http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/171961_dammann05.htmlWednesday, May 5, 2004
Lesbian Methodist minister from Ellensburg remains in limbo
Methodist court issues conflicting rulings
By SAM SKOLNIK
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
A series of conflicting rulings yesterday from the United Methodist Court did not answer the question of whether a lesbian pastor from Ellensburg who recently faced trial for her sexuality can remain in the ministry.
The court, meeting in the midst of the Methodist General Conference in Pittsburgh, ruled that it did not have the authority to review the March acquittal of the Rev. Karen Dammann, who was tried in Bothell by a church court.
Other rulings, however, may put Dammann's reappointment at risk. Perhaps the most significant decision yesterday concluded that in future cases, bishops could no longer legally appoint a minister found at church proceedings to be a "self-avowed, practicing homosexual."
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