Paul Milford Abels (1937–1992) was an American

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

minister who became the country's first openly

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

minister with a congregation in a major

Christian denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct Religion, religious body within Christianity that comprises all Church (congregation), church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadersh ...

. He served as

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

from 1973 to 1984 of the

Washington Square Methodist Episcopal Church Washington Square Methodist Episcopal Church was a United Methodist church which was located at 135 West Fourth Street in New York City's Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan i ...

in the

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...

area of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Early life and career

Paul Milford Abels was born on August 4, 1937, in Yellow Springs,

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

, to Carrie Mae (Atkins) and James Albert Abels. He attended public schools in Yellow Springs and Cedarville, Ohio. As a teenager, he was editor-in-chief of his

high school newspaper A student publication is a media outlet such as a newspaper, magazine, television show, or radio station produced by students at an educational institution. These publications typically cover local and school-related news, but they may also repor ...

, and wrote a column in the local newspaper, the ''Cedarville Herald''. After graduating from high school, Abels moved to

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

, to study at the College of Liberal Arts at

Drew University Drew University is a private university in Madison, New Jersey. Drew has been nicknamed the "University in the Forest" because of its wooded campus. As of fall 2020, more than 2,200 students were pursuing degrees at the university's three sch ...

, from which he received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree in 1959. He was commissioned as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

in 1961 by the Newark Conference of the

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

. Abels went on to attend Drew Theological School, from which he received a

Master of Divinity For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and di ...

degree in 1963. He was ordained as an

elder An elder is someone with a degree of seniority or authority. Elder or elders may refer to: Positions Administrative * Elder (administrative title), a position of authority Cultural * North American Indigenous elder, a person who has and ...

the same year. He received a

Master of Sacred Music The Master of Sacred Music (MSM or SMM) degree is a two to five-year post-baccalaureate degree that combines academic and musical studies. The closure of graduate programs in organ performance across America has made the MSM increasingly the ''de fa ...

degree from

United Theological Seminary United Theological Seminary is a United Methodist seminary in Trotwood, Ohio. Founded in 1871 by Milton Wright (father of the Wright brothers), it was originally sponsored by the Church of the United Brethren in Christ. In 1946, members ...

in 1965 following approval of his thesis entitled ''An Ecumenical Manual of Song for Young Churchmen''. He served as music minister for churches in Towaco and Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey, and as

West New York West New York is a town in the northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, situated upon the New Jersey Palisades. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 52,912. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates ...

, New Jersey. From 1964 to 1969, Abels worked for the

National Council of Churches The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, usually identified as the National Council of Churches (NCC), is the largest ecumenical body in the United States. NCC is an ecumenical partnership of 38 Christian faith groups in the Un ...

(NCC) in

, initially as a program assistant in

youth ministry Youth ministry, also commonly referred to as youth group, is an age-specific religious ministry of faith groups or other religious organizations, usually from ages 12 to 30, whose mission is to involve and engage with young people who attend th ...

, and later as director for the arts. He compiled and edited ''Anthology of Religious Folk Music'' and ''New Hymns for a New Day'', published by the NCC, which included some of his own

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...

s. After leaving the NCC, he worked in performing arts

management Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a Government agency, government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includ ...

. He founded Provo Muse, the first non-profit performing arts management company in the United States, served as the director of

church music Church music is Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn. History Early Christian music The on ...

for Galaxy Music Corporation, and was the director of the Westbeth Artists Housing Community.

Pastorate of Washington Square Methodist Episcopal Church

Abels was appointed pastor of

in 1973, a year after having joined the congregation. One of the most progressive congregations in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, it was often called the "Peace Church" as it was well known for its anti-war activism, particularly during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

. It has also been described as "a sanctuary for gay New Yorkers" as a result of its large

and lesbian membership. As pastor, Abels launched a $1.5-million restoration campaign for the church, which had a $450,000 endowment. In 1977, Abels

came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...

as gay to the church in a

sermon A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. ...

at the Education Conference on Homosexuality and the United Methodist Church, a conference organized by the gay Methodist organization Affirmation which was being hosted at Washington Square Methodist Episcopal Church. The first openly gay minister with a congregation in a major

in the United States, Abels said that his having come out was met with little disapproval at the time. In the same year, he performed several "covenant ceremonies" for same-sex couples, which were similar to marriage ceremonies, causing public controversy after having been brought to public attention by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

''. He had sought and received approval from the church's board prior to performing the services. These events were taking place the wake of a defeated motion at the

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...

