When he became the pastor of St. John's Lutheran Church in Atlanta six years ago, Bradley Smeling told the Bishop that although he was single at the time, he would not rule out the possibility of having a boyfriend in the future, and that he would be open if and when it happened. His congregation knew he was gay from the moment he took over the pulpit, and he was never in the closet.

Now that Pastor Schmeling has a boyfriend, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, an umbrella organization that includes St. John's, is crying foul and wants to have Past Shmeling disciplined for having gay sex. If the committee chooses to discipline Schmeling, he will be stripped of his clerical title and authority. He is prepared for either outcome, claiming, “What I hope is that in the disciplinary process, I will be able to tell my story, and shed light on the church’s policy, which I think is destructive to the ministry of the church because good and otherwise qualified people are eliminated from the ministry."

What we find funny about the whole thing is that just because you don't have a boyfriend doesn't mean you're not committing sodomy every weekend. The Lutheran Church is encouraging secret promiscuous sex in favor of public monogamy.

Atlanta gay pastor faces expulsion [Southern Voice]