SAME-SEX MARRIAGES NOT A LOCAL METHODIST ISSUE

United Methodist ministers in Cape Girardeau don't believe that blessing homosexual marriages will be an issue decisive enough to create a split in the denomination.

The issue is not a problem in Southeast Missouri and likely will never be one. Missouri does not legally recognize the marriages of same-sex couples.

"It's not an issue we are dealing with here," said the Rev. Dr. Larry Gallamore, pastor of Grace United Methodist Church. "It's more of a localized issue in California."

On Saturday, 90 United Methodist ministers gathered in Sacramento, Calif., to bless a "holy union" ceremony of a lesbian couple. The blessing was given in defiance of church law, and the ministers likely will be removed from their jobs.

However, no action had been filed by Tuesday.

The act of "ecclesiastical disobedience" was organized to show support for homosexual couples who seek the church's blessing for marriage.

But the Methodist Book of Disciplines, similar to a list of church laws, says that "Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers and shall not be conducted in our churches." The statement was added to the disciplines in 1996 by the denomination's legislative body.

The Rev. John Gregory, pastor of Maple United Methodist Church, said area ministers have agreed to uphold the disciplines of the church. Few in the area are faced with the dilemma of being asked to bless a same-sex union.

Although Southeast Missouri is a conservative area, that doesn't mean the issue will never come up here, said the Rev. Brent Mustoe, district superintendent for the Farmington-Cape Girardeau region.

"You'd like to think that it might be more of a problem in California, but it happened first in Nebraska. It can happen anywhere."

Last year a minister from Nebraska was found guilty for performing a blessing for a lesbian couple in his congregation. A minister in Chicago likely faces similar charges and could be defrocked after a church trial, which is set to begin in a few weeks.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.