Church leaders are denouncing a decision by World Vision, one of the country's top Christian charities, to hire applicants in same-sex marriages.
The organization's president, Richard Stearns, announced the new policy in a letter to staff on Monday.
He said the move was not "symbolic not of compromise but of [Christian] unity," adding that the new policy defers to the authority of local churches on the issue.
"This is not an endorsement of same-sex marriage," Newsmax quoted Stearns. "We have decided we are not going to get into that debate. Nor is this a rejection of traditional marriage, which we affirm and support."
But faith leaders like Franklin Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan's Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, dismissed Stearn's claims.
"World Vision maintains their decision is based on unifying the church -- which I find offensive -- as if supporting sin and sinful behavior can unite the Church," Franklin wrote on his Facebook page.
In addition, the Assemblies of God is calling for its members to shift their support to other charities.
Even so, Stearns said the board of the non-profit had been praying about the decision for years, and they hoped the change would keep the focus on their outreach to the poor and avoid controversy.
A fifth of the World Vision funding comes from the federal government.
