iHOPE

Memorial Day

 

We showed a portion of this video in the service yesterday and several people asked about it. A good reminder of the sacrifice that is at the heart of Memorial Day. 

Letter from Erik Holm

Through all the discussion on the use of New Hope's facilities for same-sex weddings, it has been clear that Erik and I see this issue differently. That was clarified again when we both stood up front at the Pastors' Q&A and talked about our different perspectives. Many people said how helpful that was and how it modeled what we have been talking about: there will always be a differences in the church but the things that we have in common are far more compelling.

Following up on that, Erik put his thoughts in a letter. You can read it here. We'll also have some copies of it available in the Welcome area and include it in our next Weekly Update. Give it a read. Its just another reminder of why he is such a great pastor, leader and colleague. 

Questions & Answers About Our Recent Decision

There have been a lot of questions and concerns about our recent decision to expand the definition of marriage and allow for same-sex weddings at New Hope. I got LOTS of them at the May 10 Pastors Q&A. Here is a summary of what was asked and how I responded. 

Besides the Q&A, I included a summary of the congregational surveys that were taken online as well as at the Congregational Surveys. The new wedding policies are included, in case you are wondering about the wording.

What is not included are the thoughts I shared with Session before our meeting. Those were part of a previous post and that document can be found here. 

Why I Voted for Same-Sex Weddings at New Hope

There are a lot of questions about the recent Session decision. I wanted to address them directly. Before the meeting on May 9, I sent Session a summary of my thoughts about same-sex weddings. As Moderator, I can't advocate for a particular decision during the meeting. As a member of Session, I wanted to have a voice in the conversation. This was how I did that. If you have taken my classes over the years (or even just had a personal conversation with me) there is probably nothing here that is surprising. Nonetheless, I wanted to provide a quick (4 pages!) recap of why I believe this was the right course to take.

Since I wrote this, Session made their decision. I voted for it. My next post will address some of my answers to the questions people have raised since then.