After longtime pastor Selden “Dee” Kelley was removed in August 2023 in a dispute over his support for LGBTQ+ inclusion, the congregation at San Diego First Church of the Nazarene in Point Loma shrank dramatically — from more than 300 members to just over 100.
Nearly two years later, church leaders say attendance is beginning to rebound as they work to restore unity in a community divided by the controversy.
“We lost people because they were so disgusted with the overall leadership of our denomination,” said Dean Nelson, director of the journalism program at Point Loma Nazarene University and a longtime local church congregant and a member of its board.
Kelley, who led the church for 17 years, was removed by the Southern California District leadership of Church of the Nazarene after a denominational trial found him “in violation of denominational clergy standards.”
The allegation, which came after a complaint was filed by a group of church elders outside the First Church congregation, stemmed from a brief essay he wrote advocating a more inclusive stance on LGBTQ+ issues — a position at odds with the denomination’s official doctrine, which defines marriage strictly as between a man and a woman.
“All this happened simply because I wrote a 2½-page article,” Kelley said.
The essay, titled “A Hope for Change,” was among 90 submissions that appeared in the book “Why the Church of the Nazarene Should Be Fully LGBTQ+ Affirming,” edited by theologian Thomas Jay Oord. In it, Kelley urged the denomination to adopt a more inclusive view of same-sex relationships and human sexuality.
Selden “Dee” Kelley, former pastor at San Diego First Church of the Nazarene in Point Loma, is pictured in December 2023. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
According to Nelson, the ruling against Kelley contrasted with the values of the local congregation.
“I would describe [the First Church congregation] as loving,” Nelson said. “They’re not satisfied with easy answers and aren’t afraid to engage with complex issues.
“Our pastor made a very innocuous request to say ‘We really ought to be thinking and talking about the gay issue in a healthier way.’ … The majority of congregants agreed with Kelley’s position on this social issue. While there were dissenting opinions, this wasn’t something they wanted to leave the church over.”
Kelley agreed. “It was a congregation that held very diverse theological, political and social viewpoints, but the value of community and the common mission of lifting Christ made it a place I would have attended even if I wasn’t the pastor,” he said.
“Pastor Dee is a model of servant leadership,” said Scott McGowan, who has attended First Church of the Nazarene regularly since 2018 with his wife and their children. “I don’t personally know a single person who expressed otherwise or thought he should lose his ordination.”
Kelley’s removal and the fallout caused significant division, with many longtime parishioners distancing themselves from the church.
Since James Kinzler was named pastor in August 2024, the church has seen some recovery, with attendance growing back to about 200 members.
“Growing the church and getting back to its former size is less a priority than restoring a sense of unity and mission and church health,” Kinzler said.
McGowan said he and his family stayed because of the church’s board and community.
“We have a core community here,” he said. “We were [determined] to stay in the struggle, support the Kelleys, be a church family. We see what happened as deeply unjust, but we are blessed to be part of this next chapter of a loving community.”
The church’s 2024 Christmas program, which featured more than 100 children from the greater Point Loma community in the choir, brought renewed optimism, and the upcoming Vacation Bible School from Monday through Friday, July 21-25, is expected to have a high turnout of children from Point Loma and Ocean Beach.
“Weekly attendance during and after Dee’s trial was a bit lower, but Kinzler’s first Sunday was a packed house and attendance has seemed to remain strong since,” McGowan said.
Kinzler said he doesn’t think the Kelley controversy is casting a shadow on the church, “but it’s a part of our story. I’ve tried, and our church board has tried, to be very transparent. How do we become more the community that God is calling us to be with this reality of what we’ve been?”
Kinzler has a long association with First Church of the Nazarene. His father was interim pastor before Kelley’s arrival, and his parents attended services for years, often making the drive from their home in Temecula.
“What remains striking to me is somebody asked [Kinzler during the hiring process] ‘Why do you want to come with everything that has gone on?’” recalled Debbie Holly, a congregant since 1976 and a church board member. “He said ‘I know what you’ve been through and I believe there are wonderful days ahead and this church can come out of this situation stronger and better.’”
“Who we have as a pastor now is very much in the spirit of Dee Kelley,” Nelson said.
Still, questions linger for current and former members about the future of their faith community.
“Anybody who’s got gay friends or relatives, you don’t want to look like you’re supporting the dumb positions the [district] leadership has taken,” Nelson said. “Do I stay because this is where my well has been dug? Or do I leave in solidarity with my gay brothers and sisters?”
The division in First Church of the Nazarene mirrors broader debates over LGBTQ+ inclusion in other denominations, such as the 2022 split within United Methodist Church, which led to the creation of the more conservative Global Methodist Church.
The First Church board discussed and ultimately decided against pursuing a similar split.
Kelley is no longer a full-time pastor but has remained involved in the greater Nazarene community as a writer and speaker. He also conducts dream interpretation sessions and workshops for individuals and groups.
“I support anyone who feels their worship and community experience should be congruent with their internal compass of how things ought to be,” Kelley said. “Bringing about change that moves people toward a better expression of love — wouldn’t it be nice if you had the opportunity to do that in the context where change would make a difference? It’s why I stayed within the Nazarene church. I felt I had a stronger voice within.”