KANSAS CITY, MO — The United Methodist Church agreed members of the LGBTQ community can serve congregations as pastors.
“We took out that part of the language that we have been fighting about for 52 years,” said Adam Hamitlon, senior pastor at Resurrection, A United Methodist Church.
Resurrection has six area locations and is the largest United Methodist congregation in the country.
Pastor Hamilton was in Charlotte, North Carolina, for Wednesday’s vote to eliminate the church's longstanding on LGBTQ clergy.
The delegates overwhelmingly approved to eliminate the ban.
Pastor Hamilton says it's time to fill the seats and welcome everyone.
“The thought that our denomination will no longer hurt people, I think, will be a source of great joy,” Hamilton said.
That's especially important for people of faith, according to Justice Horn, chairperson of the Kansas City LGBTQ Commission.
"Rightfully so, it's a way for people to be a part of church leadership, have a relationship with God and really have equal access like everyone else in the community,” said Horn.
Not every United Methodist Church agrees with the change.
“So in the United Methodist Church, there were divisions over this," Hamilton said. "We had about 25% of churches who left, but the churches who remained are churches who said we can disagree about this and still be one church."
The change is especially important for the younger generation of believers.
“The younger generations, most of them, are not interested in being a part of a community that excludes their gay and lesbian friends," Hamilton said. "And I think this is really important for our denomination that we have this sense of we may not always agree, but we are going to agree to love one another."
