Exploring the Lived Religious Experiences of Gay and Lesbian Ordained Clergy in the United Methodist Church
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University of Denver Digital Commons @ DU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 1-1-2019 Exploring the Lived Religious Experiences of Gay and Lesbian Ordained Clergy in the United Methodist Church Tracy Allen Temple University of Denver Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd Part of the New Religious Movements Commons Recommended Citation Temple, Tracy Allen, "Exploring the Lived Religious Experiences of Gay and Lesbian Ordained Clergy in the United Methodist Church" (2019). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1627. https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/1627 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at Digital Commons @ DU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ DU. For more information, please contact [email protected],[email protected]. Exploring the Lived Religious Experiences of Gay and Lesbian Ordained Clergy in the United Methodist Church ______________ A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the University of Denver and the Iliff School of Theology Joint PhD Program University of Denver _____________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy ____________ by Tracy Temple June 2019 Advisor: Katherine Turpin ©Copyright by Tracy Temple 2019 All Rights Reserved Author: Tracy Temple Title: Exploring the Lived Religious Experiences of Gay and Lesbian Ordained Clergy in the United Methodist Church Advisor: Katherine Turpin Degree Date: June 2019 Abstract The United Methodist Church (UMC) as an institution has strict language against lesbian and gay people and against the ordination of the lesbian and gay people. Prior research has focused on how denominations and congregations discuss issues around sexuality, how attitudes have shifted around issues of sexuality, and how to provide spiritual care for the LGBTQ+ community. This qualitative study interviewed lesbian and gay ordained elders in the UMC to learn about their experiences of serving as clergy people in the UMC even though there are prohibitive statements in church documents. Firstly, the interviews revealed that the participants feel loved and called by God and are attempting to live into their vocation. Secondly, they have ways of negotiating in the church, which include strategically deciding to whom they reveal their sexuality, the language they use in communicating their truth, serving in extension ministries, and feeling the pressure to do good work. Finally, cultural shifts have helped with the negotiating power of the participants. A final theme discusses why the participants stay in the church. The participants stay in the UMC because of relationships they have formed and it is their theological home, they see themselves as prophetic witnesses and they have hope in progress. This study reveals that lesbian and gay clergy are not incompatible with Christian teaching, but genuinely living into their vocation and serving God. This research provides the space for lesbian and gay clergy to tell their stories in hopes that LGBTQ+ might gain more credibility as religious leaders in the church. ii Table of Contents Chapter One: Introduction .............................................................................................. 1 Review of Prior Research..................................................................................... 3 Chapter Two: Methodology ............................................................................................ 8 Phenomenology Design ....................................................................................... 8 Research Question ............................................................................................. 11 Sampling Method .............................................................................................. 12 Data Collection .................................................................................................. 13 Credibility and Trustworthiness ......................................................................... 14 Analysis ............................................................................................................. 15 Chapter Three: Theory .................................................................................................. 19 Chapter Four: United Methodist Church and Homosexuality ........................................ 29 Before the Restrictive Language ........................................................................ 30 Initial Period of Conflict .................................................................................... 34 Hardening the Positions ..................................................................................... 37 The Church Begins Responding to Cultural Changes ......................................... 39 Global Nature of the UMC ................................................................................. 48 Moving Forward ................................................................................................ 51 Chapter Five: Loved and Called by God ....................................................................... 57 Chapter Six: Ways of Negotiating ................................................................................. 74 Selective in Coming Out as a Way of Negotiating .............................................. 74 Communicating One’s Truth as a Way of Negotiating ........................................ 81 Extension Ministries as a Way of Negotiating .................................................... 86 Doing Good Work as a Way of Negotiating ........................................................ 93 Cultural Changes Shift Negotiating Power ......................................................... 98 Chapter Seven: Why Stay ........................................................................................... 105 Relationships and Creating a Theological Home .............................................. 109 Prophetic Witnesses ......................................................................................... 116 Hope in Progress .............................................................................................. 120 Chapter Eight: Conclusion .......................................................................................... 125 Limitations and Future Research ...................................................................... 130 Implications for the Church Community .......................................................... 132 Bibliography ............................................................................................................... 140 Appendix: Interview Protocol ..................................................................................... 152 iii Chapter One: Introduction In the guiding principles of The United Methodist Church (UMC) found in the Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church, church policy declares, that “The United Methodist Church does not condone the practice of homosexuality and consider this practice incompatible with Christian teaching,”1 and continues by stating that while persons set apart by the Church for ordained ministry are subject to all the frailties of the human condition and the pressures of society, they are required to maintain the highest standards of holy living in the world. The practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching. Therefore self-avowed practicing homosexuals are not be certified as candidates, ordained as ministers, or appointed to serve in The United Methodist Church.2 Despite this prohibition, gay and lesbian ordained clergy in the United Methodist Church serve their communities and the world. This research seeks to address the personal and public negotiations in which gay and lesbian ordained clergy are engaged as they occupy this prohibited space, and the potential violence this causes to their understanding of self through the process. The United Methodist church has been debating, adding to, and taking away, language about the lives of people who identify with the LGBTQ community since the Evangelical United Brethren Church and the Methodist Church merged to form the United Methodist Church. 1 The United Methodist Church, The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church 2016 (Nashville: The United Methodist Publishing House, 2016) 113. 2 Ibid, 226. 1 This project arose from my desire to provide space for lesbian and gay ordained elders in the United Methodist Church (UMC) to share their experiences of serving the church that still has language in the institution’s Book of Discipline, or the book of rules and guidelines for the institutional church, declaring lesbian and gay people incompatible with Christian teaching. I am interested in exploring and learning from the lived experiences of lesbian and gay clergy serving in the United Methodist Church as heard from lesbian and gay clergy. For this project, I used qualitative research methods in interviewing participants serving the United Methodist Church (UMC) who also identify as lesbian or gay. The interviews were analyzed to draw out themes that were evident in the interviews. These themes are explored in following chapters. My interest in this project developed as I reflected on my own experiences in the UMC as a gay man and my exploration of potentially entering the candidacy process to be ordained in the UMC. I ultimately abandoned the