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Presbyterian Minister Admits Same-Sex Weddings
SANTA ROSA, Calif. (AP) — A Presbyterian minister accused of marrying two lesbian couples in violation of the faith's position on same-sex unions admitted Thursday that she officiated at the weddings, but said she was following both her conscience and the couples' wishes.
The Rev. Jane Spahr of San Rafael has been charged with official misconduct for conducting the ceremonies in 2004 and 2005 and violating her church's constitution.
As the first witness in her trial before a church judicial commission, Spahr testified that while she knew the Presbyterian Church (USA) reserves marriage for a man and a woman, she purposely used the language the couples wanted when she presided over the nuptials.
"I don't care what your sexual orientation is, what's most important to me is what you call it," she said. "They said 'marriage' and I was honored to do their 'marriage,' so they would not be seen as second-class in any way."
Spahr, 63, a lesbian and longtime activist, directs a group lobbying for greater inclusion of gay Presbyterians in the church. If found guilty by the Presbytery of the Redwoods, the church's regional governing body, she could face anything from a rebuke to being forced to leave the ministry after more than 30 years, according to one of her lawyers, Timothy Cahn.
In opening statements, Stephen Taber, a San Francisco lawyer representing the church, cautioned the seven-member tribunal not to get caught up in emotional arguments about gay rights.
"The burden on this commission is not to decide whether same-sex marriage is or is not appropriate for the Presbyterian Church USA or whether it should be forbidden," Taber said. "The only question here is whether Reverend Spahr committed certain acts, and whether those acts are in violation of the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church."
But defense attorney Sara Taylor countered by saying that ignoring the larger moral issues would be passing up an opportunity to correct a wrong no less grievous than the church's previous ban on allowing women to serve as ministers.
"Whether or not these marriages are good is an issue," Taylor said. "It is too simplistic to take something this church has wrestled with for 30 years and say it doesn't matter."
The Presbyterian Church (USA) is among several Protestant denominations embroiled in a bitter debate between liberals and conservatives over what role gays should have in their churches. Under a ruling by the national church's highest court in 2000, Presbyterian churches may bless same-sex unions as long as they do not equate the relationships with marriage.
Spahr is one of a half-dozen Presbyterian ministers across the nation facing disciplinary action for marrying same-sex couples.
The presbytery is responsible for investigating misconduct charges leveled against its member clergy. At issue is whether Spahr violated the part of the church constitution defining marriage as "a covenant through which a man and a woman are called to live out together before God their lives in discipleship."
SANTA ROSA, Calif. (AP) — A Presbyterian minister accused of marrying two lesbian couples in violation of the faith's position on same-sex unions admitted Thursday that she officiated at the weddings, but said she was following both her conscience and the couples' wishes.
The Rev. Jane Spahr of San Rafael has been charged with official misconduct for conducting the ceremonies in 2004 and 2005 and violating her church's constitution.
As the first witness in her trial before a church judicial commission, Spahr testified that while she knew the Presbyterian Church (USA) reserves marriage for a man and a woman, she purposely used the language the couples wanted when she presided over the nuptials.
"I don't care what your sexual orientation is, what's most important to me is what you call it," she said. "They said 'marriage' and I was honored to do their 'marriage,' so they would not be seen as second-class in any way."
Spahr, 63, a lesbian and longtime activist, directs a group lobbying for greater inclusion of gay Presbyterians in the church. If found guilty by the Presbytery of the Redwoods, the church's regional governing body, she could face anything from a rebuke to being forced to leave the ministry after more than 30 years, according to one of her lawyers, Timothy Cahn.
In opening statements, Stephen Taber, a San Francisco lawyer representing the church, cautioned the seven-member tribunal not to get caught up in emotional arguments about gay rights.
"The burden on this commission is not to decide whether same-sex marriage is or is not appropriate for the Presbyterian Church USA or whether it should be forbidden," Taber said. "The only question here is whether Reverend Spahr committed certain acts, and whether those acts are in violation of the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church."
But defense attorney Sara Taylor countered by saying that ignoring the larger moral issues would be passing up an opportunity to correct a wrong no less grievous than the church's previous ban on allowing women to serve as ministers.
"Whether or not these marriages are good is an issue," Taylor said. "It is too simplistic to take something this church has wrestled with for 30 years and say it doesn't matter."
The Presbyterian Church (USA) is among several Protestant denominations embroiled in a bitter debate between liberals and conservatives over what role gays should have in their churches. Under a ruling by the national church's highest court in 2000, Presbyterian churches may bless same-sex unions as long as they do not equate the relationships with marriage.
Spahr is one of a half-dozen Presbyterian ministers across the nation facing disciplinary action for marrying same-sex couples.
The presbytery is responsible for investigating misconduct charges leveled against its member clergy. At issue is whether Spahr violated the part of the church constitution defining marriage as "a covenant through which a man and a woman are called to live out together before God their lives in discipleship."
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