Minnesota Church Closes Over Gay Rights Row
The Grace Community United Church of Christ in St. Paul, MN, is confirmed rumors that it's looking for new digs after a majority of the congregation left over the pastor's support for equality.
From the Star-Tribune:
A St. Paul church faced with closing after most of the congregation left over the pastor's support of gay marriage said Friday it's leaving its worship space and will look for a new church home.
Grace Community United Church of Christ, the only UCC church in Minnesota with a predominantly black congregation, declined to extend its Saturday deadline to raise about $200,000 to pay off a high-interest loan and legal fees, said church pastor the Rev. Oliver White (pictured).
After days of tense negotiating this week between the church and the investor holding the loan, Grace leadership decided it did not want to keep paying to stay in the beige stucco building on the east side of St. Paul.
Rev. White says that he has received about $55,000 in donations and hopes to buy a new church that will welcome all people. He also says that this experience, though trying, only reinvigorated his faith.
"I'm overwhelmed with a lot of belief in the power of humankind," he told the paper. "It's been an amazing display of human kindness. There will be sadness [when the congregation leaves]. But it's still a building. We are the church. We don't have to be in that building to be Grace Community Church."
those black people are such hypocrites. Civil rights for them but no one else. You silly blacks stop hating
Posted by: kevind | Jun 29, 2012 9:47:19 PM
Sounds good. If youre that ignorant, then shut it down.
Posted by: DrJWL | Jun 29, 2012 10:04:07 PM
You did the right thing. "Silly", or"ignorant", the blacks are smart enough to know that asses aren't for F-ing.
Posted by: Jet | Jun 29, 2012 10:30:01 PM
I wish I had known sooner. A donations link would have been useful. It is terrible that all those people decided to abandon their faith over marriage equality.
Posted by: lessthan | Jun 29, 2012 10:36:27 PM
Better no church than a gay-friendly church. That'll show 'em.
Posted by: Arco Iris | Jun 29, 2012 10:49:52 PM
You can take "marriage equality" and stick it where the sun don't shine. I'm so sick of those two words being used together. Equal to what is the question? "no church than a gay-friendly church" Where are you Nazi's hiding?
Posted by: Paul | Jun 29, 2012 11:07:15 PM
Glad to hear it. Supportive or not, religion poisons everything, and the fewer churches there are the better.
Posted by: rob | Jun 29, 2012 11:35:35 PM
"You silly blacks stop hating"
How can you use racism to call out homophobia? Its like using gasoline to put out a fire. Newsflash - may gay people are black. What's silly is that you act like gay is synonymous with white and that homophobia is a black problem. The Episcopal Church, a predominately white denomination, is splitting over this issue. However, in your small mind, blacks are the problem.
I swear! As a black gay man, it so hard to be united over issues like gay marriage when so many white gays have no problem espousing racist bull@(*#.
Posted by: QandE | Jun 29, 2012 11:38:43 PM
"You did the right thing. "Silly", or"ignorant", the blacks are smart enough to know that asses aren't for F-ing."
Wow, is that for real? I'm hoping that's a fake post.
Posted by: Mike B. | Jun 29, 2012 11:45:58 PM
Mike B. Well, anal sex is fake F-ing? Face reality. Nothing sophisticated about a Fudgesicle.
Posted by: Paul | Jun 29, 2012 11:54:06 PM
Be nice to black boys. Some could own you.
Posted by: John | Jun 30, 2012 12:17:54 AM
To be fair, they were in one hot mess financially before any of this started, so this is a blessing, they get to walk away from all that, too.
Posted by: Randal Oulton | Jun 30, 2012 12:20:30 AM
@ QANDE: The Episcopal Church, a predominately white denomination,
through which many black methodist churches have no problem claiming apostolic succession, so put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Posted by: Randal Oulton | Jun 30, 2012 12:22:00 AM
Paul too bad you don't live in a country where there's real healthcare, otherwise you wouldn't have had to go off your meds 'cause your ass is broke.
