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London: The Church of Scotland has approved the
appointment of an openly homosexual minister the latest
case of tensions over sexuality to prompt division in
the Anglican Communion.
The church's ruling body voted on May 23, 2009 by 326 to
267 to support the appointment of the Rev. Scott Rennie,
37, who was previously married to a woman and is now in
a relationship w ith a man.
Rennie was first appointed as a minister 10 years ago,
but has faced opposition from some critics since he
moved to a church in Aberdeen, Scotland, last year.
The case threatens to divide Scottish religious leaders
and follows tensions within the worldwide 77 million
member Anglican Communion. About 900 elders and
ministers took part in a debate on Rennie's case, but
many chose to abstain from casting a vote.
Anglican have conducted lengthy debate over sexuality
issues since the Episcopal Church the Anglican body in
the U.S. consecrated the first openly gay bishop, V.
Gene Robinson of New Hampshire in 2003.
Rennie said he believed religious conservatives were
behind attempts to oust him from his post. "The same
talk was about when women were ordained and I think that
argument suits those that don't want any change," he
told.
Following the vote to back Rennie, Scotland's Equality
and Human Rights Commission said the Church of Scotland
had proven itself to be "a modern church for a modern
Scotland.”
Protesters had lobbied the Kirk - the Church of
Scotland's ruling executive over Rennie's case, saying
his appointment was not consistent with the teachings of
the Bible.
"We are absolutely opposed to that on the basis of what
God has to say about homosexuality in the Bible," one
opponent, Pastor Jack Bell of the Zion Baptist Church in
Glasgow, Scotland, said.
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