Methodist bishop dismisses case against lesbian minister

Last updated on: May 5, 2014 at 7:05 am by John Shore

Methodist bishop dismisses case against lesbian minister 2014-05-05T07:05:34-08:00 John Shore

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Remember Martin McLee, the United Methodist Church bishop who, this past March, by way of refusing to in any way “discipline” a UMC pastor for marrying his gay son, made this ground-shaking declaration?:

As the Bishop of the New York Annual Conference, in consideration of my responsibility to provide spiritual, pastoral and temporal oversight for those committed to my care, I call for and commit to a cessation of church trials for conducting ceremonies which celebrate homosexual unions or performing same-gender wedding ceremonies . . .

(For more on that story, see my post Breaking news: United Methodist Bishop drops all charges against Thomas Ogletree, calls for end of “disciplining” UMC pastors who perform gay weddings.)

Well, he’s baaaaaaaaaaaaaack! And the world’s a better place foooooooooooor it!

This just in, from our friends at Methodists in New Directions*:

New York, NY, May 5, 2014 – Methodists in New Directions (MIND) announced today that the church complaint against MIND steering committee member Rev. Sara Thompson Tweedy accusing her of being a “self-avowed practicing homosexual” had been dismissed. Rev. Tweedy received an official letter from Bishop Martin McLee last week notifying her that he was dropping the complaint, thereby declining to pursue formal disciplinary charges against Tweedy, who is an out, married lesbian. The United Methodist Church bars “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” from being ordained or serving as ministers. …

Rev. Tweedy made the following statement in response to the news of the dismissal:

In dismissing this case, Bishop McLee has chosen to honor the inclusive and justice-affirming intents of our Book of Discipline over its prejudiced and punitive rules. I have never denied who God created me to be and I have never denied my family. I went through this 14-month ordeal with the same integrity I went through the ordination process with, forthrightly answering questions and not hiding any aspect of my identity or my marriage. If my honesty resulted in my being defined as “self-avowed, practicing homosexual,” I was willing to face those consequences. Bishop McLee’s refusal to seek prosecution offers hope that other LGBTQ seminarians, ordination candidates and ministers in our New York Annual Conference can also live and work openly without fear of losing their jobs and their vocation.

To quote the old Psalm:

This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

*For more information on this story, contact Dorothee Benz, Methodists in New Directions, 718-314-4432.

Christian Issues

Previous Post

May 3, 2014

Happy 5th Anniversary, Patheos.com! [VIDEO]

Next Post

May 6, 2014 Jesus' funniest joke

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Christian Issues Christian Spirituality Dear John En Espanol Everywhere She's Not Humor Look See Pastor Bob's Corner Personal Portuguese Relationships Russian Short-short story Smith Family Chronicles Uncategorized

Select a Month March 2024 August 2022 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 February 2020 December 2019 June 2019 December 2018 May 2018 May 2017 January 2017 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does James say someone who doubts is like?

Select your answer to see how you score.

A house built on sand A wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind A sheep without a shepherd A leaf falling from a tree

Books by This Author Books by John Shore

See All Titles »