Methodist pastor won't quit voluntarily for officiating gay son's wedding

[joeybee12]

A United Methodist minister punished for officiating at his gay son's wedding says he wants to stay with the church and push for change.

"I cannot voluntarily surrender my credentials because I am a force now for many, for tens of thousands of LGBT members in our church," said the Rev. Frank Schaefer at a news conference Monday in Philadelphia.

He's been ordered to surrender his religious credentials by Thursday if he can't adhere to church doctrine.

Schaefer is serving a 30-day suspension from his central Pennsylvania church for leading his son's 2007 wedding in Massachusetts. The Methodist church accepts gay and lesbian members but rejects the practice of homosexuality as “incompatible with Christian teaching.”

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/12/16/21924557-methodist-pastor-wont-quit-voluntarily-for-officiating-gay-sons-wedding