Presbyterians Debate Future of Lesbian Pastor

Following an all-night community prayer vigil and 2 1/2 hours of open trial, the Rev. Jane Adams Spahr said she is “trusting the process” and hoping she will be allowed to do what she has been called to do.

Spahr, who runs a special ministry serving homosexuals and people with AIDS in San Anselmo, Calif., is the first openly lesbian pastor to be called to service by a Presbyterian congregation. The Presbyterian Permanent Judicial Commission, which met here Tuesday, will decide over the next several weeks whether her call last November by the Presbytery of Genesee Valley violates church regulations, as some have charged. Ten of the 12 commission members were present for the testimony.

“She’s the Rosa Parks of the movement,” one Presbyterian observer said outside the ballroom of the Stouffer Rochester Plaza Hotel, where the trial was held.

The trial became necessary after 10 area churches and several individuals signed complaints challenging the Presbytery of Genesee Valley’s approval of Spahr to be a co-pastor of Rochester’s 800-member Downtown United Presbyterian Church.

In 1978, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) declared that homosexuality is “incompatible with Christian faith and life.”

The assembly decided that homosexuals could not be ordained as ministers. But it said the ruling “shall not be used to affect negatively the ordination rights of any Presbyterian deacon, elder or minister who has been ordained prior to this date.”

Spahr was ordained in 1974, but didn’t publicly acknowledge her homosexuality until after 1978.

In what is becoming a historic case for the Presbyterian Church, commission members questioned Julius B. Poppinga of Newark, N.J., representing the complainants, on the fine points of his presentation. His main argument is that by allowing Spahr’s call, the church is out of alignment with its constitution, policies, practices and Scripture.

Poppinga argued that the General Assembly ruling meant only that homosexual people ordained before 1978 should not be defrocked. But to install such a person at a church would place a congregation at odds with the constitution, he said.

James C. Moore of Rochester, lawyer for the presbytery, said the assembly’s intention was clear and simple and did not say whether a church could call a homosexual ordained before 1978.

After the trial, which was attended by more than 200 people, Cuddie E. Davidson Jr., commission moderator, said a decision could take weeks. He explained that after deciding on their position, commission members must write and circulate their opinions and probably also conduct telephone conferences. Commissioners have shown they have different interpretations of the legal presentations made during the trial.

Both sides expect any decision to be appealed, meaning the matter would go to the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission meeting Oct. 29-Nov. 2 in Dallas.

Until a final ruling, Spahr cannot assume any duties in Rochester. However, the Rev. Ron Sallade of Scottsville Presbyterian Church, leading the complainants, said he would seek another stay of enforcement if the commission does not rule against Spahr’s call.

Spahr, who sat with members and clergy of the church during the trial, said the challenge to her appointment has been difficult.

Sexuality and spirituality are “inextricably linked,” she said. “It is a gift that God gives us like anything else. It is a gift, and not a sin.”

Many people attending the trial wore bright red “Free Janie Spahr” T-shirts to help pay the defense fund and rainbow ribbons with Spahr’s name imprinted.

Linda Nichols, 37, took the day off from her job at Eastman Kodak Co. to attend the trial. “It’s about my church and about my belief and acceptance,” she said, explaining she is a lesbian. “If it is difficult for the church political community to accept (Spahr), it is difficult to believe it accepts who I am and not just parts of me.”