A church in Indiana is to close at the end of the year following a mass walkout by members prompted by gay choir director Adam Fraley being forced to resign, reports LGBTQ Nation.

Back in January, First United Methodist Church in Alexander lost 80 percent of its congregation after Pastor David Mantor declined to rehire Fraley who had been in the position for six years.

Dr. David Steele, a member of the church for nearly 60 years, was also fired from his leadership position after he advocated on behalf of Fraley.

However, Mantor believes that the closure is due to a “downward spiral” of membership and donations across the whole United Methodist church for the past 30 years.

Watch an interview with Fraley and Steele, AFTER THE JUMP…

The United Methodist Church states that gay men and women are welcome but that they are forbidden from being “certified as candidates, ordained as ministers, or appointed to serve in The United Methodist Church”. UMC also believes the practice of homosexuality is “incompatible with Christian teaching” and states that ceremonies that “celebrate homosexual unions” shall not be allowed in churches. 

In October, the Judicial Council of the United Methodist Church upheld an appeals panel ruling reinstating pastor Frank Schaefer, who was defrocked for officiating at his son’s wedding to another man in 2007.