Clergy Sexual Conduct

Child Abuse
The abuse of a child awakens in us an intensity and breadth of emotion that is beyond adequate expression. Perhaps this crime moves us so personally because we remember what it was like to hold our own children for the first time — the overwhelming feeling of love and the deepest parental instinct to nourish, teach and protect. It is shocking, almost inconceivable, that someone would hurt a child. It is the ultimate form of betrayal.

Please Note: This is a historical document of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
and while it is still a useful, valid resource, references made to unit and staff names,
publications, financial figures, etc., may be out of date.
Please refer to www.elca.org/safeplace for the most current information.

1. Introductory Matters 2. Definitions 3. Policy and Principles of the Church 4. Purposes, Scope, and Application 5. Standards of Conduct for Clergy 6. Standards of Conduct for Lay Persons 7. Church Structure Concerning Sexual Misconduct Allegations 8. Reports and Complaints of Sexual Misconduct 9. Investigation and Assessment of Complaints 1 0. Report and Determination 11. Recruiting and Selecting Parish Workers 12. Supervision of Church Workers and Children 13. Training and Education

1. Introductory Matters

1.01. Terms and Interpretation

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Dealing with Sexual Misconduct in the Church
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1993 Statement – PC(USA), pp. 572-574, 582

1991 Statement – PC(USA), pp. 76-92

“The abuse of power occurs when we use power to gratify our own needs rather than to carry out God's sacred trust. It happens when we refuse to own the responsibility of guardianship that comes with the privilege of power . . . until we understand that power is the responsibility to give, instead of the opportunity to take, we will continue to abuse it.”1

While persons set apart by the Church for ordained ministry are subject to all the frailties of the human condition and the pressures of society, they are required to maintain the highest standards of holy living in the world. The practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching. Therefore self-avowed practicing homosexuals1 are not to be certified as candidates, ordained as ministers, or appointed to serve in The United Methodist Church.2