Posted by: Randal Oulton | Jun 30, 2012 12:27:02 AM
yo yo. big ups to the preacher guy for doing the right thing.
I personally have been burned to much by supposed "Christians" to be eager to champion Christianity too much, but the preacher guy here seems like he could be that rare VERY RARE species:
A REAL Christian, as in a follower of Christ.
If so, I'm impressed. But I'm not holding my breath either.
Posted by: just_a_guy | Jun 30, 2012 12:33:45 AM
Rather than losing a church, perhaps people are gaining an opportunity to consider whether they really believe all that stuff, or can sleep well having a holy book that contains anti-gay statements (among other things).
Many good people do not believe, and if it matters to anyone, many of them are black. The movement is growing. Check it out.
Posted by: Randy | Jun 30, 2012 12:43:00 AM
Randal: Get out the old meds defense. You're pathetic. And I was confirmed Episcopalian. But this christianity, and gay marriage discourse if for drips at a cocktail party. Wow, did being gay get boring.
Posted by: Paul | Jun 30, 2012 12:50:18 AM
Homophobia is colorblind folks. However, all of the homophobes are a bunch of lying hypocritical scumbags to me. The white homophobes, the black homophobes, the Hispanic homophobes, and the Asian homophobes are all the same bunch of people to me. Pure and simple, they're scum.
People who use racism to fight homophobia are scumbags too.
At the end of the day, don't forget gay people come in all colors, ethnicities and nationalities.
Posted by: Mel Smith | Jun 30, 2012 12:57:27 AM
Man, the trolls just keep coming here trying to disrupt things. Looks like they're succeeding. Let's try to ignore them. They really hate that.
Posted by: Berijeck | Jun 30, 2012 1:04:21 AM
I am disappointed at the hate in some responses to this. This preacher was willing to risk everything to be loving and inclusive, getting the heart of Jesus' teachings. And the noise in response is racism and even homophobia? One doesn't have to be religious to get what being spiritual is, but not being religious doesn't mean one has any better values.
Posted by: Dave | Jun 30, 2012 1:14:11 AM
Imagine...black people boycotting over another discriminated group attaining right. Wow...JUST WOW.
Posted by: alistenacrush | Jun 30, 2012 1:22:52 AM
The African American community today does not know their history. If they did, they'd think twice about being the most vocal anti gay voices. My straight friends constantly tell me how fascinated they are that a community that should understand what inequality means is the one promoting so much injustice.
Posted by: Dynex | Jun 30, 2012 1:24:47 AM
Was it not the same Bible that advocated slavery, with passages noting how they claimed black population was lesser than? was it not the same Bible that was used to advance segregation and mistreatment of Black people?
At a certain point, black people need to take a careful look at themselves. Right now, the general population see's that as mascots for opposing gay rights. They can hide behind a Church all they want, but we as an LBGT are having to suffer because a demographic boldly and proudly stands against our rights every chance we get.
Posted by: IndieMusicFan | Jun 30, 2012 1:27:16 AM
I've recently read a plethora of articles that note the influence and impact of the black church and how, in many areas, they have been very intrusmental and mobilizing a base/region/area to put a halt in our rights. One article noted Ohio and the anti gay discrimination laws, and how the black churches encouraged their members to write all their elected officials about the law. The law would extend non discrimination employment regulations for LGBT. It was startling but eye opening.
While we as the gay community have chosen the face of homophobia to be that of a right wing Republican Conservative, we refuse to face the realities of the growing influence of a Democratic element that is intensely against us and our rights, and that's the power of the black church. Partially, we've been to uncomfortable to acknowledge it, but something needs to be done to address this issue. Leaving the black church alone while we tackle Mormons, right wing Conservatives, hicks, Islam, and everyone else under the sun is selling ourselves extremely short.
Posted by: USC Trojan Fan | Jun 30, 2012 1:31:59 AM
My Butt Belongs to Jet. Apparently.
Posted by: UFFDA | Jun 30, 2012 1:41:04 AM