Defrocked pastor is gay hero in Atlanta

Monday, June 25, 2007
Greg Bluestein
Associated Press

Atlanta- The tattered cloth scraps started arriving at St. John's Lutheran Church shortly after the Rev. Bradley Schmeling took his stand against the church hierarchy, each with an embroidered or drawn message of support.
"God is with you. Make fire in Atlanta," reads one of the hundreds of prayer cloths. "All love is holy," says another.

Schmeling's refusal last year to resign after telling a church bishop he was in a gay relationship has earned him quite a following.

Rest here. It includes "He served as a grand marshal for Sunday's annual gay pride parade in Atlanta, one of the nation's largest such festivals."

An interesting outreach strategy...