situation where the wives are unwilling,
or unhappy, participants in the arrangement.



But Mr. Ali said he has not detected any significant support among Muslims
for a constitutional challenge. "To my knowledge there is no plan to push
for this,' he said.



But when same-sex marriage becomes legal, the door will open to more Charter
challenges, said Conservative critic Mr. Toews. "Once you change the
definition of marriage from one man and one woman and you move to two
persons," he said, "what then is the distinction between two persons, or
three or more persons? If I was a lawyer defending polygamists, I'd say 'hey
this is a constitutional right, a freedom of religion.' Why can't freedom of
religion trump this new definition of marriage?"



Lawyer Peter Hogg, who argued the federal government's case for same-sex
marriage at the Supreme Court of Canada, said he doubts legalizing
homosexual marriage will lead to legal challenges from polygamists.



"We have to recognize that over time society changes and marriage changes to
mirror the attitude, mores and needs of a particular society," said Mr
Hogg(...)The fact that bigamy is a crime in Canada is also a huge obstacle
for a polygamist launching a Charter of Rights challenge, he said.



"I don't think you can say there are any inexorable steps here," added Mr
Hogg. "What has sparked the concern over same-sex marriage is a series of
Charter decisions holding that opposite-sex marriage discriminates on the
basis of sexual orientation and you can't make arguments of that sort with
respect to polygamy."(...)



The Status of Women-sponsored research will cost an initial $75,000. The
deadline for proposals is Valentine's Day.











  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com>

  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
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Woman accused of holding sex-and-drug parties for teenage boys

posted by: Dan Viens (Web Producer)

Created: 1/21/2005 11:14 AM MST - Updated: 1/21/2005 11:14 AM MST



http://www.9news.com/acm_news.aspx?OSGNAME=KUSA&IKOBJECTID=967b857f-0abe-421
a-016d-5ee4a1c62a13&TEMPLATEID=4525fe63-ac1f-02d8-002a-f131478a1f55



ARVADA, Colo. (AP) - A 40-year-old Arvada woman who police say wanted to be
seen as a, "cool mom", is suspected of supplying drugs and alcohol to high
school boys, and having sex with them.



Sylvia Johnson faces charges of sexual assault and contributing to the
delinquency of a minor.



Police say she had parties for the boys almost every week between October
2003 and October 2004.



She's accused of giving them marijuana, methamphetamine and alcohol.



Investigators said Johnson told them she wasn't popular in high school, but
recently felt like "one of the group."



Police began investigating her after one of the boys told his mother about
the alleged encounters.



A preliminary hearing in the case is set for next month.



(Copyright by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)









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  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1324942/posts



Homosexual Advocacy Group Reveals Vicious Anti-Christian Program



TORONTO, January 19, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In an editorial appearing on
the website of the homosexual activist group, "Equal Marriage," members of
the lobbyist organization, EGALE, (Equality for Gays and Lesbians
Everywhere) have revealed their intention to make illegal the public
practice of Christianity or teaching of Christian moral doctrine.



Bishop Fred Henry, in his recent pastoral letter on homosexuality, openly
recognized that the purpose of the "gay marriage" push is the destruction of
the traditional family and of any religious opposition. Bishop Henry wrote,
"The goal (of changing the definition of marriage) is to acquire a powerful
psychological weapon to change society's rejection of homosexual activity
and lifestyle into gradual, even if reluctant, acceptance."



The authors of the EGALE editorial, Kevin Bourassa and Joe Varnell, in an
enraged attack on Henry, admitted that the purpose behind the move to
approve Gay "marriage" is the suppression of traditional Christianity. They
wrote, "We predict that gay marriage will indeed result in the growth of
acceptance of homosexuality now underway, as Henry fears. But marriage
equality will also contribute to the abandonment of toxic religions,
liberating society from the prejudice and hatred that has polluted culture
for too long."



Bourassa and Varnell, apparently oblivious to the irony, indulge in a tirade
of abuse, calling Bishop Henry a "religious extremist," "bigot," and "bishop
of bigotry," and calling his preaching "toxic and prejudiced." They conclude
with what has become one of the most common anti-Catholic slurs. "It's good
to remember that bishops like him supported Hitler."



The group's assessment has been endorsed, albeit in more measured terms, in
an editorial in the Toronto Star, Canada's most widely circulated newspaper,
that said Henry had "disgrac(ed) his office and the Catholic church."



The Star editorial said, "This is a stand the Canadian Conference of
Catholic Bishops should promptly distance itself from. So should leading
individual Catholic prelates."



The Star editorialist, however, seems unaware that Bishop Henry has thus far
stood alone in his defense of Catholic teaching on human sexuality. While
the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops organization, has said that each
bishop is free to say what he wants in his own diocese, no public
endorsement or support has so far come to Henry from the heads of any of
Canada's remaining 71 dioceses and eparchies.



While a few Ontario bishops have published altered versions of a generic
pastoral letter encouraging their flock to ask MPs to uphold the traditional
definition of marriage, unlike Henry, the bishops have all so far
conspicuously avoided any mention of Catholic teaching on homosexual
activity, its sinfulness and its harm to both the persons engaged in it and
to the general society.



To send a note of support to Bishop Henry bishopfh@...



Read editorial appearing on Equal Marriage website:
http://www.samesexmarriage.ca/equality/toxic180105...











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  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
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TESTING THE FAITH

Christian group gets obscene, hateful messages E-mailer, caller vilify man
who lead Philly protest against homosexuality



By Ron Strom

(c) 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

January 18, 2995



The man who led 11 Christians in protesting a homosexual event in
Philadelphia and is one of five criminally charged for his actions is now
receiving hateful, vulgar messages via his website and voice-mail system.



Michael Marcavage, the head of Repent America, received an obscenity-laced
voice-mail message on Thursday in which the caller expresses his hope that
the Christian activist will serve time in prison and be raped there.



"Michael, I hope you enjoy your time in prison, you piece of s--t," the
caller said. "You are a worthless piece of s--t."



As WorldNetDaily reported, on Oct. 10, a group of 11 Christians was
"preaching God's Word" to a crowd of people attending the Philadelphia
"OutFest" event and displaying banners with biblical messages.



After a confrontation with a group called the Pink Angels, described by
protesters as "a militant mob of homosexuals," the Christians were arrested
and spent a night in jail.



Eight charges were filed: criminal conspiracy, possession of instruments of
crime, reckless endangerment of another person, ethnic intimidation, riot,
failure to disperse, disorderly conduct and obstructing highways.



None of the Pink Angels was cited or arrested.



After a preliminary hearing in December, Judge William Austin Meehan ordered
four of the Christians to stand trial on three felony and five misdemeanor
charges. If convicted, they could each get a maximum of 47 years in prison.
One female teenage protester faces charges in the juvenile justice system.



The caller to Marcavage's organization was hopeful the activist would spend
time behind bars.



"Go f--- yourself," the male caller said. "Enjoy your time in prison, and I
hope Bubba has a good time [anally raping you.]"



Another enemy of Marcavage, who claimed to be a member of the American Civil
Liberties Union, left a message on the Repent America website e-mail
interface. It said:



"As a member of the American Civil Liberties Union and a
Unitarian-Universalist, I am committed to your suffering the maximum penalty
the law will give you. And I will take particular delight knowing your
families and loved ones will suffer, too.



"You know my address and my phone if you cowardly bottom-feeders want to
come out to where I live and settle this. Bring your god with you. You will
need all the help you can get."



Marcavage and the other Christians, known as the "Philadelphia 5," face
ethnic intimidation charges stemming from Pennsylvania's hate-crimes law.



At last month's preliminary hearing, Assistant District Attorney Charles
Ehrlich characterized the protesters' reading Bible verses that condemn
homosexual acts as "hateful, disgusting, despicable words," and as "fighting
words."



END







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  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
PO Box 3303
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<http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=\Culture\archive\200501\CUL2005
0121b.html>
http://www.cnsnews.com//ViewCulture.asp?Page=\Culture\archive\200501\CUL2005
0121b.html




'Pro-Choice Catholic Politicians' to Be Sued for Heresy
By Susan Jones
CNSNews.com Morning Editor
January 21, 2005

(CNSNews.com) - A group of Roman Catholic Canon Law experts and theologians
plans to sue several more pro-choice Catholic politicians for heresy.

De Fide, which is Latin for "of the faith," said it will hold a press
conference on Monday to update the ecclesiastical lawsuit it filed last June
against Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.).

The group also said it will detail "new denunciations for Heresy, Sacrilege,
and Scandal" to be filed against Senators Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) Tom
Harkin (D-Iowa), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and former New York Governor Mario
Cuomo, a Democrat.

Documents pertaining to the heresy cases will be released at Monday's press
conference in Washington, and canonical forms "inviting Christians and
non-Christians alike to join in the class-action ecclesiastical lawsuit
against all of the above-named parties" will be available, De Fide said.

