"The Lord has led me here to share my deep truth with you. It's time," Meyer told her congregation on January 3. "I have been an ordained UMC pastor for 25 years. At last, I am choosing to serve in that role with full authenticity, as my genuine self, as a woman who loves and shares my life with another woman."

Meyer explained that she had remained single for 20 years of ministry, but a few years ago fell in love with her partner, Mary. "In the midst of much prayer, at long last Mary and I decided that the Holy Spirit had whirled us around and brought us together; that our relationship is a holy part of God's calling on our lives." ...