Cal Lutheran Teacher Surprised to Become New Bishop : Religion: Professor, a proponent of complete participation by gays and lesbians in the church, will oversee 152 congregations.

Mostly, he was surprised.

The Rev. Paul Egertson did not think it likely that he would ever be elected bishop of the Lutheran church’s 152 congregations in Southern California.

But last weekend, before an assembly of 440 pastors and congregation members, the 59-year-old religion professor at Cal Lutheran University was elected to one of the church’s most powerful positions. As bishop, he will oversee Evangelical Lutheran Church parishes throughout Ventura, Kern, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.

Part of the surprise comes from the fact that being bishop was never a burning ambition for Egertson; as a rule he prefers to follow divine direction wherever it takes him.

But beyond that, Egertson said he was surprised that he--a proponent of complete participation by homosexuals within the Lutheran faith--could be elected by a group that for the most part strongly opposes his viewpoint.

Homosexuality is considered a sin by the Lutheran church. Gays and lesbians can become pastors in the church, but only if they vow to be celibate, Egertson said. But he believes the church needs to reconsider its stance.

“It’s not a popular position,” Egertson acknowledged. “It was one of the reasons I thought I would not be electable. It scares so many people.”

He said his feelings are no secret to church members. At last year’s assembly, or synod, he lead a workshop on the issue.

The Lutheran church is in the midst of an in-depth study on sexuality that examines the issue of homosexuality. A first draft released last year offered the first break with tradition, proposing that the church might need to rethink its policy on gays and lesbians.

But most church members responded negatively to that draft, Egertson said, leading him to believe that the church was not yet ready for such radical change. For that reason, he said, he hopes his stance on homosexuality will not be misconstrued.

“I do not support a gay agenda,” Egertson said. “I am not pro-gay. I support the position of a minority of people in the church who pray and work for the full acceptance of gay and lesbian people in the life and ministry of the church.”

The oldest of his six children is gay, he said, and that fact has shaped his viewpoint to a great extent. His gay son went through four years of seminary training, but could not be ordained because he refused to take the vow of celibacy. His son has given up hope of ever becoming a pastor in the Lutheran church, Egertson said, and is now an assistant dean at Golden Gate University’s law school in San Francisco.

Egertson said he is now trying to alleviate any fears in the congregation that he will spend all his time pushing for a change in church policy.

“We operate democratically,” he said. “I’ll have the power to influence, but I don’t have the power to impose my viewpoint. I’ll certainly contribute my rationale, but I want to assure people I believe in a lot of things besides that. We share most things in common.”

The Rev. Larry Wagner, pastor of Ascension Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thousand Oaks, said Egertson is better known for his teachings than for his stance on homosexuality.

“Paul’s primary reputation has been as an excellent theologian and a great teacher in the church,” Wagner said. “Paul has a rich history in the church. You’d have to be living in a cave if you were in the Lutheran church and you did not know who Paul Egertson was.”

Gaining acceptance, despite his non-traditional views, should not be a problem for Egertson, Wagner said.

“Once an election is completed all of us are called on to support and work with the voice of the majority,” Wagner said. “Whether or not I agree with everything he feels theologically doesn’t detract from the fact that I respect him very much as a pastor and a friend, and I intend to embrace him as bishop.”

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Egertson began teaching at Cal Lutheran in 1984. He was director of the Center for Theological Study from 1979 to 1992. He holds degrees from Pepperdine University, Luther Northwestern Seminary and the School of Theology at Claremont College.

Egertson will officially become one of 55 Lutheran bishops who lead the 5-million-member church in early 1995, and will serve a six-year term. He said he will have to give up teaching because his new job will keep him too busy. But he said he will only serve one term.

“Then I would very much like to go back to teaching,” he said.