Over the next few months, two other major Protestant denominations will have similar debates over gay clergy. At this point, however, the outcome in Marion County apparently will differ from that of Grace Episcopal.

The 2.3 million members of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the 4.7 million members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America are weighing constitutional changes that could sanction the ordination of homosexuals in open same-sex relationships.

In June, 54 percent of the Presbyterians' national General Assembly supported a proposed amendment to the church's constitution, the "Book of Order," that strikes language mandating that ordained ministers, elders and deacons "lead a life in obedience to Scripture and in conformity to the historic confessional standards of the church."

Those standards include "the requirement to live either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman, or chastity in singleness."

The proposed amendment substitutes instead a provision for ordained leaders to "pledge themselves to live lives obedient to Jesus Christ the Head of the Church, striving to follow where he leads through the witness of the Scriptures, and to understand the Scriptures through the instruction of the Confessions.

In so doing, they declare their fidelity to the standards of the Church." The change must be approved by a majority, or 87, of the Presbyterian Church's 173 regional presbyteries across the country. They must submit their votes by May 18. Marion County's Presbyterian churches fall under the Presbytery of St. Augustine, which represents 64 churches in 19 North Florida counties.

The St. Augustine Presbytery on Feb. 14 rejected the amendment by a 75-68 vote of those churches' eligible ministers and elders. Nationally, according to the Rev. Paul Hooker, executive presbyter and stated clerk for the St. Augustine Presbytery, 45 other presbyteries have voted down the change, while 31 have supported it. Presbyweb.com, a Web site offering news about the Presbyterian Church, pegged the latest vote at 59 noes and 37 ayes as of Friday.

Hooker said the Presbyterian Church has spent 30 years debating this issue, which in this instance also applies to heterosexual clergy. The close vote in St. Augustine likely reflects the sentiment in the church nationally, he said.

As with the bitter dispute in the Episcopalian church, traditionalists of the Presbyterian faith argue that much higher standards apply to ordained leaders than to laymen and that anything other than complying with the current language runs counter to Bible instruction.

On the other hand, their foes maintain the church should reflect changes in contemporary society and not base its position on a handful of biblical passages that speak specifically to homosexuality.

The Rev. Raymond Guterman, senior pastor of the 151-year-old First Presbyterian Church of Ocala, said their debate differs from the Episcopalians because Presbyterians have not publicly consecrated gay clergy.

Guterman believes the amendment will ultimately fail. But even it passes, he thinks the uproar will be minimal. His theologically "conservatively moderate" congregation has been well informed about the issue, said Guterman, and the desire to accommodate gay clergy appears more pressing in major urban areas than in a small, conservative community like Ocala.

Moreover, while some parishioners might be upset if it does pass, the amendment likely will not fracture his 950-member church like Grace Episcopal, Guterman said. For one thing, the people who recommend potential elders and deacons would not do anything differently. For another, he would not lead a revolt.

"If a pastor feels that he or she can no longer stay within a denomination theologically, the pastor should leave without encouraging members of the church to go with him or her," he said. "It's not the pastor's church, but the Lord's church. Of course, I respect those who think differently because circumstances vary," Guterman said..

Meanwhile, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America will mull over a slightly different variation of the issue in August. On Feb. 19 a task force formed by the church released the findings of a seven-year study into sexuality, an offshoot of which was a separate report on whether homosexuals in open relationships could become ministers. Homosexuals were always permitted to be ordained in the Lutheran faith, the report noted.

But church doctrine required them to remain celibate and strictly prohibited anyone "who engages in same-gender sexual intimacy" from becoming a minister.

The Lutherans' conclusion, according to the study, was a "way forward" to ordain people in "publicly accountable, lifelong, monogamous, same-gender relationships" as ministers.

Making that happen hinges on the Lutherans' Churchwide Assembly adopting a four-part resolution at their meeting in August. In order to change the policy, the assembly must first agree whether the church is committed to allow congregations and synods to accept open, monogamous gay relationships.

Delegates then must decide if the church is committed to permit people in such relationships to serve as clergy. Next, the assembly will consider to mandate that all church members will "bear the burdens of the other, and respect the bound consciences of all," including those opposed to accepting gay clergy.

Finally, Lutheran leaders, in order to respect the "lack of consensus" on the matter, will weigh offering "structured flexibility" so congregations and synods have a local option to approve gay ministers.

Adam Bost, spokesman for the church's Florida Synod, which represents 203 Evangelical Lutheran churches statewide, including five in Marion County, said the report is now under review by the Church Council, which has the option to amend it.

Congregations and individual members had an opportunity to offer opinions on the question, but the only vote will be conducted by the Churchwide Assembly, which also could revise the report. A simple majority is needed to adopt the resolution regarding allowing homosexuals to serve as clergy, he said.

Bost said he did not know what the fallout would be, but he doubted Florida congregations would splinter. "I don't foresee that happening," he said. "In Florida, we've always agreed to disagree."

That philosophy allows most major Protestant faiths to persevere despite liberal/conservative divisions on issues of faith, some of which stretch back to at least the 1950s, said Dr. Laura Olson, a political science professor at Clemson University who has studied churches wrestling with the gay clergy issue.

Protestant denominations, she said, have been debating homosexuality in general, and the ordination of gay clergy in particular, for a generation - with varying levels of discord among their ranks. But it's rare when things grow so strident to actually pull the church apart.

"Most dissenters just decide to coexist as peacefully as possible under the same 'big tent' despite their differences," Olson said. "My hunch is that we will see an increasing acceptance of openly gay clergy with committed partners throughout mainline Protestantism as the next few decades go by.."

That, Olson noted, would be "highly consistent" with an openness to diversity that is a hallmark of mainline Protestantism. For example, these churches stood at the forefront of accepting women clergy decades ago, and Olson expects a similar phenomenon will unfold around homosexual ministers.

"Will that lead some individuals, and even congregations, to break ties with their denominations? Yes. It's already happened," she observed. "Will this sort of exodus be the death knell of mainline Protestantism?

No, because if there's sufficient support among laity and congregations within a denomination to allow gay clergy to serve in the first place, there's enough strength in numbers to sustain the denomination even if it ends up being a bit smaller and leaner than it was in the past." Olson said one other denomination to watch closely around this issue is the United Methodist Church. Methodists also have been dealing with homosexuality for a long while, but their "conversation" has not proceeded quite as far as that of the Lutherans, Presbyterians, or Episcopalians.

Guterman, for one, just hopes churches would get back to the core mission. "Like many pastors," he said, "it is my prayer that our denomination can begin to spend less of our time and energy on this issue and thus more time and energy praying and thinking about really important church issues like mission, evangelism, life-style stewardship, Christian education and social justice."

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