Marc Balestrieri, a canon lawyer and director of the Los Angeles-based De
Fide, said the heresy complaints stem from the Catholic politicians' support
for the civil right to choose abortion.

"Under Roman Catholic Church law, support of abortion rights constitutes the
"Right-to-Murder" Heresy condemned by Pope John Paul II in the Encyclical
Evangelium Vitae of 1995," Balestrieri said in a press release. "Automatic
excommunication is the penalty incurred for this offense," he added.

Balestrieri says an "expert theologian" contacted by the Vatican has
confirmed the doctrinal merits of the heresy cases.









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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

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2 women deny rape charges

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

By NANCY H. GONTER

ngonter@...



http://www.masslive.com/chicopeeholyoke/republican/index.ssf?/base/news-6/11
06124736321600.xml



NORTHAMPTON - Two women, one a Smith College student, pleaded innocent to
rape and assault charges yesterday in connection with a sexual encounter
that a prosecutor said started out consensual and turned into a rape
involving handcuffs and knives.



Northampton District Court Judge W. Michael Goggins set bail at $2,500 cash
or $25,000 surety for Rachel Ann Klobertanz, 22, and Augusta Claire Kendall,
22, at their arraignments yesterday morning. Kendall was released on bail
yesterday morning.



The two appeared in court shackled and handcuffed, wearing jeans and hooded
sweat shirts.



Assistant District Attorney Susan J. Loehn said the 20-year-old victim, who
is a Smith College student as is Kendall, met the two defendants in downtown
Northampton and went to their 104 South St. apartment.



The woman went there voluntarily, despite the fact she had obtained a
restraining order against Klobertanz in August, according to Loehn and
police reports. The incidents took place Friday night into Saturday morning,
police said.



The three had "several bottles of champagne" and then went to a bedroom
where the three engaged in consensual sex, according to Loehn and police
reports. During the encounter, the victim was placed in handcuffs, although
she did not remember how, police reports state. After Kendall slapped her
face, the victim told the two she wanted to stop, police said.



They refused, and Kendall cut her abdomen and other areas of her body with a
knife and raped her while Klobertanz held her legs, police said.



Kendall has no criminal record, while Klobertanz has a pending assault and
battery charge in Rhode Island, Loehn said.



In an interview, Loehn, who had been with the Northwestern district
attorney's office for more than 10 years, said while this case may be
unusual, it is not the first time a woman has been charged with raping
another woman here. It's unusual because of the level of violence that
occurred, Loehn said.



The district attorney's office plans to seek indictments against the two in
Hampshire Superior Court, Loehn said.



Their district court cases were continued to Feb. 18. Both are charged with
two counts of aggravated rape, three counts of assault and battery, and one
count each of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and aggravated
assault and battery. Klobertanz is also charged with violating a restraining
order.



The victim had obtained the restraining order against Klobertanz in August,
when she said the two had a fight about money, and Klobertanz got angry and
pushed her into an antique clock and a bed, according to court documents.



"Then she grabbed me by the neck and tried to strangle me," the woman wrote
in the affidavit she submitted when requesting the restraining order.



The incident took place in the victim's mother's house in North Kingston,
R.I., where the two were reportedly living. The two had dated since March
2004, the victim said in court documents.



Also yesterday, a roommate of Kendall and Klobertanz obtained a restraining
order barring them from entering the apartment they had shared with him. The
roommate, Gerard N. Tomasini, said that when the two were arrested at their
104 South St. apartment, police told him that the two had a knife
collection.



Tomasini said in an affidavit that he had a long history of conflict with
the two, including Klobertanz who had been living there without his consent
since mid-October.



Defense lawyer David Roundtree, hired to represent Kendall, said his client
has a 3.0 grade point average. Her mother, who works in alumni relations at
Yale University, was in the courtroom, he said.



"There are some significant issues with respect to consent," Roundtree said.




Lawyer Thomas H. Estes, appointed to represent Klobertanz, said both women
told police the sex was consensual. He noted they were still at their
apartment when arrested.







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The Marriage & Family Institute

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Local bishop calls move 'very wise'

by Michael Miller of the Journal Star (Peoria, IL)

A "wise" course has been plotted by a task force making recommendations on
how the Evangelical Lutheran Church in American should approach
homosexuality issues, Bishop Warren Freiheit said Thursday.

Freiheit is bishop of congregations in the Central/Southern Illinois Synod.
As of 2000, the 5 million-member denomination had about 10,000 members in 17
congregations in the Tri-County Area.

The "Report and Recommendations from the Task force for Evangelical Lutheran
Church in American Studies on Sexuality" was released to the public
Thursday.  Several churches in the Peoria area took part in the study by
offering group and individual responses to the task force's questions.

Freiheit called the task force's suggestions to continue the denomination's
current policies not allowing same-sex unions and noncelibate homosexual
ministers to be "a very wise move, but by the same token, I think it's very
wise that we continue to discuss, continue to dialogue."

The Rev. Phil Lund of Bethel Lutheran Church in Bartonville agreed that the
call to "try to continue in unity with one another even while we try to
continue to explore the issue" was encouraging.

"I think they have tried to honor the consciences of everyone in a way that
probably will leave nobody at either end of the spectrum completely
pleased," Lund said.

Another recommendation was that the denomination retain its standard
regarding sexual conduct for ministers -- celibacy for those not in
heterosexual marriage -- but allow denominational leaders to "choose to
refrain from disciplining those who in good conscience" hire ministers
openly living in noncelibate homosexual relationships.

Freiheit said, if adopted, the recommendation would allow "situations that
have been controversial to be handled in a pastoral manner and not a
legislative manner."

Any of the recommendations may be changed as they head through other
channels before reaching the floor of the ELCA churchwide assembly in
August.

The Rev. Steven Tibbetts of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church expressed
disappointment in the report's recommendations.

"I think it opens the door to those who are looking for ordination of gay
and lesbian people who are in homosexual relationships," he said.

If the recommendations are adopted as presented, the pastor said, it will
allow ELCA churches to openly break current rules against hiring noncelibate
homosexuals with no repercussions.  Churches that currently hire such people
as ministers are unable to register them, though the clergy members
typically continue serving.










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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
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The Marriage & Family Institute

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Reprinted from NewsMax.com



Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2005 12:35 a.m. EST

Rolling Stone Bans Bible Ad



Rolling Stone magazine rejected an ad from the nation's largest Bible
publisher, USA Today reports Tuesday.



Though the message doesn't mention God, it does tout publisher Zondervan's
new Bible translation aimed at "spiritually intrigued 18-to-34-year-olds."



"The magazine rejected Zondervan's Bible ad just weeks before its scheduled
run date, citing an unwritten policy against accepting ads containing
religious messages," the paper noted.



USA Today reported that Zondervan executives say the entertainment magazine
was key in its $1 million campaign to reach young adults who have rarely, if
ever, seen Bible ads before. Surveys show that 53 percent of this age group
read the Bible less than once a year or never, although they are huge buyers
of books on spiritual and religious themes.



Today's New International Version of the Bible (TNIV) is a modern English
translation from Zondervan, publisher of the world's best-selling English
translation, the 1978 New International Version. The TNIV features updated
language and scholarship.



The ad features a young male unsure about life. The ad copy says the Bible
is "real truth" in a world of "endless media noise and political spin."



USA Today said Rolling Stone was angry about the ad's slogan: "Timeless
Truth; Today's Language."



"And that assertion of 'truth' evidently triggered the rebuff from Rolling
Stone," the paper said.



Editor's note:





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Click Here for FREE offer



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success - Click Here Now





102-104







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The Marriage & Family Institute

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Reformed Leaders say ELCA Study on Sexuality Misleading

"Looks like a duck, waddles like a duck, quacks like a duck, must be a duck.
How stupid do they think we are?"



Posted: Friday, January 14 , 2005, 3:29 (GMT)



http://www.christiantoday.com/news/ame/302.htm



Reformed leaders within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
called the denomination's January 13 report on homosexuality "duplicitous"
and "disingenuous," and criticised it as nothing more than an "attempt to
avoid an outright schism" in a theologically split denomination.



"The taskforce report is an apparent attempt to avoid an outright schism
within the ELCA by calling for no official change in policy, but then caters
radicals by asking bishops to refuse to enforce these very same policies in
regard to the blessing of same sex unions and the ordination of clergy
openly involved in same sex behaviour," explained the Rev. Christopher
Hershman, President of the Evangelical Lutheran Confessing Fellowship



"Such maneuvers appear to be the last gasps of a dying church body. How can
any church body be united in mission if it can't be united in theology,
practice and biblical interpretation? How can an authentic expression of the
Christian church allow for open departures from basic Christian teaching?"
he added.



The report, entitled the ELCA Studies on Sexuality, essentially called on
the church members to maintain the denomination's policies opposing the
ordination of homosexuals and blessing of homosexual unions, but at the same
time encouraged ministers to tend to homosexual couples in "committed long
term relationship" and called on bishops to refrain from disciplining those
who violate those policies.



