Karen P. Oliveto

I received a print copy of this book from its publisher through a giveaway they had on GoodReads.com and the following is my honest opinion.

Being a child of the 1950’s the possibility of any member of the LGBTQ being accepted as belonging to any of the major religions had been looked at with an unbelievable amount of distain, and members got treated liked they’ve been lepers or suffering from the black plaque.

The mysterious question which has for the longest period of time kept on popping up in my mind is, that if we’re all supposedly have been created in his image then why is everyone not being accepted with open arms for who and what they are?

Luckily, little by little, LGBTQ members are finally seeing this acceptance in the 21st century.

Elliott Kukla and Reuben Zellman are the first transgender rabbis ordained by the Reform movement in 2006 and 2010, respectively. And Emily Aviva Kapor got ordained privately by a Conservadox rabbi in 2005, and began living as a woman in 2012, making her the first openly transgender female rabbi in Judaism.

Rev. Dr. Cameron Partridge on Sunday, June 22, 2014 made history as the first openly transgender priest to preach at the historic Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., in honor of Pride Month; where the Rt. Rev Gene Robinson who is the first openly gay priest known to be elected a bishop, had presided at this historical service.

Now in her book, “Together at the Table”, we’re introduced to Karen Oliveto, the first openly LGBTQ person to be elected a bishop in The United Methodist Church. Needless to say, her appointment hasn’t come easy as it had been marked by an enormous amount controversy, especially by those who determent to remain adherent to their decades old beliefs regarding such individuals even being just a member of a congregation. And while some congregants had been mere opponents of her elevation to that of becoming a bishop, others had been fanatically against it to the extend they were intimidating aggressive actions against her.

The event of Bishop Oliveto’s elevation to her position has caused an almost monumental rift within the denominational body of the church itself, causing fractional differences between its traditionalistic and more accepting members and congregations, and possibly resulting in these groups breaking off from the whole church so they can live in harmony amongst themselves.

Luckily for the United Methodist Church, Bishop Oliveto is deeply committed in seeing that there’s a unity between everyone in the church which goes beyond their differences. She’s committed in seeing everyone accepts that not only are we simply all created in God’s imagine, there needs to be a sense of compassion between everyone regardless of who or what someone might be.

In the end, we’ve got to remember that a house divided cannot stand, and we’ve got to thank Bishop Oliveto in wanting to make sure that the house of the United Methodist Church doesn’t meet this fate; but is able to remain standing and thriving for eons to come. So in the end, for her commitment regarding this massive endeavor and for sharing her story in this well-written, uplifting book, I’m giving the Bishop and her book, the 5 STARS they both richly deserve.… (mehr)

My husband is a retired United Methodist (UM) pastor. He started seminary in 1972, the year the UM General Conference first created the statements to guide the church in social piety called The Social Principles.

The Principles assert that all persons are 'of sacred worth'. It "affirms that sexuality is God's good gift to all persons." They also state that homosexuality is incompatible with Biblical teaching and they support civil laws defining marriage as the union between one man and one woman. "Self-avowed practicing homosexuals" are barred from ordination by the church rules in its Discipline.

How does one put aside one's sexual identity and desire for intimacy and love? asked my husband's fellow seminary student, a self-avowed homosexual.

The UM church is a world-wide organization. Some nations support the current language of the Principles, while conferences or churches support full inclusion of LGBT persons. Expectations of a split within the denomination has increased over the years. The denomination is considering allowing individual churches or conferences to make their own decisions.

In 2016 the Western Jurisdiction of the UM church elected a bishop who is a married lesbian, Rev. Karen Oliveto. The Judicial Council ruled that although she is in violation of the Discipline, she also was legally elected and the Jurisdiction can only act to remove her.

Has the time come for the church to take a stand, once and for all, to embrace and love all persons, or will we untie the "United" in our name?

When I saw Westminster Press had published a book by Bishop Oliveto I had to read it and was pleased to be granted the e-galley through NetGalley.

The book relates Bishop Oliveto's faith journey and pastoral career. She writes in a very accessible and direct way.

She confesses her own challenges as she learned to be inclusive and open to diversity while serving as senior pastor at Glide Memorial in San Francisco, a predominately Afrocentric church in the Tenderloin district. The community was guided by a saying, "We are all in recovery from something," uniting people in their admission of imperfection and struggle for wholeness.

I appreciate her candor regarding the need for perpetual self-assessment, asking "Is what I am saying, is what I am doing, increasing compassion and connection in the world, or rupturing relationship with others, with the divine, with the earth, with myself?" I know from experience that one must be vigilant for it is easy to fall into stereotyping or group-think.

Bishop Oliveto writes, "I believe that we are currently facing an empathy deficit in this country and, unfortunately, also in the church." I remember in the 1960s hearing the saying "don't judge a man until you walk in his shoes." Today we don't want to even try to understand each other. Race, economic class, and gender have become reasons to exclude people. Our current government leaders foster this division and labeling of the other.

"We have lost the capacity to listen to one another, to be open to the truth another brings to the conversation. We stand ready to rebut, rebuke, and reject." We see this daily on Facebook, Twitter, in the news. I have seen it in the local church as well, causing schisms and division.

Bishop Oliveto affirms that accepting everyone to the Communion table is messy; allowing everyone a voice is messy. Ambiguity can be frightening. Dispensing with surety and black and white rules requires living on faith.

But isn't that what faith is all about--being willing to step into the unknown, trusting in God?

"We don't really believe in the Trinity, otherwise we wouldn't have such a hard time accepting diversity," Bishop Oliveto quotes Episcopal Bishop C. Andrew Doyle's challenge to the UM Council of Bishops. We love diversity in nature, the flowers and animals. yet we are only comfortable with people 'like us.'

Research has shown that diversity in experience and insights lead to better decisions and creativity in the workplace. If the church puts love at its center, Rev. Oliveto says, we can remain in relationship. Unity does not require uniformity. We can be stronger and better together.

Bishop Oliveto has a vision of people gathering at the table, all kinds of people with conflicting beliefs and backgrounds, breaking bread and listening, learning. A healthy community based on love.

During my husband's career, we saw persons harmed by exclusion, a transgender student pressured to conform, churches schism over the Social Principles, pastors facing charges for being gay. Will the church reflect the intolerance of secular society and continue to divide into "us and them"? Or can we pattern The Beloved Community, as Bishop Oliveto dreams?… (mehr)