A Methodist pastor who was disciplined for officiating at his son’s same-sex wedding will soon find out whether he can remain an ordained minister.
The Rev. Frank Schaefer was suspended and then defrocked last year after refusing to promise to refrain from conducting same-sex marriages. The action against Schaefer – who officiated at his son’s same-sex wedding in Massachusetts – was taken after a church trial in Pennsylvania.
An appeals panel restored Schaefer’s pastoral credentials in June, but that decision is being challenged. The United Methodist Church’s Judicial Council, the denomination’s highest judicial body, heard arguments in the case Wednesday and could issue its ruling next week. Its decisions are final.
The United Methodist Church accepts gay and lesbian members but rejects the practice of homosexuality as “incompatible with Christian teaching.” Methodist clergy who perform same-sex unions risk punishment ranging from a reprimand to suspension to defrocking.
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