"In effect this means that the taskforce is actually recommending what is
known as "local option," meaning that any bishop or congregation can do
whatever they want on such issues, no matter how widely a practice may
conflict with Christian teaching. Local option is not acceptable to
traditional Christians because it creates chaos, confusion and division in
the church by subverting genuine Christian teachings," explained Rev.
Hershman.



"While the ELCA Sexuality Task Force may say it isn't suggesting change in
the ELCA standards for ordination, the recommendations in its report will
bring about de facto change because they suggest that the standards not be
enforced," said Pastor Jaynan Clark Egland, president of WordAlone, the
largest reform and renewal movement within the ELCA.



"Looks like a duck, waddles like a duck, quacks like a duck, must be a duck.
How stupid do they think we are?" said WordAlone director Pastor Mark
Chavez.



Chavez said he regretted the committee's decision to not answer the
fundamental question that should have been addressed: "Are homosexual sexual
practices sinful?"



Meanwhile, Bishop Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the ELCA, said he was
thankful for the work of the task force, but did not comment on his opinions
about the content itself.



"On behalf of a grateful Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), I
express my appreciation to the director, staff, and members ELCA Studies on
Sexuality Task Force for their commitment to an important assignment on
behalf of this church," said Hanson.



Hanson also reminded ELCA members that the "work is not done." The
recommendations in no way represent the official policy of the ELCA.



"It is vital for the members of this church to remember our work is not
done, nor have decisions been made. Rather the task force report and
recommendations give focus to our continuing conversations moving toward
decisions at the 2005 Churchwide Assembly in Orlando, Florida," he said.



To view the entire text of the Report and Recommendations of the ELCA
Studies on Sexuality Task Force, visit: www.elca.org/faithfuljourney



Pauline J. Chang

Ecumenical Press







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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

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FIRST-PERSON: The church that cannot make up its mind By R. Albert Mohler
Jr.

Jan 18, 2005



LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP)--The famous Dr. Seuss once told the story of a "young
man from Zoad, who came to two signs in the fork of the road." Forced to
choose between two directions, the indecisive Zoad simply decided to go both
directions at once. As Dr. Seuss explained, "that's how the Zoad who would
not take a chance went to no place at all with a split in his pants."



That little parable comes to mind with the mid-January release of the
long-awaited report on human sexuality conducted by an official task force
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).



The "Task Force for Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Studies on
Sexuality" was commissioned by the denomination in 2001 and charged to bring
a full report on controversial issues related to homosexuality so that the
church could consider the issue in 2005. In August, the report will be
considered by the ELCA's "Churchwide Assembly" which will convene in
Orlando, Fla.



Like most mainline Protestant denominations, the ELCA has been torn by
controversy over issues related to human sexuality. Forces pushing for the
blessing of same-gender relationships and the acceptance of openly
homosexual clergy have been pushing the issue through local and regional
levels of the church. At the same time, powerful forces have defended the
church's current policy and discipline which excludes practicing homosexuals
from service as ordained ministers and "rostered leaders." The church also
bans same-sex blessing ceremonies as rites recognized by the denomination.



The denomination had been eagerly awaiting the release of this report, but
the document itself is likely to please no one. Rather than settling the
issue one way or the other, this report is a classic demonstration of the
bureaucratic mind at work, couching its language in the voice of compromise
and toleration while offering no conclusive answer to the most basic
questions at stake.



In a letter attached to the report, the task force described itself as
"humbled by the assignment from the 2001 ELCA Churchwide Assembly to serve
as stewards of the controversial task of offering recommendations to this
church related to blessing committed same-sex relationships and ordaining,
consecrating, or commissioning people in such committed relationships."



At the outset, the task force stated its conviction that "gay, lesbian, and
heterosexual Christians all belong to Christ's church through baptism." The
document went on to "affirm the welcome of this church to gay and lesbian
people" as stated in previously adopted resolutions.



In one sense, this task force faced an impossible task. Mainline Protestant
denominations -- those historic churches now on the left of the American
religious spectrum -- face the very real prospect of schism over issues of
sexuality. In reality, the issues related to sex -- especially homosexuality
-- have become all-important catalysts for revealing the far deeper divide
in these churches over basic issues of doctrine, biblical authority,
confession and ecclesiology.



Acknowledging the level of conflict in the denomination, the task force
stated: "It has become clear to the task force that the disagreement over
these issues before the church is deep, pervasive, multi-faceted, and
multi-layered. This church is not of one mind." Accordingly, the task
force's first recommendation was that the church "concentrate on finding
ways to live together faithfully in the midst of our disagreements."



This language is similar to that found in most documents presented by
special committees charged with the assignment of bringing peace to divided
denominations. The "Windsor Report" recently produced by a body of the
Church of England took basically the same approach in the aftermath of the
Episcopal Church USA's consecration of a self-avowed practicing homosexual
as a bishop of the church.



The language notwithstanding, Lutherans are going to have a hard time
standing together in a church that is headed in two different directions. On
the question of blessing same-sex unions, the task force recognized that the
denomination "currently has no legislated policy." After reviewing the
various arguments presented by both sides of this controversy, "the task
force declines to recommend any change."



In essence, the task force sent the question of blessing same-sex
relationships back to the local church, where, "pastors and congregations
can and should be trusted by this church to exercise the wisdom of
discretion in their ministry to same-sex couples and their natural and
congregational families."



This amounts to a local option for ELCA churches and pastors. By suggesting
that the ELCA adopt no policy on the issue, the task force avoided taking
sides in the conflict.



At the same time, the task force did describe the blessing of same-sex
relationships as "quite distinct from and in no way equivalent to marriage."
In 1996, the church had adopted a statement defining marriage as "a lifelong
covenant of faithfulness between a man and a woman." On this point, the task
force recommended no change in the policy or in the church's 1993 statement
to the same effect adopted by its Conference of Bishops.



Under this section of the report, the task force got to the most important
question at stake -- but offered no answer. "Many people have asked for a
simple answer to the question: Does the Bible say that sexual activity
between two people of the same sex is always a sin? This question is near
the heart of the division of opinion in our church because Christians who
are faithful to God's Word give different answers. Among other responses
that could be mentioned, some say the teaching of the Bible is clear and
condemns such activities as sinful, while some say that the verses in the
Bible usually cited do not apply to a love relationship between two
consenting adults in a committed relationship. In this matter the ELCA needs
to continue in prayerful study of Scripture with one another."



The equivocation in this statement is the inevitable result of a perspective
that puts those who accept the Bible's clear teaching as authoritative on
the same par with those who openly revise the text and suggest that the
Bible actually says nothing about homosexuality between consenting adults in
committed relationships.



But if that statement represented a quantum effort at equivocation, the task
force's third recommendation raises such efforts to the level of art.



After acknowledging that Christians, "in good conscience," hold different
interpretations of Scripture with regard to homosexuality, the task force
said it had considered several different ways of dealing with a divided
church. Some argued that the current ban on homosexual clergy should simply
be affirmed, while others wanted to remove any reference to homosexuality
from the church's policies and expectations. Still others recommended that
the ELCA should "create a space" for different churches in different regions
to adopt whatever policy they may choose, "without fear of discipline or
rejection."



In the end, the task force took that third option, and devised a policy that
is no policy at all. The report recommends that the ELCA should "continue
under the standards regarding sexual conduct for rostered leaders" as
previously set forth in its governing documents, but that, "as a pastoral
response to the deep divisions among us, this church may choose to refrain
from disciplining those who in good conscience, and for the sake of
outreach, ministry, and the commitment to continuing dialogue, call or
approve partnered gay or lesbian candidates whom they believe to be
otherwise in compliance with [the church's expectations] and to refrain from
disciplining those rostered people so approved and called."



Doubtless, some other churches and denominations have tacitly adopted such a
stance concerning their laws and governing principles. Nevertheless, this
recommendation represents a virtually unprecedented effort to lead a
denomination explicitly to admit that it will maintain its policy while
looking the other way when the policy is directly and intentionally
violated.



Is this a policy of integrity? Where is the integrity in proposing that the
church maintain its policy while allowing the policy to be violated,
disregarded and subverted?



This proposed "solution," if adopted, is certain to produce nothing but
frustration and a deepening spirit of compromise in the church.



A spokesperson for the Lutheran Alliance -- a group pushing for the full
acceptance of homosexual ministers and same-sex relationships -- went to the
heart of the matter. "Essentially, the Task Force is recommending a new
policy that allows for the violation of the pre-existing policy.... The
Lutheran Alliance agrees that we do have to find ways to live together
faithfully in the Church. However, the arbitrary enforcement of the current
policy as allowed by the Task Force recommendations does not lead to
personal or institutional integrity. A new policy of selectively ignoring an
old policy is not a good policy."



The only unity this report is likely to produce is a common acceptance from
both sides that "selectively ignoring" the established policy lacks
integrity.



As the task force presented the rationale for its recommendations, it
returned to the theme of biblical authority. "Though there are differences
among task force members regarding the interpretation of the Bible for the
present circumstances, all accept the Bible as the inspired Word of God and
the authoritative source and norm of its proclamation, faith, and life."



