For making a brief TV appearance as a drag queen, wearing a massive pink wig and a sequined leotard, an American Protestant pastor was removed from his ministry, the local leader of his congregation confirmed to AFP on Wednesday.
Craig Duke, 62, made a very noticed passage last month – at least by some of his horrified parishioners – on the HBO channel’s show “We’re Here”: we see him wearing high-heeled thigh-high boots, a crucifix around the neck, with lipstick and thick purple eyeshadow.
Following this media moment that he described as “powerful spiritual moment”, in an interview with Religion News Service, the pastor of the United Methodist Church found himself embroiled in heated controversy.
No disciplinary offense
Faced with “many calls and very critical emails“, but also of support, the local leader of this church decided to” relieve Pastor Duke of his pastoral mission “, planing his salary and forbidding him to provide religious services in his church near Evansville, in the northern state of Indiana.
However, Mitch Gieselman said in a letter to parishioners that Pastor Duke “was not found responsible forno breach of disciplinary regulations“of the United Methodist Church.
The pastor’s fate aroused a surge of emotion, illustrated by a online jackpot which totaled nearly $ 60,000 on Wednesday of donations. “May the bridge of understanding and acceptance of the LGBTQ community extend through our community and beyond,” the pastor and his companion said on Wednesday in a statement.
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