SEATTLE -- Methodist congregations in Washington state are calm - but deeply divided - as they ponder a church jury's decision to acquit an Ellensburg pastor of a charge that she violated church law by living openly in a lesbian relationship.
Pastors at United Methodist churches in Yakima, Toppenish, Aberdeen and Tacoma told The Associated Press that their congregations seemed to react favorably, although they knew some people were upset by Saturday's verdict in favor of the Rev. Karen Dammann.
"I was pleased people showed up on Sunday. We still had church, we still are family," said the Rev. Bonnie Chandler-Warren of Wesley United Methodist Church in Yakima.
"There are people I'm aware who have gay or lesbian children who were overjoyed, absolutely thrilled, and there were people who were hurting, confused, feeling their church has let them down," she said in a telephone interview Tuesday.
There's no sign yet of turmoil like that in the Episcopal Church, where several conservative parishes threatened to break ties with the church after an openly gay bishop was consecrated in November.
But the Methodist pastors caution these are early days and more painful conversations are ahead, especially when debate on homosexuality flares up again at their church's international General Conference, opening April 27 in Pittsburgh.
Dammann was tried in Bothell by a church court from the Pacific Northwest Conference, which represents Washington and northern Idaho.
Eleven members of the 13-pastor jury said Saturday that they could find no declaration in the church's Book of Discipline, taken as a whole, that the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching. Two other jurors were undecided. Dammann was retained in good standing.
In Kennewick, the people of First United Methodist Church are split roughly in half by the decision, said the Rev. Chuck Hindman.
"It's one of those things that people seem to be pretty much set in how they feel about things, it's just that they don't agree," he said, "and so the challenge is for us to learn to respect each other and our differences."
Hindman worries that a church might be forced to accept a gay or lesbian pastor.
"That's a real hard issue for me, because I have loved the congregations that I have served and none (of them) has been, I think, ready for a gay or lesbian pastor," he said. "There's a consensus in our congregation that everyone is welcome, but also pretty strong consensus that we don't want a gay or lesbian pastor here."
In Toppenish, the Rev. Larry Warren reported no directly negative comments in his discussions with some of the members at Toppenish United Methodist Church.
"In Bible study, the comment came that most of our understanding is that most everything Jesus said was about including people in the kingdom," Warren said. "But, it's not an easy issue, especially for some of the older generation."
The Rev. Wayne J. Schneider at Aberdeen United Methodist Church on the Pacific coast said his congregation includes gays and lesbians and several parishioners have made favorable comments.
"One of the beautiful things about our denomination is that we are inclusive," Schneider said, "and this is a step forward to underscore that belief.
"We need to come together and do the things that God wants us to do, one of which is not going to trial against each other," he said.
In Marysville, north of Everett, Dr. Tom Albright, senior pastor at Marysville United Methodist Church, said the issue has been openly discussed.
"What I said Sunday morning is that we have people of different minds, but I hope we are of one heart," Albright said.
"It's difficult for the church to face the issue," he said. "It's a tough time for people."
At the First United Methodist Church in Tacoma, the Rev. Monty Smith said "the large majority was not only supportive but delighted in the outcome of the trial."
"There was a sense that this was a great day for Karen Dammann but also a great day for the church and for the world, that the church had stepped up to its role of compassion," he said.
Smith's church has joined nine other Washington congregations in the Reconciling Ministries Network. The "reconciling" churches - 192 nationwide - welcome people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or have changed genders.
The Dammann decision is expected to spark renewed controversy when the church's international General Conference opens in Pittsburgh, with the church stance on homosexuality on the agenda.
The top decision-making body of the nation's third-largest church has struggled publicly with the issue since 1972.
With only six votes among nearly 1,000, delegates from Washington and northern Idaho won't have much clout. The Pacific Northwest Conference is considered more liberal than others.
The Rev. Elaine Stanovsky, who heads the region's delegation, said her group is working hard to interpret the Dammann decision to the General Conference.
"This decision has caused a lot of turbulence in the church and it isn't new turbulence, it's familiar. We've been there before," she said Tuesday. "The challenge of the church is to stay in dialogue until we have a clear unifying discernment about God's will in this matter."