Lakeview Lutheran Church-Madison,
WI
Resolution for the Affirmation of
Household Covenants
Background
On January 13, 2005 the Task Force for the
America
Studies on Sexuality made the recommendation “that
with respect to the matter
of
blessing same-sex couples who have entered into long-term monogamous covenants
of
love and care, the ELCA currently has no legislated policy and the task force
declines
to recommend any change. In this time of conflict and uncertainty, the
Conference
of Bishops pointed the way to treating such decisions as matters of pastoral
care
and the task force believes that pastors and congregations can and should be
trusted
by this church to exercise the wisdom of discretion in their ministry to
same-sex
couples
and their natural and congregational families.”
As a result of this recommendation and its support by the
voting assembly of the
ELCA
in August 2005,
Committee
which includes Rene Puzach, Mary Cragin,
Karen Hoffman, Kathy Knudtson,
Shirley
Storkson, Linda Selmer, Terry Warnke,
David Smith, Kevin Danz, Luther
Torgerson and Pastor Dean Kirst. It should be noted
that in January 2004, prior to the
establishment of this committee, forty-eight members
of this congregation engaged in a
two month study of the ELCA Study Document
entitled; Journey Together Faithfully;
The
Church and Homosexuality, Study Guide, Part Two.
After meeting for one year, the Lakeview Human Sexuality
Committee
established two listening sessions for the entire
congregation in October, 2006. At those
sessions, the committee learned of particular
areas that attendees desired further
information. Between January 7, 2007 and March 4,
2007, the Human Sexuality
Committee
provided a Bible study and series of presentations for members of the
congregation. The first presentation was given by
representatives from Advent Lutheran
Church-ELCA, a Reconciled in Christ Congregation.
The second presentation was from
an ELCA seminary professor. The third
presentation was from a man who is gay and a
woman who is trans-gendered. These events
were well attended.
The
Bible and This Issue
In committee and congregational discussion, we considered
the scriptures, which
sometimes call us to welcome others, while at
the same time, in some passages, seem to
prohibit homosexual relationships. Through the
discussion, we noted that all of scripture
is important for us because it is
instructive and provides us with wisdom and insight. We
also recognized that as new information is
made available in our world through science
and technology, it influences the way we
look at scripture. An example would be the
scientific evidence that the world is round, not
flat, as was once the belief. We also
recognized that we do not use all of scripture to
provide order and structure for our lives.
An
example of this may be found in Matthew, where Jesus indicates that if your
hand
causes you to sin, you should cut it off. We
do not literally advocate this, but we do use
the passage to remind us of the grave
nature of the sin around us and the importance of
challenging sin in our lives. Although the
mortgage of one's home is prohibited in
Deuteronomy,
we do not consider a mortgage to be a sin. We are opposed to slavery and
the oppression of women, but we can still
find many passages in the Bible that both
accept and uplift slavery and female
oppression. These texts remind us of the importance
of treating all people justly and of our
call as disciples to work for fair and equitable
racial and gender relationships in the world.
Passages of the Bible referring to human
sexuality are similar. Although we refrain from
condemning homosexuality as a sin, we
find wisdom in these passages reminding us
that in matters of human sexuality, we are to
be honorable, faithful, respectful and
honest.
In our discussions, we recognized and reviewed many biblical
texts that assist us
with our moral and ethical decision-making.
Specifically they included John 13:31-35,
John
13:3-20, Matthew 5, 6, and 7, Mark 12:28-31, Genesis 1:27-31, Genesis 2:7-8 and
18-25,
Psalm 8:4-8, Mark 2:23-28, Matthew 18:12-22, Mathew 25:31-46, Luke 10:25-37,
John
8:1-11 Romans 8:1-2 and Romans 12:1-8. We also recognized that the inclusive,
accepting and hospitable example given to us in
the life and ministry of Christ could be
the foundation and the core for all of our
moral, ethical and social decisions. We recalled
Christ’s
acceptance of people with leprosy, of Gentiles, of Samaritan women, of Roman
soldiers, of widows, orphans, and young
children and of those possessed by demons. We
understand that the Christian community has
always been invited to love as God loves the
world and we find great guidance in 1 John
4:11-12, “Beloved, since God loved us
so
much,
we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one
another,
God lives in us, and God’s love is perfected in us.” As
we struggle with life’s
differences, we also acknowledge that we find
direction and grace in the words used by
Christ
in John 13:34, “I give you a new
commandment, that you love one another just
as
I have loved you. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you
have
love
for one another.” Finally, the biblical call to refrain
from judgment and hypocrisy
as found in Matthew 7:1 “Do
not judge, so that you may not be judged,” has
been
valuable in guiding our deliberations.
Tradition
and The Issue of Blessing
A blessing is an “act of prayer that includes a ritual sign
of God’s grace.” Jesus
blessed little children, the poor, the meek,
those who mourn, those who strive for peace
and those who are hungry. The
The
Occasional Services Book includes 29 different occasions for offering a
blessing
including, but not limited to, candles,
bedrooms, homes, dining rooms, kitchens, libraries,
those who labor, those who leave
congregations, etc. At
have offered times to bless bikes and their
riders, pets and animals, Sunday school
teachers, the congregation council and young
people who have gone to participate in
mission work. A blessing uplifts the
commitment that people are making. It
acknowledges the presence of God’s gracious love in
our lives as the community of
believers gathers to witness and celebrate. When
done in a public setting, a blessing also
acknowledges the community that exists to offer
support and care. Although marriages
could happen exclusively in the courts and
within the secular community, many
Lutherans
have historically chosen to have their marriage commitments blessed within
the congregation. We find great joy in
blessing and celebrating the commitment that
people make in a marriage and we ask God to
continue to give the parties the strength to
uphold the promises that they make in a commitment
ceremony.