That statement may look good in a report, but it simply cannot stand as a
logical or truthful description of the church's reality. Those advocating
for the acceptance of homosexual ministers and the blessing of same-sex
relationships must be fully aware that every single reference to
homosexuality in the Bible condemns homosexual practices in every form. The
challenge of presenting that biblical truth with genuine Christian
compassion has never been easy, but a claim that all parties in this debate
"accept the Bible as the inspired Word of God and the authoritative source
and norm of its proclamation, faith, and life" is both dishonest and
unhelpful.



Martin Luther's most glorious moment must certainly have come as he stood
with resolution at the Diet of Worms and declared before the emperor and
assorted princes -- both ecclesiastical and secular -- "Here I stand, I can
do none other--God help me."



Regrettably, this ELCA task force took as its model not Martin Luther at the
Diet of Worms but Dr. Seuss's Zoad at the fork in the road. Like the
proverbial Zoad, this report will go no place at all -- with a split in its
pants.







R. Albert Mohler Jr. is president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
in Louisville, Ky. For more articles and resources by Dr. Mohler, and for
information on "The Albert Mohler Program," a daily national radio program
broadcast on the Salem Radio Network, go to www.albertmohler.com.







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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

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Other views: ELCA's church loss is more a hemorrhage than a trickle
By Kay Syvrud, The Forum
Published Monday, January 17, 2005

The report in The Forum of Jan. 1 about the rural Kindred, N.D., church that
has chosen to leave the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is not "just
a kind of a regular process" as Roy Hammerling said. "More than a few"
(churches) have already left the ELCA since its inception in 1987.

In fact, the total number of churches that have already left the ELCA is
134, according to a December article in a national Lutheran outreach
publication, "The Vine and The Branches" published quarterly by Dr. David
Barnhart, who left the newly-formed ELCA as a pastor in 1987. The 134
churches represent 28 states from all over the nation.

I also disagree with the statement by Bishop Rick Foss that "it is not the
vanguard of something." The "vanguard" has been on the move for a number of
years already. In a report to the church body, ELCA secretary Lowell Almen
reported the loss of 53,081 baptized members as the ELCA membership
continues to drop each year. Almen said in his report "Backdoor losses
muffle front door gains. Too many members slip out the back door and
disappear from ELCA congregations each year."

I submit that these losses are not due to the "sexuality studies" or the
affiliation with the Episcopal Church or any other minor factor; rather, the
ELCA in its merger in 1987, dropped the historic Lutheran confession of the
"inerrancy and infallibility of scripture." When you do not believe that
God's word is inerrant or infallible but choose a "smorgasbord" approach to
the Bible, picking what you like and discarding what you don't like, the
result is spiritual deadness in your seminary, your hierarchy and
eventually, in your members.

One of the people from the West Prairie church in Kindred was quoted as
saying: ". the ELCA is getting more concerned about social issues than about
a person's salvation." This is a natural progression from not believing
That what the Bible says is true.

The church officials quoted want to say that membership losses and churches
leaving the ELCA is something like an insignificant trickle. To the
contrary, Almen's report shows more of a hemorrhage. The number of churches
leaving (134) is no small statistic nor is the number of baptized members
(53,081) who have already left.

West Prairie Lutheran Church is, in fact, a part of a moving vanguard of
unhappy Lutherans, many of whom have already found or formed new fellowships
all over the United States.

Syvrud lives in Hawley, Minn.


Leaving the ELCA: Rural Kindred church changes affiliation to focus on the
Bible
By Sherri Richards,The Forum
Published Saturday, January 01, 2005

West Prairie Lutheran Church was at a crossroads, says David Strand, a
lifelong member.

Attendance was dropping at the rural Kindred, N.D., church, averaging 30
people. Finances were dour.
And members were troubled by the direction of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America. For example, it is considering ordaining non-celibate gay
clergy.

"My own thing is that the ELCA is getting more concerned about social issues
and not as concerned about a person's salvation," Strand says.

"We decided we'd like to get more back to our conservative roots and
preaching style. We wanted to get more preaching just from the Gospel."

On Oct. 10, the parish voted to leave the ELCA and the church's three-point
parish. It shared a pastor with Leonard (N.D.) Lutheran Church and Helendale
Lutheran Church in Leonard.

As of today, West Prairie is affiliated with the Association of Free
Lutheran Congregations, a fellowship of more than 250 independent
congregations based in Minneapolis. It is the fourth largest Lutheran Church
body in the United States, according to its Web site.

West Prairie is the second church in the ELCA's Eastern North Dakota Synod
to leave the denomination in recent years.

Atonement Lutheran, 4601 S. University Drive, Fargo, voted to leave the ELCA
in early 2004. In that case, the pastor, the Rev. Dale Wolf, encouraged the
change.

West Prairie's pastor, the Rev. David Thoreson, will remain with the ELCA as
pastor for Leonard and Helendale.

But, he says, the two churches don't have the financial means to support a
full-time pastor. They will likely have to find a part-time or retired
pastor, or partner with another nearby congregation.

"Their decision has impacted the other two congregations and has impacted
me, but that's OK, I guess. That's their right to do that," Thoreson says.

The ELCA's sexuality study has spurred some churches to secede recently. For
the last four years, the church has been studying whether to ordain
non-celibate gay clergy and bless same-sex unions.

However, the number leaving is relatively few compared with the past, says
Roy Hammerling, a church historian and professor at Concordia College.

Several churches broke away when the ELCA was formed by the merger of the
American Lutheran Church, the Lutheran Church in America and the Association
of Evangelical Lutheran Churches.

More left when the ELCA came into full communion with the Episcopal Church
in 2001. The denominations share pastors and ministries.

"This is just kind of a regular process," among Protestant churches,
Hammerling says. "I'd say it's probably a real natural part of the process
with congregations deciding who they are."

In 2001, six churches withdrew from the ELCA nationally. In 2002, 17
withdrew and 8 left in 2003, says John Brooks of the ELCA News Service.

According to the 2005 Yearbook, there are 10,657 congregations in the ELCA.

Hammerling says if the completed sexuality study endorses the acceptance of
homosexuality, the number of churches leaving could spike.

The study's draft will be released Jan. 13.

Bishop Rick Foss of the Eastern North Dakota Synod says West Prairie "is not
the vanguard of something."

"I told them I wish they wouldn't do it," Foss says.

But if the members will be more comfortable in another part of the Christian
church, that's a good thing, he says.

"I hope for their sake it goes well," Foss says.

Strand says he hopes more people will be attracted to the church's new
affiliation and Bible-based focus.

West Prairie will have an interim preacher to start, and then will start
looking for a permanent pastor. Services will be held at 10 a.m. Sundays.

Strand says the change hasn't been easy for any of the three churches.

"We don't want to cause them grief," Strand says of the Leonard churches.
"On the other hand we feel very strongly this is the way we need to go.

"It's been a big step of faith to change."









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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
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The Marriage & Family Institute

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Gays win in Lutheran church policy debate



Chicago, IL, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- A task force of the largest U.S. Lutheran
denomination wants it to stop enforcing the church's official ban on
ordaining homosexuals.



The 14-member panel of the 4.9-million member Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America urged the denomination not to censure churches that violate church
policy by ordaining homosexuals, the Washington Times reported Friday.



By some counts, there are at least 14 openly homosexual seminarians or
clergy working in ELCA churches.



The panel also urged congregations that do ordain homosexuals to avoid doing
so "with the presumption of being prophetic."



Its recommendations will be voted on in August when ELCA leaders gather in
Orlando, Fla.



The action resembles that of once-growing Protestant denominations to
embrace homosexuality.



The Episcopal Church, for example, consecrated a practicing homosexual as
bishop and allows same-sex ceremonies, and the Presbyterian Church USA is
deferring a final decision on such issues until 2006. Those two churches
have lost more than 1.5 million members combined in recent decades.



The ELCA has lost 300,000 members since 1999.



Copyright 2005 United Press International













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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

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http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/01/14/lutheran_leaders_look_
to_ease_stance_on_gay_pastors?mode=PF



Lutheran leaders look to ease stance on gay pastors



By Michael Paulson, Globe Staff  |  January 14, 2005



CHICAGO -- Lutheran parishes in areas with supportive bishops could hire gay
and lesbian pastors without fear of being kicked out of their denomination
under a proposal put forward by leaders of the largest Lutheran denomination
in the nation yesterday.



The proposal, in the 5-million member Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America, marks the first major effort by a mainline Protestant denomination
to address the increasingly vexing issue of whether religions should change
their posture toward gay relationships since Massachusetts legalized
same-sex marriage and the Episcopal Church USA faced a schism over the
ordination of an openly gay bishop in New Hampshire.



