“The governing body of the largest Mennonite denomination in the United States passed a resolution on Sunday (May 29) confessing to ‘committing violence against LGBTQ [Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning] people’ and committing to LGBTQ inclusion. In a separate vote, Mennonite Church USA also repealed instructions to pastors not to officiate at marriages between people of the same sex. The denomination’s official confession, which views marriage as between a man and a woman, remains unchanged. Nearly 83% of the delegates meeting at a special assembly in Kansas City, Missouri, voted in favor of repealing the guidelines barring marriage for same-sex couples, while the resolution for LGBTQ inclusion passed by a narrower margin, with 55.7% in favor. ‘Excluding LGBTQIA people from the church is a rejection of God’s joyous delight in the diversity of creation and a denial of the Divine image and breath animating all humankind,’ the Resolution for Repentance and Transformation reads. The resolution commits the denomination to forming an LGBTQ constituency group, creating denominational resources on repentance and reconciliation for local congregations and honoring LGBTQ people in future theological statements.”
“Mennonite Church USA,” Religion News Service, June 2, 2022