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Gay gag for the Church of Scotland
By: Nigel Robinson
Debate has been banned till 2011
Debate has been banned till 2011
Gay ministers will not be ordained in the Church Scotland for two years
Members of the Kirk have also been banned from publicly discussing the issue.
The official Church of Scotland ban was issued at the Kirk’s General Assembly and follows the appointment on Saturday of the Reverend Scott Dennie to the Ministry of Queen’s Church in Aberdeen.
Mr Dennie is an openly gay man who lives with his partner.
Although Mr Dennie’s appointment was approved by a vote of 326 to 267, an overture – or motion – was due to be discussed the following day which would have proposed banning openly gay ministers from being ordained in the Kirk.
However, a last-minute motion was agreed setting up the formation of a special commission to look into the issue of homosexual clergy in the Kirk.
The motion also carried a clause for a moratorium on any public discussion of the issue for two years, until the commission produces its report in 2011.
The motion was greeted angrily by those who had made the original overture.
The Reverend Ian Watson, a member of evangelical group Forward Together said: “"It seems to me we have the opportunity today to make a decision, not just make a decision ourselves, but allow our presbyteries to discuss, debate and reach a definitive decision."
However the ban was welcomed by some who feared that the debate over gay ministers was threatening to create a schism in the Church.
