Minister defends performing gay marriages

<p>The church trial of Presbyterian minister Jane Adams Spahr opened in Santa Rosa this morning with the evangelist defending her decision to perform marriage ceremonies for gay couples.</p><p>Spahr, 63, who leads a a lesbian and gay ministry based in Rochester, N.Y., is accused of violating Presbyterian church law that defines a marriage as a “gift of God” and a “contract between a man and a woman.”</p><p>Spahr was the only witness in the morning session of the trial, set at the Church of the Roses so it would be at a neutral site.</p><p>Before a tribunal of seven ministers and elders of the Presbyterian Church, Spahr responded to questions from her own attorney, Timothy Cahn of San Francisco.</p><p>Asked why she chose to stay in the Presbyterian Church, Spahr responded: “Because I love God. I want the church to be a place of hospitality and a place of love and justice.</p><p>Spahr, herself a lesbian activist from San Rafael, freely admitted that she performed the marriage ceremonies for lesbian couples and said she did so because they asked her to.</p><p>“For them to come to me was a great honor,” said the evangelist.</p><p>The case is drawing national attention as it reflects the painful schism among churches across the nation over gay marriage.</p><p>Spahr, a grandmother, could be removed from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) ministry if the church tribunal finds her actions violated the church Constitution’s Book of Order.</p><p>The highest Presbyterian court ruled in 2000 that ministers may bless same-sex unions but cannot equate them with marriage. Blessings can be given to many things, such as a baby, a home, a vehicle or a human relationship, Conover said.</p><p>Spahr previously has said she was proud to officiate at the ceremonies involving two lesbian couples: one in Rochester on Aug. 21, 2004, the other near Guerneville on May 27, 2005.</p><p>The case against Jane Spahr dates back to March 2004, when a Seattle Presbyterian minister, the Rev. James Berkley, then leader of a group that opposes the ordination of homosexuals, notified church officials that Spahr had allegedly married two men in Canada.</p><p>The church launched an investigation and subsequently charged Spahr with the two lesbian ceremonies conducted in the United States.</p><p>The trial resumed at 1 p.m.</p>