The decision by the Episcopal Church on Wednesday to dismiss heresy charges against Bishop Walter Righter narrows the spotlight on one of the most controversial issues in modern church history: gay and lesbian clergy.
"Homosexuality is an expanding question, both for society and the church," said Claire Randall, who served 11 years as general secretary for the National Council of Churches, the interdenominational organization with 49 million members. "Homosexual ordination as well as marriage are the newest struggle. Every denomination has a divided constituency that plays into the issue."
For the Record
Los Angeles Times Sunday May 19, 1996 Home Edition Part A Page 3 Metro Desk 2 inches; 42 words Type of Material: Correction
Clergy--In a May 16 article on homosexual clergy, The Times erred in explaining Roman Catholic policy on ordaining gay men. According to Father Gregory Coiro, director of media relations for the Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church ordains celibate gay men.
As the Righter case demonstrates, the intimate lives of gays and lesbians are now a topic for open debate. Dissent from official church policies, both by clergy and laity, has led to disciplinary actions in many Christian denominations, as well as threats of schism on the part of conservative members opposed to homosexual priests and ministers.
Most mainstream Protestant denominations--including United Methodist, Presbyterian and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America--do not ordain practicing homosexuals.
Among more conservative traditions, the Baptist, Orthodox Christian, nondenominational evangelical and Roman Catholic churches officially refuse ordination to any homosexuals.
Members of the National Council of Churches first addressed the question in the mid-1980s when a gay church unsuccessfully applied for admission, Randall said. "The black churches and the Orthodox Christian churches were unanimously opposed to the admission of gay churches into the council," she said.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, the United Church of Christ--perhaps the most liberal of all mainstream Christian denominations--allows ordination for celibate and practicing homosexuals.
"We do have clergy who have been in long-term relationships," said Davida Foy of Los Angeles, a UCC conference minister. "The denomination holds that same-gender relationships are ethical and ought to be evaluated on the same basis as heterosexual relationships."
With increasing regularity, official church teachings have been tested by clergy, particularly in denominations where church policy is considered a guideline, open to a certain amount of interpretation. Some recent incidents:
* In January, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America expelled two San Francisco congregations, St. Francis and First United Lutheran Church, for ordaining practicing homosexuals.
