Gay Austin woman denied bid to become deacon
She claims board rejected her because she is an open lesbian.
A gay Austin woman fighting to become an ordained minister in the United Methodist Church was dealt a setback Tuesday when a regional board of church officials did not recommend her for ordi- nation.
Mary Ann Barclay, 28, had been working to become a deacon for eight years. She interviewed for hours Tuesday with a board of the Southwest Texas Conference in Kerrville but was told she did not articulate some aspects of the faith well enough for them to recommend her for ordination.
But Barclay said she thinks the reason the board turned her down is that she is an open lesbian. She came out as a lesbian to a lower level ordination board about a year ago, creating a stir in Texas’ Methodist community.
The church’s Book of Discipline prohibits “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” from being certified candidates for ordination. Barclay’s church, University United Methodist Church in Austin, contends that the policy is discrimination.
“I’m not going to affirm them or support them in any way by changing my behavior or articulating my life or my behavior because of my church’s discriminatory poli-
cies,” Barclay said.
The board of ordained ministry had pre- emptively voted to remove Barclay from the ordination track in June. She was placed back on track after Bishop James Dorffff overruled the vote in December.
University United Methodist senior pastor the Rev. John Elford called Tuesday’s decision disappointing but expected.
“To me, it is an issue of justice in including everyone that is involved with this ministry,” Elford said.
The senior pastor at a San Antonio Methodist church said he agreed with the board’s decision. Northwest Hills United Methodist Church pastor David Trawick said that allowing an openly gay person to be ordained would be “outside the bounds” of church doctrine.
“I feel like if we have a church law, we have to adhere to it,” Trawick said.
Barclay said the board did not question her Tuesday about her sexuality. It came up only once, she said, when the board asked why she changed her last name. She answered that she took the name of her wife, Annanda Barclay, after the two were married in Maryland last year.
Barclay will continue to work at University United Methodist, where she is director of youth and justice ministries. Elford said she has the full sup- port of the congregation, which is working to try to change the Methodist church’s rules on sexuality.
Despite the setback, Barclay said she was happy to have been recommended by the district board of ordination. More than that, she said, she has been overjoyed by supportive messages from church members around the world.
“This is not a situation in which I am one of a few,” Barclay said. “I am one of many who believe in a different kind of church. There is so much support. There are so many people in my shoes who have been wounded by the church.”