Council Happenings October 2009

Since the ELCA Assembly, people keep asking me: What is Our Saviour’s going to do about these decisions on human sexuality? Some people are delighted by the ELCA policy change, others are angry, and many others are somewhere in between. Here I’ll try to answer some of your questions concerning where we are as a congregation.

First, some things have NOT changed: We are, and for a long time have been, a Reconciling in Christ congregation. This means that we at OSLC welcome all people, regardless of gender identity, to fully participate in the life of the congregation. This hasn’t changed in light of the ELCA’s decision, and it never will. All God’s children are welcome at Our Saviour’s.

Also, the new policy hasn’t made it possible for gays and lesbians to serve as rostered clergy; they already had that option, as long as they remained celibate. What has changed is that those who are in a committed, publicly accountable same-sex relationship can now serve as rostered clergy. In addition, churches now are allowed to bless committed, publicly accountable same-sex relationships. But no church is REQUIRED to do so. A congregation may decide to call a pastor who is in a same-sex relationship, but they may choose not to. And a congregation may choose to bless same-sex relationships, but they may choose not to. These decisions have been left up to each individual congregation.

So what is OSLC going to do? The Church Council, as you can imagine, has been talking about this issue a lot. We realize, first, that we represent the congregation as a whole. This is not our decision to make as a group of eight people; we serve the larger body of the congregation. There is a vast range of opinion within the congregation as well as on Council. It’s important for each of us at OSLC to acknowledge that faithful followers of Christ can hold carefully thought out, Bible-based views that are the direct opposite of our own.

For this reason, we have not rushed to take action. We on Council are listening to your views, and we ask you to share them with us. There was a well-attended forum at OSLC the Sunday after the ELCA announced its decision; in addition, our fall education series has included classes on how Lutherans interpret the Bible and on the Bible and homosexuality. We will continue to schedule forums and educational opportunities that allow all members to talk to each other and learn from each other. We as a congregation have important decisions ahead of us, but whatever direction we move in, we want to move together, as a single body, a family of faith. The congregation as a whole will vote on any call to any pastor, as we always have. We trust God to lead us together in love. That doesn’t mean everybody in the congregation will be in agreement as we move forward. But it does mean we will show respect and love to all people: to those who are homosexual and to those who are heterosexual, to those who applaud the ELCA’s decisions and to those who are dismayed by them.

As we move ahead in faith, I ask you to do three things:

1. Pray. Ask God for wisdom and discernment.

2. Participate. Ask questions. Tell the pastors and Council members where you currently stand and what your concerns are. Attend classes and forums in which you and others can exchange views.

3. Keep an open mind. Be open to the possibility of change, in your church and in your heart – and to the possibility that change will come more quickly or more slowly than you’d like.

Wow, that last point is a hard one. Is it possible that I’m partly wrong? That there’s more to learn? That I can open myself to God’s Spirit teaching me through the views of someone I disagree with?

There is not a member of this congregation who’s more stubborn than I am, but I’ll try. I will honestly try.

Respectfully submitted,

Betty Birner

Council President