The Lutheran proposal, which is being spearheaded by Bishop Margaret G.
Payne of Massachusetts, would maintain an official requirement that gays and
lesbians abstain from homosexual relationships in order to qualify as
ministers. But it would allow local church leaders to "refrain from
disciplining" congregations that disregard that requirement and hire
"partnered" gay or lesbian pastors. In recent years, some bishops have
censured or even ejected from the denomination congregations that have hired
non-celibate gay and lesbian pastors, and some have demanded the resignation
of pastors who declared themselves to be gay.



Payne's task force, which began meeting in 2002 and considered 28,000
comments from Lutheran individuals and parishes, insisted it was not
recommending changes to the church's policies, but just suggesting some
discretion in the enforcement of those policies. The task force also decided
not to recommend the approval of a blessing for same-sex couples, instead
urging Lutherans to respect a 1993 statement by Lutheran bishops declaring
that "there is basis neither in Scripture nor tradition for . . . the
blessing of a homosexual relationship."



The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, formed in 1988 through the
merger of three North American Lutheran church bodies, has, like other
religious denominations, for years confronted deep divisions over
homosexuality. But Payne's panel said the denomination should "concentrate
on finding ways to live together faithfully in the midst of our
disagreements," and that if it could do so, "this issue does not have to be
church dividing."



The proposals, unveiled yesterday at a news conference at the denomination's
headquarters in Chicago, will be debated over the next several months and
voted on at a church assembly in August in Orlando, Fla. Several alternative
proposals regarding same-sex blessings and the service as ministers of gays
and lesbians are also likely to come before the assembly, which will be made
up of both clergy and laypeople.



Gay rights advocates reacted angrily to the recommendation, calling it
preservation of a status quo that oppresses gay and lesbian Lutherans. They
said more than 100 gay and lesbian pastors already quietly lead churches
with the tacit knowledge of their local bishops, but a handful of
congregations have faced punishment for hiring such pastors, leading many to
remain secret about their sexuality.



"We are dismayed and deeply saddened by this institutionalized
discrimination," said Emily Eastwood, a spokeswoman for the Lutheran
Alliance for Full Participation, a coalition of six organizations that
support blessings of same-sex unions and the ordination of non-celibate gay
and lesbian clergy.



"This is an institution that selectively oppresses us," Eastwood said of her
denomination. "We will attempt to get [church] legislation passed to force a
policy change."



But supporters of the status quo were also furious, claiming that the Payne
task force was recommending tacit approval of non-celibate gay clergy
despite church teachings about the heterosexual nature of marriage.



"They say they're not proposing any changes, but in fact, if this were
adopted, we would have, in writing, that it's OK to disregard the standards
-- there would be permission to do whatever you want and anywhere you want,"
said the Rev. Mark C. Chavez, director of the WordAlone Network, a
conservative organization of Lutherans. "Contrary to what the task force
says, there is a consensus in our denomination, and it's not in favor of
change. The more the church-wide leadership supports this kind of change,
the more they cut themselves off from most of our members."



But an expert on the Lutheran denomination said the opposition from the
interest groups is to be expected on such a polarizing issue as sexuality,
and predicted that the task force proposal will be adopted.



"Both ends of the spectrum are going to be dissatisfied, but when you're in
the midst of a heavy-duty conflict, that's probably a place you can stand,"
said the Rev. Michael L. Cooper-White, president of the Lutheran Theological
Seminary at Gettysburg. "My read is that the task force on sexuality has
carved out a stance that can be fairly broadly embraced in our church, and
my prediction is they likely will be passed and will move us to a place of
being able to live with greater diversity in the church than we have.



Cooper-White said the Lutheran denomination in the past has declined to
enforce other policies. For example, he said, the denomination did not
punish congregations that violated church rules by refusing to pay their
financial obligations to the denomination because of disagreements over
civil rights, the Vietnam War, and other issues.



In an interview after the news conference, Payne said her panel did not call
for change to church rules because "so much of the church said, 'we do not
want to do that.' "



"People have been taught since their childhood that homosexual relations are
prohibited," Payne said. "Many people do not believe these should be
blessed."



But Payne said Lutherans on the east and west coasts tend to be more
supportive of gay rights in the church than Lutherans in the Midwest. Payne,
who is the top official of the New England synod of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America, said the issue is particularly challenging in a region
where same-sex marriage is legal in Massachusetts and civil unions are legal
in Vermont.



Michael Paulson can be reached at mpaulson@....









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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
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Allentown, PA 18106


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Greetings,

Just a reminder . . . .

If you want to pass the word along to others about how they can join
the Kairos_News mailing list, just have them send a message to:

Kairos_News-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

If you want to unsubscribe from Kairos_News, send a message to:

Kairos_News@yahoogroups.com

If you need to change an address, then send a message from your new
address to the "subscribe" address, and a message to the unsubscribe address
from your old address.

Thank you.

The Rev. Dr. Christopher Hershman
Editor, Kairos-News

"With CCM we were asked to practice something we did not believe in
(Historic Episcopate). With the (Sexuality) Task Force recommendations, we
are being asked to believe in something we do not practice (Visions &
Expectations).









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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
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HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com



Jan. 13, 2005, 7:24PM



Lutheran Church fears division

Neither side is happy with stance on gay clergy and same-sex unions

By MELANIE COFFEE

Associated Press



CHICAGO - Trying to walk a line that will preserve unity, a panel
recommended Thursday that the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
officially maintain its positions against same-sex blessing ceremonies and
gay and lesbian ministers in relationships but tolerate dissenters.



Both conservatives and gay and lesbian groups were disappointed.
Conservatives say the recommendations - to be considered by church leaders
at their August meeting - condone defiance of church doctrine; gay
supporters say they reinforce discrimination.



Many fear the issue will divide the church, one of the nation's largest
Protestant bodies with 5 million members.



Evangelical Lutheran Church policy bans gay and lesbian clergy who are
involved with partners, but allows those who are celibate. The bishops'
conference opposes same-sex blessings, but its 1993 statement on the matter
has been regarded as guidance rather than official policy.



WHAT THE PANEL RECOMMENDED

The 14-member panel of clergy, seminary professors and lay people suggested
the church have:

* A policy with leeway:

The church keep its policy against gay and lesbian clergy with partners, but
allow leeway in choosing whether to discipline such ministers and those who
approve their employment.

* Discretion: The church "continue to respect" the bishops' statement
against same-sex ceremonies, but let bishops allow pastors and congregations
to use their discretion in ministering to same-sex couples.

* Cohesiveness: Church members find "ways to live together faithfully in the
midst of our disagreements" because, "the God-given mission and communion we
share is at least as important as the issues" about which Lutherans are
"decisively at odds."

"Our hope is that the disagreements within the church, which are profound
and should not be glossed over, will not divide us," said the Rev. James
Childs Jr., an ethics professor at Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus,
Ohio, who oversaw a study on Lutherans' sexuality and worked with the panel.



Divided church

But some conservatives say the Lutheran church is already divided.



"You can't have people running in completely opposite directions on
something that's as serious as the authority of Scripture and pretend that
we have unity," said the Rev. Mark Chavez, director of the Word-Alone
Network. "God's word is very clear on this matter."



Emily Eastwood, spokeswoman for the Lutheran Alliance for Full
Participation, said the recommendations also could drive some gays and
lesbians from the pews.



"It sends a pretty loud message to gays and lesbians that this church, at
this time, is going to legitimize selective discrimination while claiming to
welcome them," she said.



But she and her colleagues plan to stay.



HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: National

This article is: http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/2991620







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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

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ELCA task force issues report on homosexuality



By Todd Krysiak, Staff Writer

Friday, January 14, 2005 11:25 AM CST









A task force, commissioned by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in
its quest to define how it views homosexuality within its leadership,
released a report Thursday suggesting no policy changes, although minor
recommendations were made in the 36-page report.



The task force, made up of Lutherans from all across the United States,
included social workers, psychologists, seminary school teachers, farmers,
pastors and religious members from other fields.



The recommendations will be discussed by the National Conference of Bishops
in Orlando in April, and by the various synods before finally coming before
the National Assembly in August, where a ruling could be made.



Church leaders were concerned the issue could be divisive enough to split
the church, a reality the task force was commissioned to resolve before it
became too serious to diffuse, but a perceived lack of direction has some
church leaders concerned.





"I'm concerned because it gives us no practical national standard," said the
Rev. Paul Knudson of Watertown's Lutheran Church of Our Redeemer.



Knudson has been a pastor with the ELCA for 35 years, but said he disagrees
with the recommendations made by the task force. Knudson refers to a section
of the report in which the task force suggests that because of divisions
within the church, the church should be able to choose to refrain from
disciplining members who call or approve of partnered gay or lesbian
candidates as rostered leaders.



The task force suggested such decisions shouldn't be broadly set at the
national level and on an unconditional basis.



Knudson disagrees with the ambiguity of the recommendation.



"I do not believe it to be wise or scripturally justified to do what's being
asked of us," he said.



Knudson said he hopes the recommendations made in the report will not become
policy.



