A Presbyterian
deacon in San Francisco who has twice been denied
ordination because of her sexual orientation can move
forward with a third bid to join the clergy. The
regional body of the Presbyterian Church (USA) voted
167-151 Tuesday night in support of Lisa Larges's
application, despite the denomination's long-standing ban on
openly gay ministers. Larges, 44, still must submit to
an interview with the regional body as soon as April,
church officials said. Larges said after the vote that
she was proud of the church members' decision, despite the
heavy opposition.
''The church is a
beautiful, messy thing,'' she said. ''It's about loving
the church in spite of the church. It's about being part of
a movement to call the church back to its best self.''
While the meeting
represented a third try for Larges, it was thought to
be the first test of a policy adopted by the Presbyterian
national assembly giving local presbyteries the right
to ordain candidates who declare conscientious
objections to specific church teachings, said Jerry
Van Marter, news director for the Presbyterian Church (USA).
The constitution
of the church says only members in traditional
heterosexual marriages or who are sexually abstinent may
serve as clergy, elders, and deacons. Larges has
submitted a statement to the Presbytery of San
Francisco declaring her disagreement with that policy,
calling it a ''mar upon the church and a stumbling
block to its mission.''
The presbytery
represents 77 churches and about 29,000 parishioners in
the San Francisco Bay area.
Those who oppose
Larges's application said they would appeal Tuesday's
decision through the church court.
''The
presbytery's action constitutes a willful disengagement from
the denomination's requirements, breaking trust with
every other presbytery by not requiring compliance
with church mandates,'' said the Reverend Mary Holder
Naegeli, who presented the minority report at the meeting.
The church has
other openly gay ministers, Van Marter said. The current
policy banning the ordination of sexually active gays and
lesbians to the ministry was enacted in 1978, and a
number of ministers who were ordained before then have
since come out to their congregations. (Lisa Leff, AP)
