Church of Scotland to decide fate of gay minister

The Church of Scotland’s General Assembly will today decide whether to uphold the appointment of a gay minister to an Aberdeen church.

The Rev Scott Rennie’s appointment to Queen’s Cross has been backed by most of the church’s members and the Aberdeen Presbytery but faces strong opposition from conservatives within Queen’s Cross and the wider Kirk.

More than 5,000 Church members are believed to have signed a petition calling for the General Assembly to overturn the appointment of Rev Rennie, who plans to live in the manse with his male partner.

The Fellowship of Confessing Churches, a fellowship of conservative congregations in the Church of Scotland, said his appointment would “publicly declare such [homosexual] behaviour as acceptable and honourable for a leader in Christ’s church”.

“This would mark a historic departure for our Church from the teaching of the catholic Christian faith, and a radical deviation from the clear Scriptural pattern that recognises the sanctity of marriage between one man and one woman as the only proper place for sexual intimacy—a pattern which our Church has hitherto always publicly affirmed,” the fellowship said in a statement.

Forward Together, an evangelical group within the Church of Scotland, is urging General Assembly not to vote in support of the Presbytery of Aberdeen, warning that Rev Rennie’s appointment would “seriously undermine” the peace and unity of the Church.

Writing in a Scottish newspaper this week, the Chairman of Forward Together, the Rev Steven Reid, called upon the General Assembly to uphold the Scripture.

“When we begin to examine the Bible’s teaching on the persistent practice of homosexual activity we find that it is consistently prohibited and condemned. It is not the case, as has been suggested, that this is based on one or two selective biblical texts, but rather the overarching teaching of the Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation,” he wrote.

Rev Reid went on to criticise the Church’s decision to hear Rev Rennie’s case before a petition from the Presbytery of Lochcarron and Skye outlining the Bible’s position on matters of marriage and human sexuality.

“Assembly organisers state that there is a danger that if the Overture is heard first the outcome might influence the decision of Mr Rennie’s case. Many commissioners however, question the logic of this position.

He added, “It is the hope of Forward Together, and the hope of many rank and file members of the Church of Scotland, that the Assembly will support the clear petition of the Presbytery of Lochcarron and Skye and uphold the appeal against the induction of Rev Scott Rennie.”