Same-Sex Marriage Issue Causes Presbyterian Split

The split for the Anglicans over gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender issues may have been avoided, but a split did occur amongst the more conservative Presbyterian congregations, according to The Advocate. The most recent split, which occurred over same-sex marriage caused 20 more conservative congregations to leave the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) In the wake of the leave a more conservative group, the Evangelical Presbyterian church ahs voted to accept them.

The split that seems to be occurring in many of the more mainstream Christian denominations seems to be one over how the church will treat gay and lesbian members. Some allow them to be members of the clergy, others allow them full fellowship while others look the other way if they know. The more liberal Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) suffered from declining membership, while membership is on the rise in Fundamentalist and Evangelical churches. The split in the Anglican Church nearly occurred over the ordination of openly gay bishops, but the Presbyterian congregations left over the Presbyterian Church (USA) giving the ministers some discretion in same sex-marriages, which the organization opposes as a whole.

The split will likely continue to occur in other churches as the debate over same sex marriage rages on as a societal issue. At the core is how Christians interpret the Bible. Many social conservatives favor a literal interpretation of Biblical passages condemning gay and lesbian behavior. People who are socially liberal and Christian tend to believe those passages are outdated and in some cases culturally specific. The prime example is the verse that appears in Leviticus.

For the Anglicans the issue of a Christian split over same-sex marriages may be resolved temporarily, and the Presbyterian groups seem to be splintering over it, but the issue will likely be played out in other Christian venues. The rift itself would be unnecessary if a literal interpretation of the Bible were not insisted upon by fundamentalist Christians, but Christian congregations seen as being more concerned about Biblical morality will likely see an increase in membership if there is more tacit approval of same-sex marriages in certain situations.

Same-sex marriage stands to cause a rift in many other Christian churches along social liberal and social conservative lines. The Anglicans and the Presbyterians are the first two to be affected and many other denominations will probably face a similar split depending less on whether they do what they feel is right, but rather what political maneuverings will leave them with the most members.

Resources:

"Conservative Presbyterians Leave Church." The Advocate