Lutheran Services in America

Sweden's Lutheran Church decided Thursday to allow gay marriages in its places of worship, five months after they became legal. Nearly 70 percent of the 250 members of the Church of Sweden's synod voted to allow same-sex couples to marry in its congregations from November 1 and adopted a marriage rite for gay weddings, the church said in a statement. The Church of Sweden, which was the state church until 2000, had backed the parliament's adoption of the gay marriage law, which took effect on May 1. But it deferred its synod's decision on church weddings until now. Sweden, already a pioneer in giving ... Read Full Story

Sweden's Lutheran Church decided Thursday to allow gay marriages in its places of worship, five months after they became legal. Nearly 70 percent of the 250 members of the Church of Sweden's synod voted to allow same-sex couples to marry in its congregations from November 1 and adopted a marriage rite for gay weddings, the church said in a statement. The Church of Sweden, which was the state church until 2000, had backed the parliament's adoption of the gay marriage law, which took effect on May 1. But it deferred its synod's decision on church weddings until now. Sweden, already a pioneer in giving ... Read Full Story

The Church of Sweden on Thursday authorised the celebration of gay marriages, five months after they became legal, a spokeswoman said. Nearly 70 percent of the 250 members of the Lutheran church's synod voted in favour of allowing same-sex couples will be able to mary in its places of worship from November 1, the spokeswoman told AFP. The Lutheran Church, which was the state church until 2000, had backed the parliament's adoption of the gay marriage law, which took effect on May 1. But it deferred its synod's decision on church weddings until now. Sweden, already a pioneer in giving same-sex couples the right ... Read Full Story

Two smaller, more conservative U.S.-based Lutheran denominations are expressing disappointment in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's decision to open a wider door to gay clergy. The ELCA voted last week to lift a ban that prohibited sexually active gay and lesbian people from serving as ministers. Under the change, congregations will now be allowed to hire homosexuals in committed relationships as clergy. Before, gays and lesbians had to remain celibate to serve as pastors. The 4.7 million-member denomination, which took the actions in Minneapolis at its biennial meeting,became the largest U.S. Protestant denomination to take that step. The Rev. Gerald Kieschnick, president of ... Read Full Story

The survey question: "Homosexuals should have all the rights and privileges as other Americans." Pastors' support is at 90%, lay people around 60%. Thus, the study seems to disagree with an observation made in my text study group last week--to wit: "All those with a liberal bent have either left the church or become pastors." The study was conducted by Jim Burkee and Jeff Walz at Concordia University Wisconsin, a college of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (LCMS). (Disclosure: I participated in the survey.) The survey disclosed what everyone knows: The ELCA is "center-left," while the LCMS is "right-right." Read Full Story