The
Formation and Affirmation of Household Covenants
The Lakeview Human Sexuality Committee explored a variety of
responses that
other congregations have made regarding the
possible blessing of unions. The committee
understands that the blessing of a union in the
State of
The
committee fully understands that the primary importance of a relationship is
the
commitment that the participants make to each
other, not the legal document. We
recognize that some legal marriages do not
necessarily include a high level of
commitment. People can choose to marry for many
reasons. The Lakeview Human
Sexuality
Committee also recognizes that there are heterosexual relationships that
include
a very high level of commitment, but for
a variety of reasons, are not appropriate for the
legal institution of marriage. Age and
disability may be such factors. The committee
considered all relationships and commitments. The
committee liked the terminology
adopted by
covenant is “a formal binding agreement.” The
formation and affirmation of household
covenants would involve families and/or couples,
both heterosexual and homosexual,
who desire to covenant with one another to
offer stability in their lives together.
Examples
of these covenants would include;
• Senior couples who have developed friendships and special
relationships, but for
financial,
health and/or family reasons they do not wish to marry, but their
companionship
is something they desire to honor, respect, and more publicly
acknowledge.
• Couples who may be contemplating marriage in the future, but
are looking for
an
alternative to marriage or a period of betrothal, and may wish to share
property
and/or raise children.
• Couples who may not be able to choose legal marriage because
disability funding
or
other public financial sources would be affected and would prevent their
relationship
from surviving.
• Gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or trans-gendered couples who wish
for the stability that
comes
with committed relationships.
These
covenants would use the tradition of covenant formation and affirmation found
in
scripture, perhaps most clearly in Joshua 24 and
in the frequent covenants that God
makes with the people in the Hebrew texts.
All services of affirmation would be in line
with Lutheran Liturgy as found in ELCA
publications. All covenant affirmations would
involve recalling the history of the
relationship, a call to commitment, a vow or a renewal
of a vow, the affirmation of the
community gathered, a prayer asking the Holy Spirit to
assist in living up to the responsibilities
made this day, the comfort and challenge of
scripture, and a concrete and visible sign that
reminds everyone that the covenant has
been made. The sacrament of Holy Communion
could be celebrated.
The participants in these covenants would be affiliated with
our congregation in
some direct way. The pastor of the
congregation would work with couples in the
development of a covenant. The covenants would be
recorded in the official records of
the congregation.
As in a marriage covenant that takes place at Lakeview,
there would be costs
associated with any other covenant. Fees would be
considered based on the Lakeview
Wedding Planning Policy.
After months of study and prayerful discussion, a desire for
the Lakeview
congregation to be safe and inclusive for all
people to come and receive God’s love and
an understanding that not everyone can be
in agreement with these positions, the
Lakeview
Human Sexuality Committee moves that the following resolution be adopted
and implemented by the Lakeview
Congregation Council and then by the voting
members of the congregation at a special
congregational meeting.
Be
it resolved that:
The Congregation of Lakeview Lutheran Church,
formation and affirmation of household covenants
with these understandings:
The formation and affirmation of household covenants would
involve couples,
either heterosexual or homosexual, who desire
to covenant with one another to offer
stability to their life together and who wish to
have the faith community at Lakeview
recognize their commitment and support them in
their relationship. Examples of such
covenants would include;
• Senior couples who have developed friendships and special
relationships, but for
financial,
health and/or family reasons they do not wish to marry, but their
companionship
is something they desire to honor, respect, and more publicly
acknowledge.
• Couples who may be contemplating marriage in the future, but
are looking for an
alternative
to marriage or a period of betrothal, and may wish to share property
and/or
raise children.
• Couples who may not be able to choose legal marriage because
disability funding
or
other public financial sources would be affected and would prevent their
relationship
from surviving.
• Gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or trans-gendered couples who wish
for the stability that
comes
with committed relationships.
These covenants would use the tradition of covenant
formation and affirmation
found in scripture, perhaps most clearly in
Joshua 24 and in the frequent covenants that
God
makes with the people in the Hebrew texts. All services of affirmation would be
in
line with Lutheran Liturgy as found in ELCA
publications. All covenant affirmations
would involve recalling the history of the
relationship, a call to commitment, a vow or a
renewal of a vow, the affirmation of the
community gathered, a prayer asking the Holy
Spirit
to assist in living up to the responsibilities made this day, the comfort and
challenge of scripture, and a concrete and
visible sign that reminds everyone that the
covenant has been made. The sacrament of Holy
Communion could be celebrated.
This resolution is in keeping with the value of hospitality
and outreach, which
shapes the community of
who come with the desire to live as people
who are faithful to their baptismal call to
study scripture, pray, live the Ten
Commandments, faithfully attend worship, participate
in the community and work for peace and
justice in the world as found in the ELCA
order for Holy Baptism.