"On many fronts I have been committed to social justice and remain
open-minded on many issues, but I've essentially supported the more
traditional position the church has held," he said. "On the surface, it
appears the report is an attempt to keep us together, but really the task
force is advocating a slow, but steady, move toward a willingness to accept
same-sex ordained clergy to be in committed relationships."















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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

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ELCA TASK FORCE RELEASES REPORT ON SEXUALITY



For Immediate Release                                           January

13, 2004

Contact: Lori Kershner (614) 464-3532 or (614) 352-4030





COLUMBUS:  Today the report and recommendations of the task force of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's (ELCA) Studies on Sexuality were
released to the public.



The Southern Ohio Synod is one of 65 synods in the ELCA. There are over
100,000 baptized members in 241 congregations in the synod.  Bishop Callon
Holloway, Jr. is bishop of the Southern Ohio Synod.



This August the ELCA will consider whether or not the church should bless
same-gender relationships and whether or not it should allow people in such
relationships to serve the church as professional lay and ordained
ministers.



These recommendations and report will go to two departments of the church in
March and the Church Council (the national governing body) in August. At any
point along the way the recommendation may be changed, amended or even
dropped. The Church Council will forward the entire original report as
information only to the Churchwide Assembly in August but may offer
recommendations of its own that may or may not differ.



The report of the task force makes three recommendations:

   The first recommendation calls for the ELCA to "concentrate on finding
ways to live together faithfully in the midst of our disagreements." The
second declines to recommend any change with the respect to the manner of
blessing same-sex couples who have entered into long-term monogamous
covenants of love and care. The ELCA currently has no legislated policy.

The task force recommended that the ELCA continue to respect the pastoral
guidance of the 1993 statement of the Conference of Bishops (attached). The
third recommendation states that the ELCA continue under the current
standards regarding sexual conduct for rostered leaders but that the church
may choose to refrain from disciplining those who in good conscience call or
approve partnered gay or lesbian candidates whom they believe to otherwise
be in compliance.

Holloway stands by the 1993 ELCA's Conference of Bishops statement:

We, as the Conference of Bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America, recognize that there is basis neither in Scripture nor tradition
for the establishment of an official ceremony by this church for the
blessing of a homosexual relationship. We, therefore, do not approve such a
ceremony as an official action of this church's ministry.

Nevertheless, we express trust in and will continue dialogue with those
pastors and congregations who are in ministry with gay and lesbian persons,
and affirm their desire to explore the best ways to provide pastoral care
for all to whom they minister



Congregations across the synod have been participating in the "Journey
Together Faithfully" studies offered by the ELCA.





"It is important to remember that this is simply a report of the task force
and not a decision of the church," Holloway said. "The call for unity in
faith and prayer-based dialog is key to our Lutheran character and ethos,"
he said. Holloway continues, "I affirm the task force for calling on the
Gospel, Holy Spirit and our heritage to guide our life and work."



Holloway said that as a bishop, he is bound to uphold the faith and all
church policies and will continue to do so.



Holloway believes that to have a policy that would allow for a divergent
practice could create distrust and confusion. He will urge the church, ELCA
divisions, the Church Council, and the August Churchwide Assembly to
maintain coherent and complementary policies and practices. In essence, he
will urge the ELCA to keep its current policy as affirmed by the task force
and to bring the recommended practice into compliance.



"Caring for all people, regardless of their place in life, is always a very
high priority and responsibility of us all, he said. "That will guide my
exercise of responsibility and how I will seek to amend this particular
recommendation."



A system for response has been established in the synod so that
congregations have a means for responding to the report. This information
will be provided to the voting members representing the synod at the
Churchwide Assembly in August.















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The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

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ELCA Secretary Lowell Almen has prepared the following "Steps in the
'legislative' process" document to help understand and interpret what
happens next in relation to the ELCA Sexuality Studies Report and
Recommendations.  It is shared with his permission and has already been
shared with the Conference of Bishops.  You may share it also.



----------



Steps in the "legislative" process



This outline of the legislative process for the next several months related
to the "Report and Recommendations of the Task Force for Studies on
Sexuality" may be helpful



1.  The "Report and Recommendations of the Task Force for Studies on
Sexuality" is an historical document, meaning that it goes to the Churchwide
Assembly as information.  But it is not by itself on the agenda of the
Churchwide Assembly for action.  It goes to voting members as a summary of
what was done by the task force in response to the directive of the 2001
Churchwide Assembly.  Technically, the report goes to the boards of the
Division for Ministry and the Division for Church in Society (see below).



2.  The first place the report and recommendations go in the formal
"legislative process" is to the joint meeting of the board of the Division
for Ministry and the board of the Division for Church in Society in March.
The task force was created by those two units and therefore the task force
reports to those two unit boards.  The boards may submit their advice and
recommendations to the Church Council for the council's consideration.
[Keep in mind that the report is a report of the task force, not of a report
of a collection of individuals.  This is the case, even though differing
perspectives are reflected in the group's report.  The task force, charged
with a particular responsibility, now reports to the entities that
constituted the task force --namely, the unit boards.]



3.  The Conference of Bishops, as an advisory body within the life of this
church, will have opportunity to discuss further the report and
recommendations at the March 3-7, 2005, meeting in Dallas.  The boards of
the Division for Ministry and Division for Church in Society meet the
weekend following the meeting of the Conference of Bishops.



4.  The Church Council meets April 8-11, 2005.  What goes on the agenda as
recommended action for the Churchwide Assembly is what the Church Council
determines (bylaw 14.21.03.).  [Think "Recommendations" section of the
Pre-Assembly Report.  That section contains the boldface type submitted by
the Church Council for debate with the recommendation for adoption.  The
recommended actions, of course, may be amended by the assembly.]



5.  Synod Councils may pass resolutions for submission to the Church Council
on the subject of the report.



6.  If a Synod Council or Executive Committee wishes to address the boards
of the Division for Ministry and the Division for Church in Society, such a
resolution would need to be submitted to the Executive Committee of the
Church Council for referral to those two units (bylaw 14.41.11.).



7.  Synod Assemblies may address the Churchwide Assembly on this subject in
the form of memorials.



This is a brief summary.  I hope that you find it helpful.



Pr. Lowell G. Almen, secretary

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America



P.S.:  Keep in mind that the recommendations from the task force were not
written in legislative language.  The responsibility for "legislative"
language now rests with the Church Council, with assistance from the boards
of the Division for Ministry and the Division for Church in Society and,
possibly, the advice of the Conference of Bishops.









  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com>

  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
PO Box 3303
Allentown, PA 18106


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tel:
fax:
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484-695-5638





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Court Rejects Challenge to Inaugural Prayer



Friday, January 14, 2005



  <http://www.foxnews.com/images/foxnews_story.gif>



WASHINGTON - A federal judge on Friday rejected a challenge brought by
atheist Michael Newdow (search
<http://search.foxnews.com/info.foxnws/redirs_all.htm?pgtarg=wbsdogpile
<http://search.foxnews.com/info.foxnws/redirs_all.htm?pgtarg=wbsdogpile&qcat
=web&qkw=Michael%20Newdow> &qcat=web&qkw=Michael%20Newdow> ) to stop the
invocation prayer at President Bush's second inauguration.



On Thursday, Newdow told U.S. District Judge John Bates that having a
minister invoke God in the Jan. 20 ceremony would violate the Constitution
by forcing him to accept unwanted religious beliefs.



But one day later, Bates ruled that Newdow wouldn't get far in his legal
challenge and noted the absence of a "clearly established violation of the
Establishment Clause."



Click here <http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/gwbush/newdowgwb11405opn.pdf>
to read the Memorandum Opinion in Newdow v. Bush (FindLaw pdf).



"Moreover," the judge said in the ruling, "the balance of harms here, and
particularly the public interest, does not weigh strongly in favor of the
injunctive relief Newdow requests, which would require the unprecedented
step of an injunction against the president."



The government had asked the U.S. District Court for the District of
Columbia (search
<http://search.foxnews.com/info.foxnws/redirs_all.htm?pgtarg=wbsdogpile
<http://search.foxnews.com/info.foxnws/redirs_all.htm?pgtarg=wbsdogpile&qcat
=web&qkw=U.S.%20District%20Court%20for%20the%20District%20of%20Columbia>
&qcat=web&qkw=U.S.%20District%20Court%20for%20the%20District%20of%20Columbia
> ) to dismiss the current lawsuit, saying the invocation had been widely
accepted for more than 200 years old.



The court on Friday said it doesn't have the power to order the president
not to speak at his own inauguration and the act of ordering the president
not to permit an invocation and benediction - which Newdow sought - would be
one and the same.



Newdow argued he would be harmed as someone attending the inauguration by
being forced to listen to sectarian and specifically, Christian, prayer. The
court said that harm is simply too small to warrant its involvement in the
matter. Also, the court said Newdow really doesn't have the legal standing
to make this request since he sued over inauguration prayers in 2001 and
lost that case in two federal courts.



