FIRST UM MARKS 30TH ANNIVERSARY
Oneonta 'Reconciling
Congregation' Ramps
Up Vs. Ban On Gays
By JENNIFER HILL • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com
ONEONTA – It will be a bittersweet celebration.
On Sunday, May 5, Oneonta’s First United Methodist Church will celebrate its 30th anniversary as a “Reconciling congregation,” sanctioning same-sex weddings and gay clergy.
But the milestone comes right as the United Methodist Church’s Judicial Council, the church’s legal arm, has agreed April 26 to mostly uphold a “Traditional Plan” approved by the church’s General Conference Feb. 26 in St. Louis, which banned same-sex weddings and gay clergy.
The local church plans anniversary events each Sunday in May and, as urged by the Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN), will explore ways “to rise and resist.”
“We have a strong legacy here, and we want to have it strengthen and deepen,” said the pastor, Rev. Marti Swords-Horrell.
