Ordination Rules to Be Reconsidered
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CHICAGO — Clergy ordination rules that are part of a new unity pact between the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America will be reconsidered after questions from the national council of the 5.2-million-member Lutheran denomination.
The Lutheran-Episcopal pact requires that clergy be ordained in Episcopal fashion, by bishops in a line of “apostolic succession” traced back to the early church. Current Lutheran practice allows fellow pastors to ordain, and some Lutherans insist that this practice continue.
The Lutheran news service said the council told officials to consult Lutheran bishops and the Episcopalians about a new bylaw that would allow such exceptions, anticipating action at the Lutheran convention next August.
The Lutheran national council also rejected a proposal to loosen its ban on clergy living in committed homosexual relationships.
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