After his first inaugural legal attempt, Newdow became famous in 2002 for
his unsuccessful attempt to remove the phrase "under God" from the Pledge of
Allegiance.



Two ministers delivered Christian invocations at Bush's inaugural ceremony
in 2001, and plans call for a minister to do the same before Bush takes the
oath of office again next week.



In court this week, Newdow argued that the prayers violate the
constitutional ban on the establishment of religion.



"I am going to be standing there having this imposed on me," Newdow told the
court by phone on Thursday. "They will be telling me I'm an outsider at that
particular moment."



Newdow also argued that taxpayer-financed inaugural ceremonies cannot be a
platform for "the coercive imposition of religious dogma," adding that the
president intended to "use the machinery of the state to advocate his
religious beliefs."



Bates questioned both sides vigorously at Thursday's two-hour hearing, but
said he doubted a court could order the president not to include a prayer
when he takes the oath of office.



"Is it really in the public interest for the federal courts to step in and
enjoin prayer at the president's inauguration?" Bates asked.



Bates also questioned whether the lawsuit should be thrown out because the
San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (search
<http://search.foxnews.com/info.foxnws/redirs_all.htm?pgtarg=wbsdogpile
<http://search.foxnews.com/info.foxnws/redirs_all.htm?pgtarg=wbsdogpile&qcat
=web&qkw=9th%20U.S.%20Circuit%20Court%20of%20Appeals>
&qcat=web&qkw=9th%20U.S.%20Circuit%20Court%20of%20Appeals> ) ruled last year
that Newdow did not suffer "a sufficiently concrete and specific injury"
when he opposed prayers from being recited at Bush's first inauguration.



Newdow said his case is different this time because he actually has a ticket
to attend the inauguration. He said being there live is different than four
years ago, when he planned to watch the ceremony on television.



Justice Department lawyer Edward White scoffed at that claim, saying the
issues in the two cases are the same and that Newdow still has not shown how
he would be injured by hearing the prayer.



In an interview published in Wednesday's Washington Times, Bush, who
converted from Episcopalianism to Methodism and prays daily, tried to dispel
perceptions that he is advocating his beliefs or imposing them on anyone.



"I think people attack me because they are fearful that I will then say that
you're not equally as patriotic if you're not a religious person. I've never
said that. I've never acted like that," he said.



Inaugural references to God date back to George Washington's inauguration in
1789. Christian prayers within the ceremony began with Franklin Delano
Roosevelt's second inauguration in 1937.



Government attorneys defending the continued use of prayer said in court
papers that "there is no reason to reverse course and abandon a widely
accepted, noncontroversial aspect of the inaugural ceremony."



In court Thursday, they added that Supreme Court precedent allows state
legislatures and Congress to open each workday with prayer.



Newdow countered that legislative sessions are quite different from
taxpayer-financed public ceremonies.



A large part of next week's inaugural ceremonies is being paid for with
private donations, though the federal government is picking up the tab for
construction of the viewing stands and security.



In 2002, the 9th Circuit ruled in Newdow's favor concerning the "under God"
phrase in the Pledge of Allegiance. It agreed that the phrase, added to the
Pledge in 1954, was an unconstitutional blending of church and state.



In June 2004, however, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the decision on a
technicality, essentially sidestepping the core issue.



It said Newdow could not lawfully sue on behalf of his elementary
school-aged daughter because he did not have custody of the girl and because
the girl's mother objected to the suit.



Newdow re-filed the Pledge suit in Sacramento federal court earlier this
month, naming eight other plaintiffs who are custodial parents or the
children themselves.



FOX News' Major Garrett and The Associated Press contributed to this report.







  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com>

  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
PO Box 3303
Allentown, PA 18106


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tel:
fax:
mobile:

610-366-7880
610-366-1960
484-695-5638





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(Harrisburg, PA 1-14-05)...Speaking to area clergy and through a prepared
statement, Bishop Carol S. Hendrix of the Lower Susquehanna Synod,
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), expressed her disappointment
in the report and recommendations released yesterday by the ELCA Task Force
on Human Sexuality.



Referring to the third of three recommendations from the task force, which
said the church should retain its prohibition on partnered gay and lesbian
pastors but allow some local discretion on the divisive issue, Hendrix said
she would advocate for consistency in policies and practices.



"As bishop of the Lower Susquehanna Synod, " she said, "I will continue to
advocate for establishing consistent policies and practices in the ELCA that
maintain our current standards for ordination and that do not provide for
the blessing of same-sex relationships. At the same time, I affirm the
ELCA's position to welcome gay and lesbian people to participate fully in
the life of its congregations and to reject discrimination, assault, and
harassment of these individuals."



Current ELCA policy expects ministers to refrain from all sexual relations
outside marriage, which it defines as "a lifelong covenant of faithfulness
between a man and a woman."  The church has no official policy on blessing
same-gender relationships.



At a gathering of 200 church leaders yesterday at Trinity Lutheran Church,
Camp Hill, Hendrix acknowledged that the church is deeply divided on issues
related to sexuality. She compared the division to the deep separation
between the Israelis and the Palestinians.



"My position will be pleasing to some of you," she said, "and a
disappointment to others of you, but the good news is that in Jesus Christ
we have unity; in Jesus Christ the dividing wall of hostility is broken
down."



As spiritual leader of the 132,000 baptized Lutherans in central
Pennsylvania, Hendrix continually reminded her constituency that the report
and the recommendations of the task force are only the first step toward the
final decision the church will make in assembly in August 2005.



Between now and August, the recommendations will be reviewed by the ELCA
Division for Ministry, the ELCA Division for Church in Society, the
Conference of Bishops, and local synod councils. In April, the chief
legislative body of the ELCA, the Church Council, will prepare a resolution
on the recommendations that will be sent to the ELCA Churchwide Assembly in
August.



   In the meantime, ELCA members and congregations are invited to respond to
the report and recommendations.



"I encourage all members and congregations of the Lower Susquehanna Synod to
be in conversation about the report and to send their responses to our Synod
Council before February 14," said Hendrix.  "As the ELCA, we follow a
decision-making process in which bishops, pastors, lay members, and
congregations can enter into further debate and refinement of
recommendations so that the final proposal that comes before the Churchwide
Assembly includes the reaction and suggestions of all who want to respond as
they ponder and pray about the report.



I hope and pray that this church will use the months between now and the
vote in August to determine how best to be faithful to our Lord Jesus Christ
in the midst of the differing views we have about the blessing of same-sex
unions and the ordination of gay and lesbian persons in committed same-sex
relationships.  I pray that we will listen to one another, speak the truth
in love to one another, and uphold one another in love as we make our
response.  I pray especially that we will listen and follow our Lord as he
leads and guides us in our decision making in August."



  Hendrix is the second bishop to lead the Lower Susquehanna Synod of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which was formed in 1988.  She was
elected in 2001 for a six-year term.



  The Lower Susquehanna Synod, the fifth largest synod in the ELCA, covers a
Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Perry, Lebanon, Lancaster, Fulton, Franklin, and
York counties and has 267 congregations with more than 450 persons on its
roster. Rostered leaders of the ELCA are lay and ordained ministers of the
church.











  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com>

  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
PO Box 3303
Allentown, PA 18106


  <mailto:vdmiae@...> vdmiae@...


tel:
fax:
mobile:

610-366-7880
610-366-1960
484-695-5638





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Just to brighten your sorry day.....Here's Mel White/Soul Force's "open
letter" to the ELCA....



Open Letter to ELCA, January 14, 2005



The people of Soulforce stand in solidarity with our Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
and Transgender friends and allies in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA).

We share the anger and the grief they must feel today with the release of
the ELCA Task Force for Studies on Sexuality.



We too had hoped that their denomination with its historic roots in justice
and truth would finally end the policies that discriminate against the
ordination and marriage of lesbian and gay people.



Instead, for the sake of "unity" they kept in place the policies that demean
our relationships and deny our call to Christian ministry.

Whether the bishops enforce this terrible decision or not, the Task Force
Report has tragic consequences in the lives of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and
Transgender Lutherans their families and friends.



The Task Force seems to hope that if the ELCA ignores injustice it will go
away.  In fact, justice cannot be done until the policies are revoked and
the Church repents and reforms.



Unfortunately, this decision to discriminate is no surprise.  The ELCA is
now firmly aligned with the Roman Catholic Church and every Protestant
denomination (except the United Church of Christ) in their determination to
make outcasts of God's Gay children.

Worse, these same religious leaders have now gained enough political and
legal clout to superimpose their anti-homosexual views on the entire nation.


However, we will not despair. Even on this day when the Task Force deals
death to our hopes and dreams for the ELCA, LGBT  Lutherans and their allies
(who have been made outcast by their denomination) are hard at work creating
new life, new hopes, and new dreams.



We salute the Extraordinary Candidacy Program (ECP) for providing a roster
of qualified Lesbian and Gay candidates for ELCA ministry.



We salute the Lutheran Lesbian and Gay Ministries (LLGM) for founding and
supporting this option for LGBT people of faith who feel God's call to
ministry and refuse to remain closeted in order to heed that call.



