Sex and the single Protestant

Are Presbyterians on the brink of a split?

BY JEFFERY L. SHELER

For a while this spring, it appeared as though a fragile peace might finally descend over the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). After battling for nearly two decades over whether homosexuals should be ordained in the 2.7 million-member mainline Protestant denomination, the church amended its Constitution to bar from leadership anyone--straight or gay--who is sexually active outside of marriage. The so-called Fidelity and Chastity Amendment was portrayed by its backers as a definitive and evenhanded solution to a seemingly intractable issue, one that has plagued not only Presbyterians but many of the nation's other mainline Christian denominations for years. A majority of the church's 172 regions, or presbyteries, ratified the amendment in April.

Yet less than two months later, hopes for unity are already dissolving. A growing number of clergy now say they will ignore the new law because it violates members' "God-given right of conscience" and will lead to "witch hunts" against gays and lesbians in the church. Leaders of nearly 50 congregations have signed a "Covenant of Dissent" vowing to ordain ministers, elders, and deacons without regard to their out-of-wedlock sexual behavior. For doing so, the protesters could face prosecution in the church's courts, forfeiture of ordination, and even excommunication. "But we cannot, in conscience, submit to this," says the Rev. Madeline Jervis of Arlington, Va., a signer of the dissenting document.

Family ties. The Presbyterian Church traditionally has welcomed diversity, viewing it as a source of strength. "Presbyterians are contentious, and we like to air our differences in public," says the Rev. John Buchanan, who, as moderator, is the church's highest-ranking official. "But we're still a family."

Yet divisions in the church are sometimes so stark that the "family" can be difficult to discern. The Rev. Kent Winters-Hazelton, for example, interim pastor of an affluent 800-member Presbyterian congregation in Falls Church, Va., describes himself as a liberal who would rather preach on "Bosnia, justice, or world peace" than on Bible stories or personal salvation. A signer of the "Covenant of Dissent," he says that if the amendment is implemented and enforced, "it will tear the church apart." Only a few miles away in Vienna, Va., the Rev. Peter James describes his 2,400-member congregation as "rooted in the evangelical tradition." His preaching, he says, emphasizes "biblical teachings and the importance of having a personal faith in Jesus Christ." A strong backer of the Fidelity and Chastity Amendment, James says church leaders should be held to "a high standard of biblical morality."

Both views will be represented next week in Syracuse, N.Y., when Presbyterian leaders meet in their annual general assembly, amid growing concern that acrimony over the amendment may be pushing the church toward a schism. "The question is, how much diversity can we live with on this and similar issues?" says Buchanan. "If the answer is `not much,' then we're in serious trouble."

If the church does split, it will not be the first time. In 1861, slavery divided the denomination, resulting in a northern United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America and a southern Presbyterian Church in the United States. Reunification, when it came in 1983, was hampered by a dispute over the ordination of women. And while the union eventually was consummated, producing the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), a number of congregations still opted out, forming instead the Presbyterian Church in America.

More light? The Presbyterian Church has never permitted the ordination of practicing homosexuals. In 1978, it adopted a policy explicitly barring such ordinations. A handful of the denomination's 11,361 congregations responded by declaring themselves "More Light" churches, claiming the right to ordain and install gay men and lesbians as ministers and officers. But uncertainties over the legal weight of the 1978 policy and repeated efforts by gay-rights advocates and others to overturn the ban prompted a conservative-led move at last year's general assembly to incorporate the prohibition into the church's Constitution.

The result was a 90-word amendment requiring church officers to "lead a life in obedience to Scripture" by living "either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage of a man and a woman, or chastity in singleness." It denies office to "persons refusing to repent of any self-acknowledged practice which the Confessions call sin." The amendment, says the Rev. Roberta Hestenes of Solana Beach, Calif., chair of the committee that crafted it, "reflects the church's historic and biblical belief that sexual intercourse is a bond reserved for marriage." It does not single out homosexuals, she says. "We believe God's standards apply to everyone."

Opponents, however, cry hypocrisy. "[Church officers] claim it's neutral," says Jervis, the pastor from Arlington, Va. "But the amendment is clearly aimed at excluding gays and lesbians." Enforcing it, Jervis and others say, would create chaos in the church, since the denomination's Book of Confessions also includes such transgressions as usury, idolatry, and the performance of baptisms by women. Some ministers, says church spokesman Jerry VanMarter, have already stepped forward to confess to "huge lists of sins." They are, he says, "demanding trials for the express purpose of showing how absurd it is."

If the two sides agree on anything, it is that the dispute over homosexuality is a symptom of deeper divisions in the church over basic theological issues such as the nature of God and the authority and interpretation of the Bible. A major realignment, were it to come, could change the makeup not only of the Presbyterian Church but of other mainline Christian denominations as well. Yet despite the talk of schism, advocates on both sides of the Presbyterian debate insist that, at least for now, they would rather remain within the church and work for change than leave the denomination. Some attempts to modify or delay enforcement of the Fidelity and Chastity Amendment are expected at the Syracuse meeting. And moderator Buchanan is urging patience on his warring church members. "It is in times like these," Buchanan says, "that we need to hold on to one another and remember that there is an awful lot that is good about being a Presbyterian." He can only hope the reminder does not come too late.