Let me pause for a brief moment and reflect on this day when 177 of my clergy siblings here in North Texas have signed on to an open letter addressed to the LGBTQ community that appears in today’s Dallas Morning News.
Let me tell you what I remember…
I remember a “Day of Listening” in the mid 1990s, where our clergy came together to debate gay clergy among us. Only a very FEW dared speak in defense of gay clergy that day. I was “foolish” enough too…as were John Thornburg and Jack Soper. I was alone among clergy who were associates and under 35-years-old.
But today, 177 clergy from the North Texas area have signed this letter.
I remember the week after that event, when my District Superintendent pulled me aside to privately admonish me for my comments in that gathering…and how he made sure I also understood that my Bishop was also upset with me too.
But today, 177 clergy from the North Texas area have signed this letter.
I remember being appointed to one of only two “Reconciling Congregations” in North Texas in 2001. While deeply grateful, I remember the feeling of being very alone in those years.
In those days, clergy would often privately say “I am with you in spirit.” But it was clear they would not offer their public support.
But today, 177 clergy from the North Texas area have signed this letter.
I remember how, at General Conference 2008, “big church pastors” (who shall remain nameless) literally turned the other direction when they saw me coming, because they were unwilling to debate the issues of inclusiveness with their other big church pastors.
But today, 177 clergy from the North Texas area have signed this letter.
And I remember the dozens and dozens of beautiful LGBTQ siblings, who have made appointments with pastors all over North Texas, over the past twenty years…to tell their stories and claim their place as God’s good children.
So today, 177 clergy from the North Texas area have signed this letter.
As the letter notes, the General Conference is broken. As I have written in recent weeks, it is likely broken beyond repair. There must be a new way for Methodism.
But even in the midst of this horrible time, don’t miss the good that God has done in the hearts of North Texas Methodists, over the past 30 years.
Lent is the time for “repenting,” and moving in a new way. Thousands of North Texas Methodists have repented of their unwelcoming ways…this letter is a symbol of that.
I give thanks for the honor of standing with all these clergy siblings, and many more who perhaps would have signed had they known. And I give thanks for the movement of God, over many years, that this letter represents.