We salute the local ELCA congregations who are hiring Lesbian and Gay people
who are called by God to minister even if that same congregation is
persecuted and even rejected by their denomination for their courageous
stand.



We salute the Lutheran Alliance for Full Participation, GLBT Lutherans and
their allies who refuse to leave the Church and insist on bearing witness to
truth in spite of the policies that discriminate against them.



There is bad news today.  But there will be good news tomorrow, because
there are courageous and committed Lutherans who are standing for truth and
justice whatever the cost.  May we all learn from their example.



Mel White, Executive Director, Soulforce, Inc.







  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com>

  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
PO Box 3303
Allentown, PA 18106


  <mailto:vdmiae@...> vdmiae@...


tel:
fax:
mobile:

610-366-7880
610-366-1960
484-695-5638





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New York Times



http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/14/nyregion/14marry.html?hp
<http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/14/nyregion/14marry.html?hp>



A Moratorium on Weddings



By ALISON LEIGH COWAN

  <http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/misc/spacer.gif>

Published: January 14, 2005



NEW HAVEN, Jan. 13 - In a protest against the Episcopal Church's refusal to
allow same-sex marriages, the leaders of a church in the stately East Rock
section of this city have announced that they will perform no marriage
ceremonies at all.



The decision, conveyed on Thursday in a letter from the priest to the 115
families of St. Thomas's Episcopal Church, is a novel challenge to the
social and religious barriers to marriage between homosexuals.



Some Episcopal churches have handled the problem by offering gay couples a
blessing ceremony that is not legally considered a marriage. Lay leaders at
St. Thomas's have decided that the absence of a ritual at the heart of a
church's spiritual and social functions is a powerful way to protest what
they consider a form of religious discrimination.



The church has adopted the new policy even though no gay couples have asked
to be married there.



Only about five heterosexual couples a year seek to be married at St.
Thomas's. The Rev. Michael F. Ray, the church's priest, said he would refer
those couples to one of a dozen other Episcopal churches in the area. He
also said he would ask the couples "to postpone their marriage and stand in
solidarity with same-sex couples so they understand what it's like not to
have that privilege."



Officials of the Episcopal church say priests are under no obligation to
perform marriage ceremonies, so that Father Ray's decision to enact a
moratorium on them violates no canon law.



Two couples who had already booked the handsome Gothic church for their
weddings will be able to proceed, Father Ray said. But one long-planned
wedding will not take place there: his daughter's.



In his letter to parishioners, Father Ray cited the decision by his
daughter, Catherine, a graduate student in Arizona, to forgo a religious
ceremony for now. "I am overwhelmed by their expression of support and
solidarity," he wrote of the couple, who will proceed with a civil ceremony.



Father Ray said that St. Thomas's had lost some families since discussion of
a possible moratorium began in November. Parishioners said the conversation
about the issue has been bubbling up for at least four years.



As many other religious groups have done, the Episcopal Church has been
wrestling with the issues of homosexuality and same-sex marriage. The issue
came to a head in 2003 when the church confirmed its first openly gay
bishop, V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire.



That decision threatened to splinter the church, and it continues to cause
tension in some corners of the worldwide Anglican Communion.



The Right Rev. Andrew D. Smith, who heads the Episcopal Church's Connecticut
Diocese, supported Bishop Robinson's confirmation. But he has denied
parishes the right to encourage or legitimize same-sex marriages or
blessings.



"The issue of gay marriage is real clear," said Bishop Smith, citing
language in the Episcopal prayer book and canon law that defines marriage as
being the union of a man and a woman. "It's prohibited. We don't go there."



But he added, "We have to reach some understandings about the ways to
support persons in same-sex relationships within the church, and we haven't
yet."



St. Thomas's was founded in 1848. Father Ray, who came to the parish in
1985, is only its fifth rector. "Once we come, we stay forever," he said.



According to Father Ray and some congregants, the church has been largely
middle-of-the-road in its policies. But in 2000, it issued a proclamation
welcoming all worshipers regardless of sexual orientation or other
differences. Parish leaders also sent the diocese a message in 2003
expressing their support for Bishop Robinson's confirmation.



Louis Nemeth, a vestryman, or member of the church's lay administrative
council, said the primary backers of the marriage protest were heterosexual
parents with children in the church's day school, not gay members of the
congregation.



"St. Thomas's is just a very inclusive parish," he said. "It's just part of
who we are."



Some parishioners said they had met with officials from the diocese last
year and received some quiet encouragement to "make some noise if they felt
strongly about the issue" of same-sex marriages, according to Mark Branch,
the church's senior warden.



Bishop Smith said he had been the host at dinners for gay and lesbian
members of the clergy and their supporters in recent years, including one
that was well attended by representatives from St. Thomas's. He said he
considered St. Thomas's "a lively and engaged congregation, and that he
advised guests who had concerns that they have "a right to address policy."



In November, the members of the vestry voted 10 to 1 to ask Father Ray to
"treat same-sex couples and different-sex couples equally when it comes to
marriage." They left it up to him about how to proceed.



Father Ray, 62, a divorced father of three, said he struggled over the
decision. "The generation I grew up in, you didn't talk about these things,"
he said. "I grew up in Texas thinking I was the only gay person I knew." He
said his children and the congregation had been accepting when he and his
wife separated in 1986, a year after they arrived in New Haven. Congregants
now speak comfortably about his 17-year relationship with another man.



Dorothy Asch, a longtime parishioner, said she supported equal treatment for
all those in committed relationships, but was not sure "whether it should be
called marriage."



"At 83, you have to think a little longer about it," she said.



Father Ray said he, too, had had difficulty at first "using the marriage
word." But, he said, same-sex couples were deprived of many benefits
available to married people, and "if the church takes the lead, it will help
the civil issue."



"We're pushing the envelope," he said, but "our feeling is any change
requires somebody making waves."







  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com>

  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
PO Box 3303
Allentown, PA 18106


  <mailto:vdmiae@...> vdmiae@...


tel:
fax:
mobile:

610-366-7880
610-366-1960
484-695-5638





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Baltimore, Md.)   The following statement by the Rev. H. Gerard Knoche,
bishop, Delaware-Maryland Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, is
in response to today's release of the Report and Recommendations of the ELCA
Task Force on Studies on Sexuality. The report is now available to the
public at http://www.elca.org/faithfuljourney/.





The recommendations of the ELCA Task Force on Studies on Sexuality are the
best effort of a task force to deal with the difficult realities of a church
divided over the blessing of gays in committed relationships and the
rostering of gays in committed relationships. The first recommendation calls
for the ELCA to 'concentrate on finding ways to live together faithfully in
the midst of our disagreements.' The intent of that recommendation is to
commit the church to continuing conversation on this issue until the Spirit
leads us to unity. Respecting the conscience of fellow Christians who
sincerely have different understandings of what the Scriptures say in regard
to homosexuality was a strong core value in the development of this
recommendation.



The other recommendations call for no change in policy but provide an option
for those who, in good conscience, choose not to discipline rostered leaders
who are not in compliance with Vision and Expectations and who are called to
congregations. From my point of view, this recommendation is a policy change
although it claims not to be, and even the task force acknowledged that the
recommendation was not in a form that would be appropriate for consideration
at the ELCA Churchwide Assembly.



In that regard it is important to realize that these recommendations can be
modified at several junctures prior to the Churchwide Assembly in Orlando
this summer. The boards of both the Division for Social Ministry and the
Division for Ministry may recommend changes to the document. The ELCA Church
Council which meets in April has the responsibility for framing the
recommendations to be brought to the Churchwide Assembly. As is our
tradition in making hard decisions, the Church Council seeks to have the
largest possible input into its recommendations. For that reason, the
Delaware-Maryland Synod Council will be receiving responses from its
congregations to the task force report and reporting to the Church Council
prior to its April meeting.



I encourage folks to read the entire report of the task force so that the
spirit of the report and its complexity can be understood. The statistical
report of responses to the study of Journey Together Faithfully, Part Two,
indicates that our church is not likely to approve any change to our present
policy even after the study.



My hope is that we can model for the world a new way of dealing with
strongly held disagreements, a way that is different from what we find in
the society around us. Our unity in our common baptism and our common
sharing of the Lord's Supper should be more important than these issues
about which we have not yet found agreement. Pray for our church, pray for
the Church Council, pray for the Spirit to lead us into all truth.









  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com>

  <http://www.covenant-counseling.com> VERBUM DEI MANET IN AETERNUM





The Rev Christopher Hershman MA STM DMin
Licensed Psychologist LMFT LPC

The Marriage & Family Institute

<http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=923+North+Brookside+Road&csz
=Allentown%2C+PA+18106&country=us> 923 North Brookside Road
PO Box 3303
Allentown, PA 18106


  <mailto:vdmiae@...> vdmiae@...


tel:
fax:
mobile:

610-366-7880
610-366-1960
484-695-5638





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