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Boost for gays

Study urges Ohio Episcopals to allow homosexual priests

By Darrell Holland

Religion editor

Homosexuals who have healthy sexual relationships should be permitted to enter the priesthood and to have the church perform marriages for them, a study done for the Ohio Episcopal Diocese concludes.

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The study, done by a task force that included a psychologist, a medical doctor and three priests, was released last week by the diocese.

denial of matrimony to homosexual lovers.

It said the church, forces homosexuals, who are ordained without the church's knowledge of their sexual preferences, to remain celibate, a requirement not made of heterosexuals, and it forces homosexual lovers to live together. without the opportunity to have their marriages blessed by the church.

Headed by Dr. Janeen Carrell-

At the same time, the diocese Brown, a practicing psychologist and

released criticism of the report by its spiritual leader, Bishop John H. Burt. He said he would not ordain or approve of marriage for openly practicing homosexuals.

The task force was appointed 18 months ago by the diocese's Commission on Ministry to advise Bishop Burt on whether homosexuals should be considered for ordination.

The issue is more than academic for Episcopalians. Bishop Paul Moore of New York City ordained an avowed lesbian last year.

In addition, the church's General Convention said a year ago that "all homosexual persons are children of God who have a full and equal claim with all other persons upon the love, acceptance and pastoral concern and care of the church."

There also is a strong gay caucus in the Episcopal Church which has urged the full acceptance of gays.

All of these occurrences have drawn strong criticism from many members, especially the ordination of the lesbian.

The report said the core of the task force's position is:

"Sexual orientation has no relevance in consideration of a candidate for ordination ... unless there is well-documented evidence that the 'sexual orientation' is a 'symptom of some underlying personality problem or psychiatric illness' which, unless treated, would interfere with her or his professional performance as a clergyperson.

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The task force labeled as discriminatory the Episcopal Church's

a member of Trinity Cathedral in Cleveland, the task force based its conclusions on scriptural, psycholog ical and sociological data.

"Rather than placing greater guilt on God's people for acts of sexual expression, the church needs to learn to give thanks that these (people) are as responsible as they are while at the same time working to increase responsibility in sexual activity," the 22-page report said.

"To brand an avenue of sexual expression as wrong, or sin, or depraved, or deviate does little or nothing to assist those who are a part of that expression to work toward greater fulfillment."

The biblical view is that sexual activity is authorized “as (a) witness to God's creative love, power and glory," the report said.

The task force said that biblical strictures against homosexual acts must be interpreted in the light of the time in which they were written.

It said, "Not every word of scripture can, should or must be taken literally. Scripture must be viewed in the light in which it is offered. and in the context of a culture which we cannot thoroughly understand.”

On biblical references against homosexuality, the task force concluded that "in each case it can well be argued that God's wrath was directed against the unrighteous idolatry, selfishness, exploitation and unwelcoming attitude more than against the homosexual activity." -

"Any mode of sexual encounter can be sinful and unrighteous if it

replaces God's love and power in the lives of those who practice it," the report said.nude

"Conversely, any mode of sexual encounter can reflect grace and righteousness if it celebrates and enhances God's love.. For this reason, Christians seem to be called on to refrain from making judgments about the sexual acts of their brothers and sisters in Christ.”

Illustrating the nonliteral method of biblical interpretation the task force used, it noted that the laws in Leviticus, which speak against homosexuality, also forbid sexual intercourse on the Sabbath because of the requirement of cleanliness.

The task force said, "If we were to acknowledge the Levitical qualifications for religious ceremonial cleanliness and apply these to clergy today, the church would necessarily forbid marital sexual relations in every Episcopal rectory after sundown on Saturday."

Psychologically, the report said, homosexuals are basically equal with their heterosexual counterparts on virtually all levels of psychological adjustment.

To help examine the psychological implications of homosexuality, the task force consulted Dr. Douglas D. Bond, dean of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine from 1959 to 1966 and a psychiatrist until shortly before his death last year.

The task force said Bond explained that homosexual orientation does not have to inhibit the intellectual or moral. development of persons or cause them not to function well.

The report quotes Bond as saying, "The problems of homosexual women and men arise, not out of the nature of their sexual preference, but rather from the oppression imposed on them by acheterosexually oriented

society."

Under the sociological perspectives of its study, the task force said the church has called society to change its prejudices against gays.

But, it added, "The church at this point leaves itself open to the charge

of hypocrisy unless it is willing to change its attitudes and behavior, toward the homosexual.”

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Later, the report said, "It is time to be frank and honest. Members of the clergy have been party to many forms of sexual impropriety and will continue to be so. To acknowledge what is true seems to be the necessity of the moment. Many philandering heterosexuals have been ordained. Many promiscuous homosexuals have, too.

"Still, the focus lies on the heterosexuality or homosexuality of the clergy and not on their manner of expressing their persuasion.

"Greater understanding and study of human sexuality and the church's position on it are needed.

The report proposed that clinics, workshops and other educational programs be started to enable persons to choose their sexual orientation with understanding and not by default: Improved counseling in sexual matters also was suggested.

The report is expected to create the diocese. Many. controversy in Episcopalians already have said they believe homosexuality is a sin and to accept it would be heresy.

Many have warned that they would leave the church if it accepted homosexuality. A new Anglican church in this nation already is being started because of disagreement over women priests, which the church accepted last year.

The report likely will be hotly debated at the Ohio diocese's annual convention in February. It is not official diocesan policy, Bishop Burt has indicated.

The bishop asked the task force to reconsider its findings, the diocese reported. But the committee said it would stand by the document.

In a letter to the task force, Bishop Burt expressed concern over what the open acceptance of homosexuality would do to the American family.

He asked it to seek a broader range of scriptural opinion, to give consid-

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eration to the psychological view that homosexuality is a form of arrested sexual development or failure to mature sexually, rather than a nor mal form of sexual expression. He also asked the task force re-evaluate what a policy that encourages choice in sexual preference might do to confuse a person's sexual identity, and he challenged the conclusions that the ordained have no obligation to exhibit a higher morality than laymen.

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Bishop Burt said he would regard with suspicion any candidate for the ministry, heterosexual or homosexual, who felt called to make a public issue of his or her sexuality.

He did not say specifically that he would not ordain a homosexual, but he did say he would not ordain any persons "who openly practice homosexuality or who openly indulge in heterosexual relationships outside of holy matrimony.'

On marriage of homosexuals, he more strongly declared that "it will not be my personal policy either to permit the use of the Prayer Book rite of holy matrimony for the blessing of homosexual unions.

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"I happen to believe the marriage service clearly envisions heterosexual union; and I happen to believe that ordained persons are called to a higher level of moral performance."

He said he was aware that the task force's conclusions charge that his views are discriminatory toward homosexuals.

In addition to Dr. Carrell-Brown, members of the task force are the Rev. Walter L. Krieger, St. James' Church, Wooster, the Rev. Robert H. New, St. Timothy's Church, Perrysburg; the Rev. M. Elden Smith, St. Paul's Church, Norwalk; Dr. Edgar S. Bowerfind Jr., a physician, of Cleveland Heights; Davis Gellatly, Akron; Stephanie Sattele, Lyndhurst, and Anne Williams, Cleveland.

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