ELLENSBURG, Wa. — An openly gay Methodist pastor was acquitted by a jury of 13 fellow ministers March 20 after she admitted to her bishop that she was living with another woman. The Rev. Karen Dammann, former pastor of Ellensburg United Methodist Church in Washington state, could have been defrocked for telling her bishop in 2001 that she was living in a “partnered, convenanted, homosexual relationship.”
Instead, the jury found Dammann not guilty of charges of “practices declared by the United Methodist Church to be incompatible with Christian teachings,” even though the church’s Book of Discipline forbids “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” from serving as clergy. The jury said it found no “clear and convincing” evidence that Dammann was violating church law with her partner, Meredith Savage. Jurors pointed to church statements that called for inclusiveness, which prohibits “every semblance of discrimination.”
The decision is likely to influence debate at the Methodists’ upcoming quadrennial General Conference, which will convene April 27 in Pittsburgh. (TAB)
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