Cincinnati--Two weeks after standing trial before a seven-member church tribunal, a Cincinnati Presbyterian minister was rebuked for defying church law by officiating at marriages for same-sex couples.

The Permanent Judicial Commission of the Cincinnati Presbytery announced their 6‑1 decision against Rev. Stephen Van Kuiken of Mount Auburn Presbyterian Church on April 21.

Van Kuiken was found guilty of violating the church constitution’s prohibition against marrying same-gender couples, but not guilty of a second charge of ordaining sexually active gays and lesbians as elders and deacons.

The commission cited state law forbidding same sex marriage as part of the reason Van Kuiken was “in clear violation of the Scripture and the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church USA.”

Since the church’s Directory of Worship defines marriage as a “civil contract” between a man and a woman, the church “expects the minister and the couple to abide by the legal requirements of the state,” the commission said.

The commission told Van Kuiken that if he performs services of holy union, he must “take special care to avoid any confusion of such services with Christian marriages.” Further, the commission told Van Kuiken to “instruct same-sex couples that the [holy union] service to be conducted does not constitute a marriage ceremony and should not be held out as such.”

Following the announcement, Van Kuiken said that he would appeal the guilty verdict. He also vowed to continue both ordaining GLBT people and officiating at same-sex marriages.

“I intend to perform same-sex marriages because I have to be true to myself and my congregation,” Van Kuiken told the Cincinnati Post. “Our congregation does not back away from our policy of inclusion. We believe that gay and lesbian people should be involved in the totality of the church.”

"I intend to appeal the guilty verdict because I believe that this decision is theologically wrong and contrary to the Scriptures," he said.

His appeal would go within 45 days to the denomination's next highest level of courts, the permanent judicial commission of the synod that oversees Presbyterian churches in Ohio and Michigan.

Several members of Mount Auburn Church stood by their pastor and his wife at Blue Ash Presbyterian Church when the verdicts were announced on Monday afternoon. Mount Auburn has a long history of full inclusion of GLBT people, and members said they would continue to support their pastor even if he was defrocked.

Prior to Van Kuiken’s trial on April 8, Mount Auburn members reiterated their church’s support for ordaining “self-acknowledged gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons, sexually active or not, following the same criteria used to call heterosexual persons to our church leadership.”

Mount Auburn will also continue to authorize and conduct marriage services for same-sex couples, the church said.

More questions than answers

The “rebuke,” which was the least severe penalty Van Kuiken could have received, left people on both sides of the issue concerned that the trial’s outcome leaves more questions than answers, and keeps the door open for future charges to be filed against Van Kuiken.

Acknowledging that the rebuke was somewhat encouraging since he could have been suspended or removed from ministry, Van Kuiken added that the verdict “leaves him in limbo” since he has made it clear that he will continue to perform same-sex marriages despite the commission’s ruling.

“The Presbyterian Church constitution is every bit in conflict with the Holy Scripture today as it was when it mandated the subjugation of women and people of color, and supported slavery,” Van Kuiken said after the verdict. “I believe that my refusal to be complicit in committing spiritual violence and my resolve to challenge the unjust laws that subjugate gays and lesbians, demonstrates the utmost regard for the Scriptures and for the Presbyterian Church.”

Expects to be charged again

Van Kuiken said he expects to be charged and tried again by the tribunal because of his refusal to follow their directive to “perform marriage ceremonies only for a man and a woman.”

Elder Charles H. Brown, the commission’s lone dissenter, argued vehemently that the rebuke against Van Kuiken “does not resolve this case.”

“A simple rebuke will not correct or restrain wrongdoing, restore the unity of the church by removing the causes of discord and division or secure the just, speedy, and economical determination of proceedings,” Brown wrote in his dissent.

Predicting that the church “will be forced to go through this exercise again,” Brown added that nothing short of Van Kuiken’s suspension would resolve this case.

Van Kuiken was the first minister to be tried for marrying gay and lesbian couples after conservative Presbyterian activists filed complaints in about 20 locations around the country. Some complaints were investigated and dismissed for lack of evidence, and others are still pending.

But Rev. El White, the director and founder of Soulforce, Inc., a national interfaith organization that organized support for Van Kuiken during his trial, said that the Mount Auburn minister is in good company as he follows in the footsteps of some prominent civil disobedients.

“Rev. Van Kuiken is carrying on the work of people like Martin Luther King, who stated that one who breaks an unjust law must do so openly, and with a willingness to accept the penalty,” White said. “We applaud his courage, his commitment to justice and his willingness to stand firm and stand tall when faced with tremendous pressure to compromise his integrity and conform to church politics.”

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