Bishop
Mark Webb
324
University Avenue, 3rd Floor
Syracuse,
NY 13210
Dear Bishop Webb,
When a child is born, we
celebrate the new life, our greatest gift.
Throughout life we continue to acknowledge this miracle, at least
annually, on birthdays. At baptism the
newborn infant, or person of any age, is welcomed into the church
community. I’ve never seen a footnote
saying you may not be baptized if you are LGB or T. Yet some Methodist churches and the Social Principles of the United Methodist
Church do imply/say if you are LGB or T:
· Don’t
join this church
· You may
not be married in this church
· You may
not be a pastor in this church
Deny
who you are and/ or please be kind enough to go away. Is this not a shameful position for Methodism
to take? As Pastor Heiss has stated, we
are learning that being gay harms no one.
It is not a sin to be gay nor was it ever “incompatible with Christian
teaching”.
No two people (or any living creatures for that matter) are
absolutely identical. Being unique is
one of creation’s great blessings. Let us embrace our diversity. The basic message
of Jesus was to love thy neighbor. Who
is my neighbor? Everyone is my
neighbor. All are beloved of God and
acceptable to receive grace. All means ALL (including LGBT).
As a Methodist Bishop, your
need to make a decision in this situation may be seen as either a “problem” or an incredible “opportunity”. You are now in a unique position to act as a
“tipping point” for the Methodist
Church. This letter is written to urge
you to NOT bring a formal complaint against Pastor Steven Heiss (or any other
pastor) for performing same-sex marriages.
Instead, embrace Rev. Heiss and thank him for his courage and loving
actions.
Sincerely,
Lois L.
Atkinson
P.S. I am a Member of First United Methodist Church, Schenectady, NY.
The
father of my three children is a gay man.
I have numerous LGBT friends and acquaintances.
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