Homosexual caucus woos NCC leaders By Parker T. Williamson The Layman Online Thursday, November 18, 1999 Rev. Robert W. Edgar, newly elected General Secretary CLEVELAND – A breakfast hosted by the Interfaith Assembly of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Caucuses and Affirming Organizations attracted leaders of the National Council of Churches as they gathered for their General Assembly meeting at the Sheraton Hotel. Attending the event was Rev. Robert W. Edgar, the NCC's newly elected successor to General Secretary Joan Brown Campbell. Edgar, formerly a Democratic member of Congress, is employed as president of Claremont School of Theology where he organized a center for the study of human sexuality. Dr. Lois Sprague, director of Claremont's Center for Sexuality, introduced her lesbian partner as one of Edgar's former students and voiced her enthusiasm for his leadership. Rev. Paul Sherry, first recipient of "Paul Sherry Award" Rev. Paul Sherry, former president of the United Church of Christ and an NCC leader for many years, was honored by the group as the first recipient of its "Paul Sherry Award." The award will be given each year to a heterosexual church leader who has worked vigorously for homosexual rights causes. Speaking for the caucus, Rev. Gwynne Guibord, ecumenical officer of the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches, said the award is a "thank you to those who have stood with and for us." Visibly moved by the award, Sherry told the group that what he saw at the breakfast constitutes his "vision" of what the NCC will ultimately become. "I truly believe that through your efforts the way to the future will be open and God's purpose will be fulfilled," he said. Under Sherry's guidance the 1.4 million-member United Church of Christ has opened its doors to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered leadership. According to its congregational system, each local congregation determines its own policies regarding homosexuality. Andrew Young, NCC president-elect Support from Andrew Young NCC president-elect Andrew Young also attended the breakfast. He told the group that in the early days of the civil rights movement his two closest friends were gay men. They said to him that they realized his battle would be for racial justice and theirs would focus on gay rights but that they would support him in his work. In an apparent reference to a quid pro quo, Young said that in coming to this breakfast he was following through on his commitment to them. At a news conference following the breakfast, John Eby, a reporter from the American Baptist Church, asked Young how his commitment to the caucus would help him fulfill his responsibility to promote unity in the NCC. Young said: "I will give you the Billy Graham answer: God has forgiven them and therefore I must be willing to forgive. There is room for everybody." 'Hate crimes' and violence Noting the connection that Young appeared to be making between gay/lesbian issues and racial issues, an African American reporter asked Young to comment on the NCC's emphasis on "hate crimes," particularly white against black "hate crimes." The reporter noted that for every white act of violence against blacks there are nine black acts of violence against whites, and that when one considers black on black violence, the number quadruples. Young responded by quoting Martin Luther King: "Violence is the language of the unheard." He said he believed that every act of violence is the desperate act of a person whose voice is not being heard. Government policies are the root of our social problems, Young said. He noted that economic disparities and the plight of family farmers lead to violence. He said the government is often guilty of responding to violence with "police violence" and that society must find non-violent ways to deal with its problems. A reporter asked Young if he believed NCC churches should take a stand on the violence that is committed against the unborn. Young responded, saying that he knew of no church that advocates abortion.

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