's 1976 General Conference that sought to reverse the conference's 1972 condemnation of

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

. At the same conference, delegates voted to strengthen language in the '' Book of Discipline'' prohibiting same-sex marriage and to prohibit the funding of "any 'gay' causes or group, or otherwise sing churchfunds to promote the acceptance of homosexuality." The year following Abels' coming out, his

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

, W. Ralph Ward, with the support of his cabinet, asked Abels to take a

leave of absence The labour law concept of leave, specifically paid leave or, in some countries' long-form, a leave of absence, is an authorised prolonged absence from work, for any reason authorised by the workplace. When people "take leave" in this way, they are ...

for a year. There was precedent within the New York Conference of the United Methodist Church for taking such an action; in 1977,

Edward Egan Edward Michael Egan (April 2, 1932 – March 5, 2015) was an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport in Connecticut from 1988 to 2000 and as archbishop of the Archdiocese of New York i ...

of Metropolitan‐Duane United Methodist Church was asked to take a leave of absence for a year after coming out as gay, before ultimately retiring. Abels, however, refused to do so and the matter was brought before the conference's board of ministry. In a 23–15 vote, the board decided that it "affirmed his ministry", in essence overruling the bishop. There being no charges against Abels before the board of ministry or the church courts, Ward later recommended reappointing Abels, though Ward noted that the conference's action "was in no way an approval of homosexuality as a life style". Leaders of Good News, a conservative

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

Methodist group, called for Ward's resignation after he was unsuccessful in dismissing Abels. Ward brought the matter before the Judicial Council, the church's highest court, which in 1979 ruled that Abels was in "good standing" and, therefore, the church's ''Book of Discipline'' mandated that he be reappointed to his pastorate.

Retirement from active ministry

At the age of 46 years, Abels took

early retirement Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

from the pastorate in June 1984, the month following the General Conference's 568–404 decision to prohibit the

ordination Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform v ...

and appointment of "self-avowed, practicing homosexuals" to the pastorate. He moved to Rensselaerville, New York, with Thom Hunt, his partner of approximately six years, where they restored Catalpa House and opened it as a

bed and breakfast Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...

. He was the Executive Director of Equinox Services Agency in Albany, New York, from 1984 to 1989. Abels died of complications from AIDS on March 12, 1992. A memorial service was held at Washington Square Methodist Episcopal Church on March 22 and another service was held a month later at Rensselaerville Presbyterian Church. Twenty-five years after Abels' death, the New York Annual Conference (NYAC) of the United Methodist Church adopted a petition recognizing that "a terrible injustice was done to these two dedicated and faithful pastors gan and Abels and that the conference's "actions and the subsequent unstated policy of 'don't ask, don't tell' in the NYAC did untold damage to

LGBTQI ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

clergy and laity in the NYAC". The conference "express ddeep remorse for the harm done and the pain experienced by Rev. Dr. Ed Egan and his companion, Russ Morin, and by Rev. Paul Abels and his companion Thomas Hunt and ask dfor God's forgiveness and theirs".

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abels, Paul 1937 births 1992 deaths 20th-century American clergy 20th-century Methodist ministers AIDS-related deaths in New York (state) American arts administrators American Methodist hymnwriters American United Methodist clergy Christians from New York (state) Christians involved in controversies Clergy from New York City Drew University alumni American gay men LGBT Methodist clergy LGBT people from New York (state) LGBT people from Ohio People from Rensselaerville, New York People from Yellow Springs, Ohio United Theological Seminary alumni

Early life and career

Pastorate of Washington Square Methodist Episcopal Church

Retirement from active ministry

See also

Notes

References